The Catch or The Call

Hearing the Voice of the Lord

Today I want to speak to you about hearing the voice of the Lord — not in a mystical, confusing way, but in a way that is really practical. My prayer is that you would leave with some tools that help you truly hear what the Lord has to say to you.

Most of us believe that God speaks, but many of us still question, "Does he actually speak to me?" The real question, though, is this: what is the voice that we're listening to? Because the voice you listen to will shape the life that you live. The voice you trust will shape the life that you live.

Luke 5 gives us the clearest picture of this through Peter's story. It's an amazing story — not a new one to you — but I hope it will help us today.

Once when he was standing on the shore of Lake Gennesaret, the crowd was pushing in on him to better hear the word of God. He noticed two boats tied up. The fishermen had left them and were out scrubbing their nets. He climbed into the boat that was Simon's, and asked him to put out a little from the shore. Sitting there, using the boat for a pulpit, he taught the crowd.

When he finished teaching, he said to Simon, "Push out into the deep water and let your net out for a catch." Simon said, "Master, we've been fishing here all night and haven't caught even a minnow. But if you say so, I'll let out the nets." It was no sooner said than done — a huge haul of fish, straining their nets past capacity. They waved to their partners in the other boats, "Come help!" And they filled both boats, nearly swamping them with the catch.

Simon Peter, when he saw it, fell to his knees before Jesus. "Master, leave. I'm a sinner and I can't handle this holiness." ... Jesus said to Simon, "There is now nothing to fear. From now on, you'll be fishing for men and women." And they pulled their boats up on the beach, left the nets and all, and followed him. — Luke 5:1–11

The title of this message is the catch or the call.

God Speaks Before He Shows

Peter didn't see the breakthrough first — he heard an instruction. He had been fishing all night and caught absolutely nothing. Now why does that matter? Because Peter was a very experienced fisherman. He was skilled, he tried his hardest, and yet his nets were still empty.

Then Jesus stepped into the boat — not with a sermon, not with a strategy, but with a simple instruction: "Put out into the deep and let down the nets for a catch."

Peter's response is honest, and I think we can relate to it: "Master, we've worked hard all night and we haven't caught anything." In an Aaron Baxter translation that sounds like, "Master, I appreciate your guidance, but I'm an experienced guy. I've seen these conditions before. I think I kind of know what I'm doing here."

His logic and frustration were setting in. He had every reason not to listen — he was tired, he was frustrated. But then he said, "Because you say so, I'll let down my nets."

Obedience Before Understanding

How many times in our lives have we thought we just knew best, or given up because something hadn't worked? Hearing God requires obedience before understanding. Often, hearing God means obeying when your experience says it won't work.

I remember a fishing trip last year — and I'm not really a fisherman, that's not my vibe. Day one, I was out for eight hours straight and caught absolutely nothing while all my mates caught something. Day two, same story — I was the only one who hadn't caught anything, and my pride was rising up. Day three, torrential rain and wind. The guides said we couldn't go out, but something inside me said, "You're going to catch a fish today."

I asked if anyone wanted to go. Everyone was quiet. I said, "I'll go." The guide gave me every reason not to. But just before they called us back in, I thought, "If I was Peter, what would I do? Jesus is here. Let me just try over this side and see if the word of God works." I prayed, "Lord, just one will do." And I got my fish — a big one, too.

I tell that story with humor, but the truth is this: if I had listened to how I felt, I'd have missed the moment. If I had listened to the conditions, I'd have come home empty-handed.

Sometimes in our situations we say, "Lord, show me first, then I'll believe. If you just do this, then I'll trust." But his response is:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

The nets were the same, the sea was the same, the fisherman was the same. Everything was the same — but there was a different voice. It wasn't about hustling more or trying harder. It wasn't about works — it was an act of worship. The miracle comes from hearing and listening to the right voice.

The Three Voices

We often struggle to listen to the right voice, and there are three we need to recognise: God's voice, the enemy's voice, and my own voice. The voice you listen to loudest will determine your destiny.

