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NT3.9 Miraculous Catch of Fish © Beverly Wilson 2015

Unit 3: Miracles of Jesus NT3.9 Miraculous Catch of Fish

Scripture: Matthew 17: 24-28; Luke 5:1-11; John 21:1-14

Lesson Goal: Jesus was a very powerful teacher. He proved to everyone that he was really God by his teaching and miracles. In this lesson we will see how Jesus provided a miraculous catch of fish and paid his taxes with a coin from a fish!

Introduction: This is the ninth lesson in Unit 3:The Miracles of Jesus. The life and ministry of Jesus is told to us in the first four books of the New Testament. Jesus was a very powerful teacher. He proved to everyone that he was really God by healing the sick and forgiving people of their sins. In this lesson we will see how Jesus provided a miraculous catch of fish and paid his taxes with a coin from a fish! The Gospels are the first four books in the New Testament. The gospels tell about the life and ministry of Jesus. The word "gospel" means the good news about Jesus. Let's say the names of the gospels together. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Attention Getter: Have you ever gone fishing? What is the largest fish you ever caught? This is a very big fish. It weighs over 50 pounds! This is a striped bass and it weighs 43 pounds. When people go fishing they like to catch very big fish and lots of them. Here are some fisherman that have a net along a beach. They have caught lots of fish. This big pile of fish is getting everyone's attention. Catching a lot of fish is exciting! When Jesus was here on earth, He wanted everyone to know that He was God. One way to prove this to people was to show His power over nature. The miracles Jesus performed were ones that only God could do! In this lesson we will study two different times that which Jesus showed his great power over creation.

Opening Prayer: Dear Jesus, Thank you for showing us that you are the Son of God by performing the miracles with all the fish caught in the net and the coin in the fish's mouth. Help us to become good disciples by sharing the good news of salvation with everyone we meet. Help us to be good witnesses for you by obeying the government and paying our debts. Thank you that you will supply all our needs! In Jesus name, Amen.

Memory Verse: Our memory verse is Romans 13: 6-7 "This is also why you pay taxes, since the authorities are God's public servants.... Give everyone what you owe him. If you owe taxes, pay taxes."

Lesson Video: https://youtu.be/OdtkzY4FbPg By now, many people in Galilee had heard about Jesus. His messages and miracles thrilled the people. People were now following Jesus everywhere He went. One day as Jesus was standing by the Sea of Galilee, the people were crowding around 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. Jesus climbed into Peter's boat and asked him to push it out into the water so He could sit and teach the people gathered on shore. When he had finished speaking, he said to Peter, “Launch out into deep water, and let down your nets for a catch.” What a strange thing Jesus asked Simon to do! Any experienced fisherman knew that the best fishing was done at night in the shallow water not the deep water and especially during the day! Simon Peter had just been fishing all night and hadn't caught a single fish!. He said to the Lord, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” So Peter reluctantly obeyed Jesus. Peter had to simply trust and obey Jesus' word. He needed to commit himself to the Lord Jesus. Commitment means not just giving part of yourself, but giving your all. At first Peter started to question Jesus' word and he

https://youtu.be/OdtkzY4FbPg

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didn't trust Him at first. But then Peter put his own understanding aside and followed Jesus' advice. When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break.

