Simon Peter: Prophetic or Pathetic? (Mark 8.27-37)

Introduction

 

The American author and humourist Samuel Langhorne Clemens (better known as Mark Twain) was once travelling home on a train from the north-eastern state of Maine after three weeks of very successful fishing. The thing is though, it was out of season for freshwater fishing in that part of the USA so it was strictly forbidden and, had he been found out, he would have faced a hefty fine.

But it didn’t stop him bragging about his very impressive but very illegal haul of trout to the only other passenger in the carriage. This fellow traveller grew increasingly ashen as he listened to Mark Twain’s cocky boasting. When Twain finally asked him what he did for a living, the stranger explained that he was the State Fisheries and Game Inspector. “And who are you?” he asked. “To tell the truth”, Twain said, “I’m the biggest liar in the whole of the United States!”

Have you ever opened your mouth and come out with something you instantly regretted? Maybe asking a woman if she is expecting a boy or a girl and learning from her reply that she is expecting neither because she is not pregnant…

Years ago, I remember getting collared by a very strange and extremely talkative man after church one Sunday, and when, after what seemed like half an hour, I finally escaped, I said to one of my colleagues, “Pfff, who’s that guy?” only to hear the reply, “Well, it’s my dad, who’s with us this weekend.”

Someone once said, “It is better to keep silent and be thought a fool than open it and remove all doubt.” And there are few people for whom that is more true than Simon Peter.

His mouth works twice as fast as his brain, so he routinely bursts out with impulsive remarks that surprise everyone. And that means two things; either his comments are highly ill-advised, or they’re absolutely inspired.

And the passage we’re going to look at today is ‘buy one, get one free’ time, because inside a minute Peter comes out with both the prophetic and the pathetic. And so, in a flash, he goes from hero to zero.

Let’s read Mark 8.27-37.

 

Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, ‘Who do people say I am?’

They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.’

‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’

Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah.’

Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him.

He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.

But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. ‘Get behind me, Satan!’ he said. ‘You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.’

Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?

 

Prayer…

 

Every commentary on the Gospel of Mark will tell you that this is a watershed moment. Up to this point, the first eight chapters of Mark have abounded with miracles but been short on teaching; but from here onwards, the last eight chapters will be packed with teaching and short on miracles. The first half of Mark is mostly set in the north where Jesus is popular; the second half is mostly set in the south where he is hated.

Everything in Mark’s Gospel before this scene explores the question, “who do we say Jesus is?” What do you think? All of us here this morning, every man, woman and child, has to answer this question for themselves.

Who is this man who forgives sinners, who feeds the crowds with a single packed lunch, who never loses an argument, who walks on water, who always knows what to do, who casts out demons, who heals the sick, who cleanses lepers, who tells the weather what to do, and even raises the dead? Who is this? A young man of 30 cannot possibly be as wise and influential as he is.

The demons all know; “I know who you are, the Son of God” they scream, but every time they speak, Jesus tells them to be quiet. So a rumour begins to spread that he must have had some sort of previous existence. People haven’t seen anything like the signs and wonders he does since Elijah’s day, so some think it’s a reincarnation of him. King Herod superstitiously thinks he is John the Baptist come back to haunt him. His family think he is mad.

But this question, “Who is Jesus?” is only at this point settled by Simon Peter, “You are the Messiah” he says. The Christ, the anointed one, the special one, the chosen one. You’re the one sent from heaven to earth that we’ve all been waiting for.

Well done, Peter! That’s the right answer. And from this point on, Mark’s interest is no longer “Who is Jesus?” From now on, it’s “Why will the Son of Man have to suffer?”

So in v31, in our passage, now we know who he is, Jesus begins to explain, for the first time, that he must go to Jerusalem and face the religious authorities. And they will mock him, and spit on him, and falsely accuse him, and condemn him to death, and there he will die and after three days rise again. Mark tells us that Jesus’ language is clear and explicit. “He spoke plainly about this,” says v32.

And in an instant, Peter goes from star of the week to dunce of the month. Because on hearing that Jesus expects to suffer on a cross and die, Peter grabs Jesus by the arm, and he takes him to one side, and he starts telling him off. Mark says, “He began to rebuke him.”

It’s so much harder to hear God’s voice when you have already decided what he can and cannot say.

Matthew’s Gospel records some of Peter’s words; listen to what comes out of his mouth. “Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” And then we are confronted by these jarring words. Jesus turns and says, “Get behind me, Satan! You do not have in mind the concerns of God.” 


It must have stung Peter to hear that. Let us not sanitise this or brush over it. This is a severe reprimand, isn’t it? I can just imagine everyone cringing and suddenly going very quiet as Jesus said it.

Why does he give Peter such a crushing telling off? If Peter gets his way here, there is no cross, no forgiveness, no resurrection, no salvation for the world and you and I would be lost in hell, without hope, forever. That’s why Jesus says to Peter what he said to the devil in the wilderness; “Out of my sight, Satan.” 

So then, how can Peter get it all so wrong so soon after getting it all so right?

 

1) Getting it so right

 

First of all, what’s going on here to inspire Peter to be so spot on?

Matthew’s version of this same incident tells us. On hearing Peter say, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” Jesus replies, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.”

No one told Peter who Jesus is. What Peter says here was not picked up in a theology course or read in a book somewhere. Nor did he mull this over for weeks and arrive at a logical conclusion. This was a spontaneous, prophetic revelation. He heard from God and spoke it out, as ever, without thinking any of his words through, or analysing the question, or giving it the slightest critical consideration.