Let me be vulnerable. In my latter teens and my twenties, I really struggled to identify these voices. As a pastor's kid it felt like pressure to perform. I struggled to know: Is this me? Am I going crazy? Is this the enemy? Is this the Lord? Let me try to bring a little clarity.

1. God's Voice

When God speaks, it will always align with the word of God. So if you get a thought, the first question to ask is: does this thought agree with the Bible? Because God will never contradict his own word. If someone says, "I have a word from God," and it contradicts scripture — that's a voice worth checking.

God's voice will always lead you towards faith and obedience, and it will not lead you to confusion. God is not the author of confusion. He may challenge your comfort, but he will always bring peace, not panic.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your heart. — Colossians 3

Following Jesus cost Peter everything, but it didn't cost him his peace. Now here's where some of us get confused. We assume that if it's really God, it should feel easy and comfortable — no resistance. But peace and comfort are very different things.

God will often disturb your comfort, but he will never remove your peace.

Some of us are waiting for that perfect, trouble-free, stress-free day. I'm sorry to tell you — it's not coming. God never promised a stress-free life, but he promised his presence in the middle of it. That's why he is your daily bread — you're going to need him daily. The joy of the Lord is your strength in the storm.

This is the day the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.

You have to find joy in the storm, because he is with you in it and through it.

2. The Enemy's Voice

I won't spend too much time here — I don't want to give him too much airtime — but we need to identify it.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. — John 10

When the enemy speaks, he says hide. He accuses, condemns, and shames. He focuses on your past and your failures. He tells you that you're not good enough, that you've messed up, that there's no way back. If a voice pushes you away from Jesus, you can know it is not from him.

Satan's main battlefield is your mind. You can't stop every thought from arriving, but you can stop agreeing with the thoughts that arrive. To put it another way: you can't stop a bird from flying over your head, but you can stop it from making a nest — just step out of the way and read the scripture.

We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

3. Your Own Voice

Fear is one of the main reasons we struggle to hear from God — fear of failure, fear of getting it wrong. "I've tried this before. What if it doesn't work? I don't want to get my hopes up. I don't trust myself to hear from God."

Peter was tired, he tried, and honestly, he failed: "We've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything." Fear of failure says, "I'm going to play it safe." Your own voice can move you towards the facts rather than towards faith.

Condemnation vs. Conviction

Peter's response when the nets overflowed reveals which voice he was listening to. To my surprise, he doesn't celebrate — and I celebrated over one fish! With two boats full, he collapses. He says, "Go away from me, Lord. I'm a sinful man." That was his own insecurity rising to the surface.

Jesus doesn't wait five minutes — immediately he confronts it: "Do not be afraid." Jesus never agrees with condemnation, but he does confront it.

It's important to understand the difference between condemnation and conviction:

• Condemnation makes us run away from God. It says, "You are the problem. You're a failure. You'll never change, and God is done with you."
• Conviction makes us run to God and invites repentance. It says, "Come closer. Let me help you change."

Let me remind you: God is not done with you. The enemy would love to put a cloak of shame on your back and tell you to wear it for the rest of your life — "You are this, you've done this, you will always be this." That is a lie from the pit of hell.

There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. — Romans 8

It is time to take off the cloak of shame in the name of Jesus. Your history will not determine your destiny. Your past failures will not be your final place. You are not a product of the past — you are a product of the cross. And at the cross there is freedom and healing.

Culture says, "Find your truth." But Jesus says:

I am the way, the truth, and the life... you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

An Illustration of Sound

Let me help you hear the difference. Imagine a discordant chord — a sound that doesn't make sense, that grates and makes you want to retreat away from it. There's nothing good there; you just need it to stop. That is condemnation.

Now imagine a beautiful chord — one that draws you in, that you could rest in. That is what conviction can sound like. It draws you closer; it doesn't push you away. It says, "Come closer to me and I will heal you. Come closer and I will help you change."

If it doesn't sound like Jesus, it is not Jesus.

The Catch or The Call

Finally, the miracle of the catch wasn't the point — the call was. God wasn't after the fish; he was after their future. He is more bothered about your call and your character than your comfort.

