The first step on a journey with Jesus is remarkably simple:

We must hear the Word of God.

Luke 5:1 (NKJV) — 1 So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret,

When you read the Gospels, it is clear that Jesus’ public ministry centered on three things: teaching, preaching, and healing.

For three years, Jesus went about the countryside teaching what was right, preaching what was true, and healing what was wrong.

This story in the Gospel of Luke begins with Jesus teaching and people hearing the Word of God. This is exactly how every journey with Jesus must start.

You have to understand, however, that Jesus was not preaching or teaching from a Bible like the one that you probably own.  In that day, a Bible like yours did not exist yet.

Jesus was teaching the Word of God because He was God!  Every single time that Jesus spoke, what the disciples and others were hearing was the very Word of God…because He was the God of the Word.

As a matter of fact, John, who is in this story, would later write this:

John 1:1 (NKJV) — 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

What was He teaching this crowd?  Luke records this in Luke 4:43:

Luke 4:43 (NKJV) — 43 but He said to them, “I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent.”

He was teaching them about the Kingdom of God.

• Light had come to the spiritually dark.
• Sight had come to the spiritually blind.
• Freedom had come to the spiritually captive.

Now in order to make sure the crowds could hear Him and create some space between Himself and them, He does a wise thing:

Luke 5:2–3 (NKJV) — 2 and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. 3 Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat.

He gets into Peter’s boat and has him push it offshore a short distance.  Why did He do that?  He was using the water to magnify His voice so all the crowd could hear Him.

He knew this would work because…well, He created water.  But more about that some other time.

The crowd is hanging on every word and so is Peter, because he has no choice.  He is in the boat with Him!

Jesus knows exactly what He is doing.  He knows the first step to becoming a follower of His is to hear the Word of God – that is step #1. 

And when we are followers of Jesus and we are trying to show others the way to salvation, this is where we must start also: with the Word of God!

In the next post, we will talk about step #2!

Pastor Marcus