We know this because just a few verses earlier in Mark 8, Jesus speaks to all the disciples, including Peter, and he says, with exasperation, “Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see? And ears but fail to hear?” And reminding them of the miracle of feeding the 5,000 days earlier, he says, “Don’t you remember? Do you still not understand?”

So when Peter comes out shortly after with this decisive testimony of who Jesus is, it’s clearly not because he’s an erudite man of great learning and understanding. He’s like Noel Gallagher’s description of his brother Liam. Peter is “a man with a fork in a world of soup.” Most of the time, Peter just doesn’t get it!

But God can speak to, and through, literally anyone. God wants a people who are filled with the Holy Spirit, who hear his voice, where sons and daughters prophesy, where old and young, and men and women alike are seeing visions and dreaming dreams. Speaking out what people need to hear, not what they want to hear. This is God's design for us.

In his book No Well-Worn Paths, Terry Virgo speaks of a visit to Metro Vineyard Church in Kansas City in 1995. For over half an hour, a preacher called Paul Cain spoke prophetic words over individuals in the 2,000 strong congregation. At one point, Terry and Wendy heard their names being spoken. They were asked to stand with their family. Paul Cain had, at that point, briefly met Terry and their eldest son Ben but he knew nothing else about the family. 

Nevertheless, he proceeded to name all five children accurately. He told their daughter Anna that she had a South-African in her heart. (She went on to marry South African church leader Steve van Rhyn). He gave words to their son Joel about a time he had spent in Africa. He even gave a word concerning their third son Simon, who was 16 years old at the time and had backslidden and drifted away from God. He quoted Jesus’ famous words; “Simon, Simon, Satan has desired to have you that he might sift you as wheat.” He spoke a word of promise and of recovery. Simon is now a church elder in Richmond on Thames.

About 10 years after this, I was at a ministry training day in Versailles, France. And at the end of one session, the main speaker said, “I’ve brought a team with me and they’ve been standing at the back, praying over you and asking God for words for you while I have been teaching. I thought, “I bet there won’t be a word for me. There’ll be words for everyone else, but not for me. There’s never anything for me.” 

So imagine my surprise when they come forward and this guy picks me out first and begins to prophesy over me, including details such as my name (though he did not know me), the very specific focus of my ministry (so specific I was the only person in the country his words applied to) and also the biggest issue I was struggling with at that time which was gladly submitting to the authority of people I did not respect.

A colleague of mine was there with me and he said, “Of the 6 billion people alive on planet Earth, if you asked me ‘who is that man describing?’ I would reply without hesitation, John Lambert.” It was scary, actually. I remember my heart thumping inside my chest as the fear of God came over me. I mean, what else was this guy going to reveal in front of all these people? The secrets of my heart were being laid bare.

Kathie and I got to know that man quite well; we invited him to speak at a couple of church weekends for us and each time, his accuracy in words of knowledge and prophetic revelation was truly amazing. I once asked him before he spoke at our gatherings if he wanted me to share any background about the church, where we were at, what we were facing… and he said, “No. The less I know about a church, the more accurate my prophetic ministry tends to be.”

In 2 Peter 1, Peter talks about how the prophetic works. Peter says, “prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” That word “carried along” in the original Greek is the same word as the one used in Acts 27 to describe a ship being driven across the sea by a storm.

This is surely Peter’s own experience here in Mark 8. “You are the Christ!” he hears himself say before the words have been processed in his brain. Peter’s tongue is being carried along by the Holy Spirit as he reveals Jesus’ true identity to the world.

We would so love to grow, as a church, in prophetic ministry. We believe God has more for us than we presently experience. The Bible says, “eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially prophecy.” This has been a prayerful preoccupation for our elders for some time now. How can we get released by God into a greater prophetic anointing? And we hope to announce soon how we intend to advance in these things.

 

2) Getting it so wrong

Well, how does Peter get it so wrong after getting it so right?

I don’t think it's his inability to comprehend. I think that if Peter says, “Lord, I’m not sure I really follow you. Did you just say go to Jerusalem and die? Can you just expand please, because I’m struggling to understand that…” If he says that I think Jesus just patiently explains.

The problem is surely his tone. Taking Jesus by the elbow, pulling him to one side and rebuking him, saying, “No way, this is not happening on my watch,” that’s the issue. We don’t get to lecture God on what he can and cannot do.

Some years after that (for me) breathtaking prophetic word over my life, in Versailles, I looked up the Facebook page of the guy who spoke so powerfully and insightfully into my life. I knew he travelled widely, including internationally. Where had he been? What was God doing? What uplifting testimonies of grace and blessing might I read about?

To my dismay, I found post after post on his page grumbling about politics. If he wasn’t criticising the government, or expressing his displeasure about a prominent politician, he’d be weighing in with a spiky comment about some political controversy. The whole tone was off - there was nothing about Jesus, nothing about the gospel, nothing about changed lives, just fanning the flames of contentious issues like Brexit.

It reminded me more of Peter taking Jesus aside and blurting out something misguided than Peter announcing to the world who Jesus is.

James 3 says, “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.”