Imagine the moment. Peter had just seen the biggest catch of his life — two boats full. He could have sold every fish and secured his family's finances forever. Word would have spread through Capernaum: "Have you heard about Peter's new hack? It's called Jesus — get him in your boat and you'll be good."

But here's the funny thing. Verse 11 says they pulled up their boats and left everything — the nets, the boats, the fish — and followed him. Why? Because the miracle was never the destination. Jesus, and hearing his voice, was the destination.

The greatest danger isn't that we reject Jesus — it's that we settle where he first blesses us. You'll never know where he's calling you if you settle. We have to fall more in love with the provider than the provision.

Peter was overwhelmed, not just by the miracle but by his own unworthiness: "Master, leave me. I'm a sinner. I can't handle your holiness." And Jesus said, "There is nothing to fear." In other words: "Peter, I know who you are. I know what you've done — yet I am still calling you."

Are you grateful that Jesus knows us? He knows everything about us, yet he still calls us.

Some of us say, "I'll follow when I feel ready. When I feel fixed up and stop sinning, then I'll obey." But Jesus doesn't say, "Try harder to sort yourself out." He says, "Don't be afraid. Come."

God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of love, power, and a sound mind.

Do not let fear be your final resting place. Fear is not your master, and your past is not your prison.

My Own Story

When I was younger, I always felt the call of God on my life. At about fifteen I said to my dad, "If it doesn't work out for me, I'll just end up in the ministry." He reminds me of that every day now!

In early 2012, in South Africa, I felt God say, "You need to go to Life Church Bradford." About a week later, my boss at a marketing firm offered to double my salary and promote me to manage several sites. I thought, "Yes, God, this is good — this is the catch!" My mum even said, "That catch sounds good." But I knew I had to follow the whisper of God.

I didn't know that decision would take me 6,000 miles across the world — from the sandy shores of Cape Town to Balmouth Terrace in Bradford. When you know you're in the call of God, there is nothing and nobody that can out-work it. Fifteen years later, I'm still here serving the Lord, I've found my wife and my kids, I get to write songs and travel the world helping people find healing through Jesus.

Who knows what will happen when you begin to follow the call of God on your life?

Which Voice Will You Follow?

When you hear the word of God speak, it is not the time to respond in fear, but in faith. Say, "I am going to follow the call of God on my life. I will not let fear take me back — I will let faith rise up in the name of Jesus."

Some of you have been celebrating the catch, and that's not a negative thing — every journey is different. The main thing is that we are following Jesus in all of it. But my question is: which voice are you listening to today?

Jesus is saying the same words to you that he said to Peter: "Do not be afraid, and follow me."

If God has been calling you to step out of your comfort zone and trust him, lift your hands right now. It's time to leave the familiar. Maybe he's calling some of you to start a business, or to stop one, or to step into ministry — and fear is telling you to retreat. No — God's got you.

Let's pray together:

Jesus, I choose to listen to your voice. I choose to follow you. Attune my life to your voice. I won't allow fear to have the final say, but I allow faith to rise up in Jesus' name. Amen.

Maybe fear has kept you locked up, and that cloak of shame feels too heavy. Let me remind you: you're free. The cross has freed you. There is now no condemnation. When Jesus was nailed to that cross, he nailed your shame to that cross. We can walk in freedom, knowing whose you are and who you are in Jesus.

Come to me, all who are weary, and I will give you rest.

"But Aaron, I'm a sinful man." Don't worry — all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and you can come freely into his presence. He says: you're healed, you're whole, and you're free.

A Decision to Follow Jesus

If you're here and you have not yet made Jesus the Lord of your life, maybe today is the day. We won't sugarcoat the gospel, because there's no need to — the gospel is powerful and he is able to save you today.

If that's you, pray this with me:

Jesus, today I choose to follow you. I believe you're the Son of God, that you died for my sin and rose to give me new life. Father, I'm sorry for the way I've lived without you. I turn from my old ways and I turn towards you. Forgive me, cleanse me. I'm made whole and made new because of the cross, in Jesus' name. Amen.