So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and the fish filled both boats so full that they began to sink! What a catch of fish! As the fishermen struggled with the heavy nets, they were amazed at what was happening! Do you think they were glad that they had decided to follow Jesus' advice? Even though His directions seemed unreasonable, now they were rewarded greatly for their faith in Him. Having faith in God means believing Him; taking Him at His word and obeying Him. Sometimes you may not understand what God is doing, but remember that God loves you and will only do what is best. God blessed the fishermen for their faith and commitment, giving them more fish than they could handle. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Lord; I am a sinful man! I am not worthy to be in your presence.” Everyone was astonished at the catch of fish they had just taken ashore. This miracle was all Simon needed to know that Jesus really was the Messiah, the Savior of God. Even before Jesus died on the cross, Simon knew that He was special. Seeing this miracle of fish convinced Simon that Jesus truly was Lord, making him aware of his own sin. 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. To fish for people means that Peter and Andrew were to leave their fishing business and help others find God. We all need to fish for souls. If we share the good news of what Jesus has done for us with others, we will be able to draw them to Jesus just like a fisherman pulls fish into his net. This was one of the first times that Jesus showed His power over nature to the disciples. He could command the fish to go into the net and they obeyed Him because He was God. Three years later after Jesus was resurrected from the grave He would once again perform the same miracle. That time Jesus would fix breakfast for His disciples. Jesus then called his disciples to the ministry of "feeding His sheep" and preaching the gospel to the whole world. They were to become "fishers of men." So once again Jesus demonstrated his great power over nature. He told the storm to be still; He walked on water; and now He commanded the fish to be caught in the net! He was truly God! Another time Jesus showed his power over nature happened just before Jesus was going to be crucified. Jesus was teaching his disciples near the town of Capernaum in Galilee. He told his disciples that soon he would be taken by his enemies to be killed but three days later he would be raised to life. The disciples were filled with grief and extremely sad to hear this news. They loved Jesus and did not want anything bad to happen to Him. They did not understand that Jesus had to die on the cross to pay for all of our sins. They did not comprehend why Jesus had come from heaven and they certainly did not get the part that Jesus would come back to life in three days! Just as Jesus had told the disciples, the Jewish officials began to try to trick Jesus. One day Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum. It was the time of the year when taxes were being collected. Everyone had to pay a temple tax to support the temple priests and to keep the temple going. The collectors of the temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?” “Yes, he does,” Peter replied. But Peter had spoken before he asked Jesus about the matter. So Peter went to tell Jesus about the taxes. When Peter came into the house, Jesus already knew what had happened. Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “Who do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes from--their own children or from others?” “From others,” Peter answered.

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“Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. Now what Jesus meant by this was that He was the Son of God. As the Son of God He was the King of kings. Just as kings pay no taxes and collect none from their children Jesus did not owe any taxes! Now what was Peter going to do? He had just told the temple tax collectors that Jesus would pay the tax! Everyone wondered, "What will Jesus do now?" Then Jesus said, “So we won't cause any offense, go down to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take the coin and give it to the temple officials for my tax and yours.” Wow! Jesus supplied the tax payment for both Peter and himself! Jesus did not want to offend those who didn't understand that he was the King of Kings. As God's people our loyalty is to our real King--Jesus. But as his disciples we are to cooperate with the government authorities and be responsible citizens and pay our taxes! We are Christ's ambassadors to the world and God wants us to keep the law in order to represent Him well! As we have seen Jesus used two miracles using fish to teach us some important lessons about Who He was and what our job is as His disciples. Jesus is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He has come from heaven to earth to give us the gift of eternal life. We can receive that gift by believing in Jesus' death burial and resurrection from the dead. He wants us to confess our sin and trust in Him as our Savior. Then we are to share the good news of salvation to everyone. We are to become fishers of men. As his disciples we are to be good examples of His love. God will provide all that we need to do His will--even our taxes! Remember Jesus Has Power over All of Nature and He will supply our needs!

Review Questions: Fishers of Men Game Preparation: Cut out pictures of men, women, and children from magazines. Glue a small paper clip to the back of each picture. Write a number on the back to correspond with the number of the question. Tie a magnet to a piece of string; tie the string to a twig or small branch. Put the following questions in a bucket or similar size object that is not metal. Procedure: Each child comes up one at a time and "fishes." If more than one "fish is caught, they decide which one they want and throw the others back in the bucket. Ask questions that correspond with the number on the back of the fish. Give prizes or team points for right answers.

1. Because there was such a large crowd following Jesus, what did He ask the disciples to do? (Take the boat out into the water so He could teach the people from the boat.)

2. After teaching the people what did Jesus ask Peter to do with his boat? (Jesus asked Peter to take his boat further out into the deeper water and cast the net over the side.)

3. Why did Peter object at first to Jesus' command? (He and the other disciples had been fishing all night and they had not caught anything.)

4. What amazing miracle happened when Peter obeyed the Lord? (His nets were so full of fish that they could not hold them all. Peter had to call other fisherman to come and help him get the fish into the boat.)

5. What did this miracle show to Peter? (Peter understood that Jesus was truly the Son of God. Only God had power over the fish of the ocean!)

6. What did Peter say when he saw the miracle that Jesus performed? (He said, "I am a sinful man and not worthy to be in your presence."

7. What did Jesus mean when he said that the disciples would "fish for men?" Jesus wanted his disciples to preach the gospel to the whole world and help people come to believe that He was the Son of God so they could receive the gift of eternal life.

8. What did the collector of the temple tax ask Peter? (He asked him if Jesus had paid his taxes and if he was going to do so. Peter also owed his taxes.)