I remember a listening to a well-known speaker at a conference, many of you will have heard of him, about an incident in his church. In mid-flow of a sermon, he noticed a man, about 25 years old, he had never seen before and he asked him to stand. What you could see is this: his hair was unkempt. He looked unwashed. He was a bit of a scruff. What you couldn’t see is this: he was a heroin addict, unable to sustain any kind of relationship. He was living in squalor, unemployed and frankly unemployable. And the word from God that day for him declared that the Lord saw in him a holy man.

Eight years later, the same man walked up to this church leader and asked, “do you remember me?” Honestly, the answer was “no.” He said, I’m sorry I can’t place you.” So, the young man told his story. When the preacher spoke that word, eight years earlier, that young man was instantly delivered of his secret heroin addiction. Within months he had got a job, settled down, met a girl, got married, and bought a house. For eight years, he had been clean, and walking with God. God’s word calls into being things that are not.

Several years later though, that same preacher got himself into a bit of a predicament because, months before the vote, he very publicly predicted who was going to win the US presidential election. “God has told me that so and so is going to win office. And he called it wrong.

Ecclesiastes 3 says there is a time to speak and a time to be silent. To his credit, that man publicly acknowledged his error, humbled himself, asked for forgiveness and said he’d learn from the experience.

 

Ending

 

But it just goes to show again how, like Peter, we in our day can also get it so right and get it so wrong.

This is why 1 Thessalonians 5 says, “Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. Do not scoff at prophecies, but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. Stay away from every kind of evil.”

1 Corinthians 14 explains that God expects us to examine prophetic contributions. “Two or three prophets should speak,” it says, “and the others should weigh carefully what is said.” And that’s what we try to do here whenever someone brings a word.

But as I close, let’s come back to learning from Simon Peter. What does this story tell us about our own discipleship? What is God saying to you this morning?

Are you prepared to publicly confess your faith in Christ? Are you prepared to take up your cross, to let your old life go? 

Are you too risk-averse, scared of getting it all wrong? Many of us are reluctant to share a word because of fear.  

- You’re less likely to mishear God if you have cultivated a heart of worship. 

- You’re less likely to get it all wrong if your mind is saturated with the word of God. No prophetic word will ever contradict or undermine holy scripture. As Voddie Baucham puts it, “The Lord told me” can never replace “The Bible says.” 

- You’re less likely to put your foot in it if you have cultivated a gentle and meek heart. Like Mary, the Lord's mother, who said, “I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be to me according to his word.”

And, more positively, are you eagerly desiring spiritual gifts, especially prophecy? Scripture commands it. Are you inclined to take a risk, and step out in faith? If you are then, like Peter, you’re a rock. And it’s on that kind of brave faith that Jesus is going to build his church.

Let’s stand to pray...

Sermon preached at King's Church Darlington, 14 September 2025

Simon Peter: Called (John 1.40-42 and Luke 5:1–11)

Introduction

 

Today, we’re beginning a new sermon series on the life of the disciple who, of the twelve chosen, Jesus decided to invest the most time with; Simon Peter.  Sometimes he’s called Simon. Sometimes he’s called Peter. Sometimes he’s called Simon Peter. And I’m going to use all three names interchangeably. 

 

We know more about him than any other of Jesus’ disciples. In every list of Jesus’ followers, his name always appears first. He is a natural leader. 

 

His personality and character and temperament come through very clearly. I think he’s the most loveable of Jesus’ twelve disciples. He’s like that kid in the class who puts his hand up when the teacher asks a question, even if he doesn’t know the answer. He's so over-eager.

 

He speaks before he thinks. He tries to persuade Jesus he’s wrong. He swears he will never deny Jesus – then does exactly that. He constantly makes mistakes. He is impetuous and spontaneous. Who cuts off a servant’s ear with a sword when Jesus is arrested? Peter. In many ways, he’s a total liability. 

 

Why have we chosen to devote a 15-week series to the life of this character? Because he’s all-in. He’s always up for a challenge. With Peter it’s all or nothing. He’s the only one who gets out of the boat to walk on water or jump in without asking himself if he can swim. He’s the one who, predictably, gets up and preaches on the Day of Pentecost. 

 

And as an eldership team, we sense a stirring from God to get ready for action. If we are ambitious to see the Lord’s glory, we’ve got to get our boots on and climb the mountain of transfiguration. If we want to see hundreds of people saved, we’ve got to get baptised in the Holy Spirit stand up and proclaim the gospel. And, as John Ortberg says, “if you want to walk on water you’ve got to get out of the boat.” 

 

Peter, of all Jesus’ followers, is action man - the one who grasps the nettle. What do you think? Do you think Jesus chose his disciples randomly or impulsively? Did he just round up a few blokes in the street who looked like they needed a bit of physical exercise? Did he just appeal for volunteers and hope for the best? I don’t think so.

 

No, in Luke 6 he spends all night in prayer before gathering his followers and selecting the twelve from among them. His choice is very carefully considered. Jesus is a head-hunter. 

 

What do you think Jesus is looking for? Giftedness? Experience? Straight “A”s from Academia? Does he cream off the top dozen students from Capernaum Bible College? None of the twelve Jesus appointed as apostles have any pastoral experience at all as far as we know. They are untrained, unqualified and untested. Complete novices. 

 

But Simon Peter especially, (as we’ll see) has certain qualities that set him apart. The first recorded meeting between Jesus and Simon Peter is in John’s Gospel, chapter 1. Simon has travelled some way south to the lowest point on the earth’s surface, where the Jordan meets the Dead Sea. There is a big noise about a revivalist preacher there called John the Baptizer. And Simon is hungry for more of God. He goes out of his way to be in on the new thing God is doing. 

