Deep Water Revelations

February 9

(Luke 5:8 NIV) ““When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!””

(Luke 18:10-14 NIV) ““Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. {11} The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men--robbers, evildoers, adulterers--or even like this tax collector. {12} I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' {13} "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' {14} "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.””

When we fish the deep water with Jesus, we experience things that reveal who God is, and who we are as well. We experience the glory, and realize our sinfulness. We are put in our place… and that’s a good thing. We see God’s power and provision, and we begin to see ourselves as powerless, and in need of grace. When we meet the holy God of the deep, we realize that our righteousness is like filthy rags. There’s an old saying that goes, “We cannot come to the beginning of God until we come to the end of ourselves.” That is where Peter found himself. It was the genesis of a lasting relationship. The faith of the shallows assumes we are better than the sinners around us. It allows us to continue in our smug religions. Out in the deep water, God’s glory reveals us as the worst of sinners. Head out into the deep, clinging to the mercy of God. That’s where salvation is found. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day