 

Here’s what it says:

 

Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, ‘You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas’ (which, when translated, is Peter).

 

It's a bit unusual isn’t it? Imagine you meet some stranger who takes one look at you and says, ‘Your name is Jenny, but from now on your name is going to be Christine.’ You’d wonder what was going on. 

 

But this change is not because Jesus just likes the new name better. Simon [Shimon] means “reed.” It’s a thin, wispy, fragile and hollow long grass that bends and breaks easily. It’s literally easily swayed. Simon’s parents might just as well have named him ‘Weedy.’ And Jesus says, “No. You’re going to be Peter.” [It means Rock]. “Forget Weedy, I’m renaming you Rocky. By the time I’m finished with you, you're going to be tough and resilient and you’re going to endure.” What a rebrand!

 

What then are the key qualities that God is looking for in those he will decide to invest in? I’m going to name five and, listen, Simon Peter is not Superman; every one of these five characteristics (or dispositions) are ones you can have. And should cultivate.

 

But we won’t find them in John 1, we've got to fast forward to the next time Peter and Jesus cross paths, and it’s in Luke 5, back north in Galilee, where Simon is from. 

 

One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding round him and listening to the word of God. He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’

Simon answered, ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’

When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 

So they signalled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, ‘Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!’ 

For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, ‘Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.’ So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

 

This is where Jesus calls the first three of his twelve disciples and they together will make up his inner circle; Simon Peter, James and John. And I think it’s here that Jesus decides who he’s going to invest the most time with of all the twelve; Simon Peter. 

 

There are five things Jesus is looking for and he finds all of them in this man. The question I want you to consider with me today is this; does Jesus find these qualities when he looks at me?

 

1) Are you action-oriented?

 

Here’s the first. Jesus is looking for people who are oriented for action. Jesus is serious about building his church. He is absolutely going to get it done. And he knows he is not going to build anything with passive, indifferent, unresponsive people. 

 

Picture the scene. Jesus is speaking to a gathering crowd on a shore by the lake. 

If you look up Capernaum on Google Earth, you’ll see a crescent-shaped harbour just north of the town. It’s ideal for anchoring boats and drying fishing nets. It’s also a natural amphitheatre and this, I think, is the exact spot where this event happened.

Jesus is interesting to listen to, he is engaging, he is profound, and he talks like no one else. He is speaking with authority. The more he speaks, the more people press in to listen. 

 

A little group quickly becomes a big crowd and then, because Jesus is by the lakeside and people are edging closer and closer to hear him, Jesus ends up with water lapping around his ankles, then his calves, then his knees…

 

So he gets into a boat and says to Simon (v3) “Could you just push me out a bit away from the shore?” Why does he do that? It’s probably much easier for Jesus to just ease the boat out himself and climb in because Simon is at this time busy sorting out his nets on the shore; repairing holes, getting all the seaweed off and scrubbing them clean. He has been up all night and wants to get home to bed. He is hard at work.I would have left him be, but not Jesus! 

 

No, Jesus doesn’t hesitate to disturb him. Why is that? Because he wants to know if Simon is inclined to action or to idleness. Does he have a “can-do” attitude that will literally push the boat out? Or will Simon tut and roll his eyes and grumble that it’s “not my job”? 

 

Seeing the situation, Simon puts his net down, jumps to his feet and gets stuck in. He might have said, “Listen, can’t you see I’ve got my hands full?” He could have said, “Your crowd control logistics are not my problem!” He might even have said, “Why don’t you just cut your sermon short, so they go away.” 

 

But no. Simon is a man of action, of initiative. He’s a hands-on guy. As soon as he sees a difficulty everything inside him wants to jump up and help out. If Simon Peter just carries on picking seaweed off his nets that day and says to Jesus, “Get lost, I’m tired, I'm fed up and I’m busy!” I honestly wonder if we ever hear about him again. 

 

Do you pass test number one like Peter does? Are you action-oriented? Do you have a willing heart? Are you get-up-and-go? Or more slump down and doss? Are you inclined to get up on your feet and say, “Come on, let’s get this job done?” Or do you incline to being a passive spectator? 

 

2) Are you able to follow a leader?

 

The second quality Jesus is looking for comes in v4-5. “When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’ 

 

After Jesus finishes preaching, he asks Simon and his two companions to jump back in the boat, row out into deeper water and put down their nets that they have just finished cleaning. 

 

In v5 it says that they have just spent a completely unproductive night trying in vain to catch fish. “Simon says, ‘Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything…”

 

As experienced fishermen they know that the best time to fish is at night because it is quieter then and the fish are unable to see the nets in the dark. They have known this since day one in that job. And now, this carpenter-turned-preacher, who probably has no personal experience of fishing, has the temerity to suggest that they lower the nets again in broad daylight. 

 

We would understand Simon if he had said, “Why don’t you just stick to your job, and I’ll stick to mine?” Ready for bed after a discouraging night shift, I would frankly have found Jesus’ suggestion very irritating. But what does Simon Peter say in v5? “Because you say so, alright, I will let down the nets.” This is a reply of huge significance. 

 

Listen! I am 100% sure that Simon doesn’t want to do this. What is going through his mind as he starts wearily rowing away from the shore? “Why did I agree to do this? I should be home in bed now. I’m exhausted and discouraged. I’m going to be a laughing stock. This is insane. What am I doing?”

 

Now here’s the thing: many people are oriented for action; high energy people who get things done. But when it comes to following instructions, they are impossible. Jesus knows what he is doing, and he wants big egos with their own agendas who just do their own thing out of his inner circle. 

 

Jesus is looking for people who can follow orders, who are teachable and accept coming under authority. And Peter passes the second test. “Because you say so, I will let do it.” 

 

You will never reach your full potential in God if you cannot follow a leader. Everyone here, me included, needs to learn to say, “This sounds a bit mad, but if it’s God’s word, that settles it, OK, let’s go.” Are you teachable? Do you have an obedient heart?

 

3) Do you see yourself right?

 

The third quality that Jesus looks for - and finds - in Simon is a right and true evaluation of self. Verse 6: “When they had [let down the nets], they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signalled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.”

 

Given the fact there are still people on the shore, it will have been understandable if Simon milked the situation a bit. “Look at me! Ladies and gentlemen, feast your eyes on a record catch from the most prolific fishermen Galilee has ever seen!” 

 

But Simon does not talk like that, and he doesn’t take any credit for the huge catch because he has a true assessment of himself. In v8 he throws himself at Jesus’ feet and says, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” Not “Look at me Lord, I am an awesome man.”

 

Did you know that one million selfies are taken and uploaded to Instagram and Facebook every day. 36% of people surveyed admit that they edit their picture before uploading it, enhancing and airbrushing it. Projecting a false and preferable version of themselves. I want you to see me, but I don’t want you to see who I really am.

 

But Simon is absolutely authentic; I'm a sinner, needing a Saviour and I'm only able to be anything at all - by grace. And that is precisely what Jesus is looking for.

 

Verse 9 records the fishermen’s astonishment at what happened. In other versions it says they were “awestruck,” or “overwhelmed.” Or that “amazement seized them.” This is the moment when Jesus changes Simon’s life forever. 

 

This miracle gives Simon not only a true evaluation of himself, it gives him a true evaluation of Jesus. In v5 Simon calls Jesus “Master.” The Greek word is epistatēs. It’s quite a bland word and just means one to whom you pay some respect. But by v8 he’s calling Jesus “Lord” (kyrios in Greek, meaning someone of higher status, a sovereign, to whom obedience is due).

 

Does your level of obedience to Jesus need to go up a notch this morning? Do you pass test number three?

 

4) Can you see God's greater plan?

 

What about the fourth test? Here it is: Jesus wants to see if Simon can see bigger, see further. Can he catch a vision of God’s greater purposes?

 

Yes, it is good to catch fish, and it’s even better if the catch is impressive. If you’re a fisherman size does matter! There are so many fish (v7 says) that not one but two boats are in danger of sinking under the weight.

 

For these men, this catch is not just a trophy to boast about – it is the mother of all pay days! This haul of fish must be worth serious money. But Simon Peter has just seen something infinitely more valuable. 

 

What is Jesus really saying here when he talks about fishing for people in v10? There’s Peter, James and John with two boats almost submerged by a bulging net of slippery, shiny, wriggling fish flapping about in the morning sun. 

 

I think Jesus is saying here, “Look Peter! There’s more if you really want it. I have bigger fish to fry than these. 5 and 6 footers! I’m thinking about people Peter! Do you want to spend your life catching tiddlers? Or can you see, by faith, hundreds of human destinies, transformed by the gospel? Peter! If you think this is good, you haven’t seen anything yet.” 

 

Look up from what you see around you and catch a vision of bigger things. God wants to raise up evangelists amongst us, people who are fruitful in leading people to Christ. God is leading us to plant churches. Prepare the nets! Do you have the ambition to be at the heart of something grander scale for God, where you head out into the zone of the unknown? Or are you happy enough with small fry?

 

Simon Peter, in this moment, sees further. As soon as he catches the higher vision of a great harvest of human lives changed forever by the power of Christ, fish hold no more interest for him. 

 

Verse 10; “Don't be afraid” says Jesus, “from now on you will fish for people.’” Is the harvest of thousands of souls in our land a passion Jesus can see in you? You’ll know if it is – because if it is, you’ll say an unhesitating, “Yes” to the final test in v11. 

 

5) Can you leave it all behind?

 

Here it is: Peter is ready and willing to leave it all behind. Mark’s account of this event records Jesus saying, “Come, follow me.” 

 

Verse 11 is one of the most radical, extreme and revolutionary in all the New Testament. “So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.” They leave their boats, their nets, their fish… (did they tip them all back into the sea? It doesn’t say). But they leave everything to follow Jesus. They leave their work, their livelihood, their homes, and their security.

 

John Wimber used to say, “Remember, the economy of the Kingdom is simple. Every time we come to cross a new threshold, it costs us everything we now have. Every new step may cost us all the reputation and security we've accumulated up to that point. It costs us our life.”

 

Is there anything that’s stopping you from following Jesus where he’s leading you? If so, whatever it is, leave it behind today.

 

Ending

 

As I end, I think the Lord is saying to some of us here today, “Are you ready to let go? When are you going to give me the best?” 

 

For some of us, the problem might be a lifestyle that has become too sedentary. Jesus is looking for men and women who are inclined to action, who say without hesitation, “As it’s you who is asking Lord, OK, I’ll do it. Let’s go.” 

 

Some of us here might be seeing less blessing in our lives than we should because we have not yet fully learned to give God all the credit, all the glory. 

 

Jesus is looking for men and women who aren’t obsessed by projecting the perfect image of themselves, but identify simply as forgiven sinners, who can humble themselves, and who understand that they have no need to impress anyone because they are chosen and loved for who they are. 

 

Some of us here might find ourselves stuck in a rut because our vision is too small. Jesus is looking for men and women who are not content with going through the motions, because they know by faith that there’s a harvest that God is preparing. Don’t waste your life. Don’t waste your retirement.

 

Finally, some of us here know that the time has come to leave it all behind: doubts, hesitations, all-consuming but trivial pursuits, excuses, compromises – whatever the obstacle is that stops you from following Jesus all-in. 

 

Leave it all behind today. “Come,” says Jesus, “Follow me.” So let’s go.

 

 

Sermon preached at King’s Church Darlington, 31 August 2025

Purposeful Sovereignty (Ruth 4.1-22)

Introduction

Back in June, I was driving in central France on an open road, newly surfaced, with beautiful scenery all around. The sun was shining, and there was virtually no traffic. After a very pleasant 3-hour drive, we got straight to our destination with no complications. Isn’t this basically what we want our lives to be like?

 

But, in reality, for many of us, life is more like traveling down an obscure, winding lane in the middle of nowhere. You get stuck for miles behind tractors. The satnav, if it’s not broken, is sending you down unmade roads with potholes and confusing signposts. There’s fog. 

 

The engine starts making a strange sound and a warning light on the dashboard starts to flicker ominously. There are overgrown hedges scratching the paintwork on the side of your car. There are even occasional herds of sheep wandering out onto the road in front of you.

And yes, I have driven in Wales...

 

But for Christians, to continue the analogy, all along this narrow, winding road, there are songs playing on the car radio with lyrics like, “My grace is sufficient for you” and “I am with you always” and “those who persevere to the end will be saved.” God’s word speaks heavenly encouragement and perspective all through life.

 

Not least the book of Ruth. If you are dejected, or weary, and it seems like God has gone quiet and left you, the message of Ruth is that, however challenging the road of faith is, it is not a dead end. We cannot always see it, but Ruth shows how God is at work in all of life’s ups and downs.

 

The story so far…

 

For the benefit of those who are joining us for the first time today, or who might have been away for some of the last few weeks, I want to briefly recap what we have seen so far. The story of Ruth begins with a series of tragedies and disappointments. 

 

Chapter 1 begins with a famine in Bethlehem, prompting a man called Elimelech to move his wife Naomi and their two sons to a godless place called Moab. He then dies. Naomi’s sons marry Moabite women - Orpah and Ruth. Then the sons also die, leaving three destitute widows. 

 

Naomi decides that blood is thicker than water. So she returns to Bethlehem, urging her daughters-in-law to stay behind. Orpah agrees, but Ruth says, “No. Don’t make me go home. I’m not leaving you. I’m staying with you. Your people are mine now, and your God is going to be mine too.”

 

Chapter 2 then describes how, back in Bethlehem, Ruth works hard to put bread on the table for Naomi. She picks up grain that the harvesters miss in a field that belongs to a godly and wealthy man called Boaz.

 

He notices the sweat on Ruth’s brow and her loyal heart. He makes sure she is safe from sexual harassment, which was all too common, and he provides kindly for her. 

 

Naomi then realises that Boaz is relative of her dead husband, and therefore a potential “guardian-redeemer,” that is to say, someone who can restore the broken family line by marriage.

 

So, in chapter 3 Naomi devises an unusual and risky plan. She tells Ruth to approach Boaz while he sleeps at night, startle him by uncovering his feet and ask him to “spread his cloak” over her. 

 

This is basically code for, “Boaz, this is the bit where you propose to me.” It’s not the done thing at all, but Ruth goes for it, and Boaz… responds positively. 

 

But, just as Naomi and Ruth’s winding road is starting at last to straighten, there’s a big complication.

 

It turns out that there is someone else who, according to custom, is first in line to marry Ruth and so give her and Naomi the security they yearn for. So, chapter 3 ends with suspense and uncertainty. How is this all going to play out? Let’s read on. Chapter 4, verse 1:

 

Meanwhile Boaz went up to the town gate and sat down there just as the guardian-redeemer he had mentioned came along. Boaz said, ‘Come over here, my friend, and sit down.’ So he went over and sat down.

Boaz took ten of the elders of the town and said, ‘Sit here,’ and they did so. Then he said to the guardian-redeemer, ‘Naomi, who has come back from Moab, is selling the piece of land that belonged to our relative Elimelek.

I thought I should bring the matter to your attention and suggest that you buy it in the presence of these seated here and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, do so. But if you will not, tell me, so I will know. For no one has the right to do it except you, and I am next in line.’

‘I will redeem it,’ he said.

 

God’s invisible hand of blessing

 

All the way through the book of Ruth so far, we have witnessed the invisible hand of God at work. Ruth happens to insist on sticking with Naomi instead of returning home, where her prospects are better. They just happen to return to Bethlehem at harvest time, when there is a need for casual labour.

 

It just so happens that Ruth is invited to glean in a kind and protective man’s field. He just so happens to be a close relative of Naomi’s dead husband. And it just so happens that Boaz responds positively to Ruth’s audacious advances.

 

Nothing in life “just so happens” though. Not one sparrow falls to the ground without the Lord’s permission. This is the sovereignty of God. 

 

When I was a young Christian, I used to love listening to a song by Amy Grant with these lyrics:

 

God only knows the times my life was threatened just today.

A reckless car ran out of gas before it ran my way.

Near misses all around me, accidents unknown,

Though I never see with human eyes the hands that lead me home.

But I know they’re all around me all day and through the night.

When the enemy is closing in, I know sometimes they fight

To keep my feet from falling, I’ll never turn away.

If you’re asking what’s protecting me then you’re gonna hear me say:

 

And then she sings about the Lord watching over our lives, ordering every step.

 

And so it’s no surprise that God’s providence in Ruth continues into chapter 4. Boaz goes to the city gate and this next of kin guy just happens to be right there. 

 

A bit of background

 

It goes without saying that some of the customs and practices in the Middle East 1,200 years before Christ, are very different to what we are used to in 21st Century Britain. Ruth chapter 4 is a case in point. 

 

Alas, I have no expertise in the obscure arrangements for the transfer of property and for the marriage of widows in that culture, but do not be dismayed. All is not lost. Because I feel sure that our esteemed leader Michael Coltman will have been busy becoming acquainted with all such matters over the past 12 weeks, and that he will be willing - indeed, eager - to patiently explain it all for you in stunning detail when he returns from his sabbatical leave on Wednesday!

 

Until then, you will just have to make do with a simplified summary of these cultural peculiarities from the rank amateur who stands before you.

 

If you haven’t been here the last couple of weeks, you probably won’t be familiar with this guardian-redeemer vibe. So here, in three sentences, is a basic summary:

 

1) If a man lost his land, for whatever reason, his close relatives had first refusal to buy it back to keep it the family.

 

2) If a married man died before having children, his male next of kin had a moral duty to consider marrying his widow and have children with her so that the name of his deceased relative did not die out. 

 

3) If this new couple had children, and this is key to understanding Ruth chapter 4, if the new couple had children, it was the children who inherited the land, not the next of kin who had married the widow.

 

That, in a nutshell, is how their society worked. 

 

A spanner in the works

 

So here’s Boaz sitting down with the next of kin to Naomi’s deceased husband Elimelek. We don’t know this man’s name. Boaz just calls him “friend,” so let’s call him Mr. Friend.

 

Boaz informs Mr. Friend, in v3 that his relative Naomi is selling a bit of land. It’s not worth much. I mean it can’t be. Otherwise, Ruth wouldn’t have been gleaning like a beggar in the barley field. 

 

In all likelihood, Naomi needs to sell her one, last, modest asset just to have food to eat. So Boaz says, “Friend, you have first refusal; the land is yours if you want it. If not, I’m next in line.”

 

Mr. Friend, I want to suggest, is something of a waste of space. He is the guardian-redeemer. That is to say, he has prime moral responsibility to look after Naomi and Ruth after their husbands’ deaths. It’s his duty, it’s his job. 

 

And what has he done for these two poor widows so far? Answer: Nothing! This is the first we even hear of him. The barley and wheat harvests are both now over. That’s at least 8-10 weeks they’ve been back in Bethlehem. 

 

He hasn’t called round, he hasn’t supplied a single grain of barley for them. He hasn’t protected them. He has been completely anonymous - Mr. Friend doesn’t really care.

 

If Mr. Friend decides he wants to buy the land instead of Boaz, it will be a disaster. And in v4, all the sirens go off because it turns out that Mr. Friend does want to buy the land. 

 

So Ruth, this sweet, loyal, hardworking, devoted and godly woman is going to get landed with a useless lump who didn’t notice her, doesn’t love her and doesn’t care about her welfare. And Boaz, who loves her, will go home empty handed.

 

So in v5, Boaz ups his game - and what he does is brilliant. Let’s read on.

 

Then Boaz said, ‘On the day you buy the land from Naomi, you also acquire Ruth the Moabite, the dead man’s widow, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property.’

At this, the guardian-redeemer said, ‘Then I cannot redeem it because I might endanger my own estate. You redeem it yourself. I cannot do it.’ (Now in earlier times in Israel, for the redemption and transfer of property to become final, one party took off his sandal and gave it to the other. This was the method of legalising transactions in Israel.)

So the guardian-redeemer said to Boaz, ‘Buy it yourself.’ And he removed his sandal.

 

The fine print

 

In other words, Boaz says, “Oh yeah, did I mention the small print? The land comes with a Moabite woman who you’ll have to marry.” 

 

Notice he doesn’t say how lovely Ruth is or how she has become a member by faith of God’s chosen people. He just says, “Ruth the Moabite, the dead man’s widow.” In other words, she’s a needy foreign migrant, dependent on handouts. And she’s been married before. 

 

We don’t know how her husband died... Ruth doesn’t seem to be able to have children. And she comes with a mother-in-law who describes herself as “bitter”, who’d have to live in your house as well. A destitute migrant, apparently infertile, whose first husband died in mysterious circumstances with a bitter mother-in-law. Still interested?”

 

Mr. Friend’s jaw drops, and he says, “You know, I would really love to, but I just can’t. You do it.” Boaz thinks, “Yes!” and they shake hands. Or rather they exchange shoes.

 

Wouldn’t it be great if buying a house was as simple as some random guy in the town centre taking his shoe off and giving it to you? No survey, no flowery hard sell from the estate agent, no haggling over the asking price, no stamp duty, no solicitor, no searches, no bank loan to arrange, no proof of address paperwork – just some random guy’s sweaty shoe and it’s all done that same day!

 

We read on, v9.

 

Then Boaz announced to the elders and all the people, ‘Today you are witnesses that I have bought from Naomi all the property of Elimelek, Kilion and Mahlon. I have also acquired Ruth the Moabite, Mahlon’s widow, as my wife, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property, so that his name will not disappear from among his family or from his home town. Today you are witnesses!’

Then the elders and all the people at the gate said, ‘We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the family of Israel. May you have standing in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem. Through the offspring the Lord gives you by this young woman, may your family be like that of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah.’

 

God’s way is best

 

And that’s how Boaz becomes the family guardian and redeemer of Naomi, and by extension of Ruth. Verse 13 and following bring the story to a close.

 

So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. The women said to Naomi: ‘Praise be to the Lord, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.’

Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him. The women living there said, ‘Naomi has a son!’ And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.

This, then, is the family line of Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, Boaz the father of Obed, Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David.

 

Ruth and Boaz marry, make love and have a child, v13. Notice the order, by the way. Marriage, sex, children. They don’t move in together for a few years to see if they’re compatible. 

 

Very wise of them. I once read an intelligent and perceptive comment by a Christian woman called Anna, on a blog I used to follow. This is her perspective:

 

“It is foolish” she writes, “for any woman to give herself to a man who is not willing to give her the security of marriage. It cheapens her and makes her an object for the man’s pleasure. A man might walk away anytime, possibly leaving her with children. Women are more vulnerable, invest more in relationships, and suffer more when relationships break up. A ring is the very least any respectable woman should expect from a man before she allows him to touch her body. Marriage empowers women, and our mothers were wiser than the liberated women of today.”

 

Research backs her up. A dozen studies from the 1970s into the early 2000s all showed that, on average, couples who cohabit before marriage have a 33% higher chance of divorcing than couples who save themselves for marriage and set up home together after their wedding. 

 

Who could have possibly foreseen that God’s way is the best way?

 

Ruth and Boaz commit to one another, for better or for worse, then they consummate their marriage, and then they have a little boy called Obed which means “servant worshipper.”

 

And I love v15 where they say to Naomi, “your daughter-in-law, [Ruth] who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given birth.” 

 

I love this verse because in our world, even in our day, in many places, people so often value boys above girls. Not just in places like China with their one child policy. Here in the UK as well.

 

In 2012, two doctors, one in Birmingham and one in Sheffield, were filmed in an undercover sting investigation offering to abort babies because they were girls. Sex-selective abortion is not permitted in the UK under current law.

 

The Crown Prosecution Service were handed the recordings and had sufficient evidence to prosecute these doctors, but they decided it was not in the public interest to do so. So someone launched a private prosecution, and these doctors were summonsed to answer charges in Manchester Crown Court. 

 

The CPS shamefully and culpably refused to release the footage, so the judge could not allow it as evidence. The case therefore collapsed and the court ordered the brave young woman who brought the case to pay the two doctors £36,000 compensation, plus £11,000 costs.

 

So, in the UK, there has been state collusion in the termination by healthy mothers of healthy babies because they are girls. Lord, have mercy for this injustice.

 

God’s infallible word says that godly and kind and loyal daughters, like Ruth, are better than seven, the perfect number of, sons.

 

All’s well that ends well

 

After all the famine, the funerals, the hardship, the homelessness - here is Naomi, with tears of joy running down her face. There’s a baby boy in her arms, a baby born in Bethlehem, who makes everything right. I hardly need to ask, who does that remind you of?

 

There are so many ways that Boaz foreshadows Jesus as our redeemer, it cannot be accidental.

 

Boaz is under no obligation to redeem Ruth. Just like Jesus didn’t have to redeem us. He chose us out of pure grace.

Boaz was eligible to redeem Ruth - Jesus was eligible to save us because of his sinless life.

Boaz was ready to redeem Ruth - Jesus was willing to save us.

Boaz paid a price to redeem Ruth - Jesus paid the highest price to save us; his own blood.

Boaz overcame obstacles to redeem Ruth - Jesus overcame the greatest obstacle of all to save us; rising from the dead.

 

Like Boaz, Ruth also foreshadows her greatest descendant, the Lord Jesus.

 

In this part of the story, notice that Ruth is in the background, and she doesn’t say a word. Her redemption is a free gift for which she brings nothing. Nor do we contribute anything to our salvation; no good works, no religious performance, no persuasive arguments, just ourselves, empty handed, just as we are.

 

You look at Ruth and:

You see one who left the comfort of her father’s house to become poor in a strange place

You see one who loved the loveless, Naomi

You see one who gave up her life for a bitter, hopeless woman and became her salvation

You see (as I explained last week) one who considered a man’s heart, not his background

 

The invisible hand of God. The purposeful sovereignty of God. We believe in it. 

 

Let’s, as we close the book of Ruth, have faith to trust that God’s hand is surely at work in all the everyday ups and downs of our lives to bring outcomes, even long after we’re gone, that we could scarcely dream of.

 

Let’s pray...

Sermon preached at King's Church Darlington, 17 August 2025