9. When Peter ask Jesus about paying the temple tax what did Jesus say? (He said that he was the King of kings and that as a King he did not owe taxes. Jesus explained that He had come from heaven to give us eternal life and as such He did not owe taxes.)

10. Why did this answer upset Peter? (Peter had told the temple tax collectors that Jesus would pay the taxes and now Jesus said that He did not really owe any taxes.)

11. What did Jesus tell Peter to do about the taxes? (He told him to go down to the lake and throw in a fishing line. When Peter obeyed, he caught a fish and the fish had coin in its mouth. The coin was enough to pay for both Jesus and Peter's taxes.)

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Bible Memory Verse Activity: Fishing Lure Memory Verse Cards In Romans 13:6-7 Jesus commands us to pay our taxes. The Bible says "This is also why you pay taxes, since the authorities are God's public servants.... Give everyone what you owe him. If you owe taxes, pay taxes." Let's read those verses again. Romans 13: 6-7 "This is also why you pay taxes, since the authorities are God's public servants.... Give everyone what you owe him. If you owe taxes, pay taxes." Locate the memory verse in scripture. Read aloud several times together in unison and then have students repeat it after you. To help students remember the verse have them make simple fishing lures with feathers and string or wire. Encourage children to use these lures as reminders to tell others about Jesus.

Group Learning Activity: God's Miracle Catch Fishing Book (Grades 2-5) Print two copies of the fish with God's Miracle Catch on poster board for each child. Print several sheets of the fish shape pages for each child. Have students cut out the fish shaped pages and front cover. Assemble like a book and staple along the fish mouth to hold pages of book together. On each page have children write a verse that someone know how to become a Christian. Include the following pages: Romans 3:23; Romans 6:23' John 3:16; and Romans 10:9. Have children color the fish shaped pages and front cover of book. Encourage the children to "go fishing" and give their salvation booklet to an unsaved friend of neighbor.

Group Learning Activity: How Many Fish? (Grades 2-5) Count out several hundred gold fish crackers and place them in a glass canning jar. Seal the lid and ask the students to guess how many fish are in the jar. When all students have made a guess, give a prize to the student with the closest estimate of the number of fish. Dump the contents of the jar and enjoy eating. Have students locate John 21: 1-11 and read the passage aloud. Ask: "How many fish were in the net that the disciples caught that day? (153) What special thing happened when they caught that many fish? (The net did not break.) " Discuss the fact that the number of fish caught was amazing because just a few hours before the same spot had been fished and no one fish was caught. Also note that the event was miraculous in that the net did not break as would be expected.

Group Learning Activity: Spinner Fish Story Starter Print the template below with the spinner and the picture of the fishermen with their net. Have students color the two items. Cut out the spinner circle and the picture. Cut out the two cut-out areas of the picture. Attach the spinner circle to the back of the picture with a metal paper brad at the X marks. Have students retell the story by moving the spinning circle to the appropriate pictures.

Group Learning Activity: Fish Collage (Grades K-5) Supplies: scissors, cardstock, scrapbook paper or construction paper; glue; googly eye (optional) or you could just draw an eye with a black marker. Procedure: Rip up the scrapbook paper or construction paper into small pieces and pile them up in the center of the table. Teacher should cut the shape of a fish from card stock. Cover the fish shape with a thin layer of glue. Use a small brush. Let students choose paper scraps from the pile to glue onto their fish. After the fish shape is covered, glue on the googly eye and draw a little mouth with the permanent black marker.

Group Learning Activity: Fish in a Net Lacing Cards (Grades K-3) Preparation: Print one copy of the template of the fish in the ocean below on cardstock for each child in your class. Procedure: Have students use colored markers to color the fish and the ocean background. Draw waves with a black permanent marker. Use a paper hole punch to punch holes around the outside edge of the picture. Give each child a long strings or colored yarn to lace back and forth across the picture to make a net.

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Group Learning Activity: Fish Net Relay (Grades K-3) Say: "In our lesson today Jesus performed a miracle of having the disciples catch a net full of fish. Today we are going to play a game to help us understand the excitement that the disciples felt when they were dragging in their nets full of fish." Supplies: Each team will need a fish net and an assortment of plastic toy fish. Procedure: Divide the children into two teams. When the teacher shouts "Go!" each team will run to the fishy area that the teacher designates. The members of the team will fill their net with all the small toy fish and when all the fish are collected the team will run back to the teacher with their "nets full" The winning team is the one who has the most fish in their nets.

Group Learning Game: "Net Chat" Word Association (Grades 3-5) Say: "In our lesson today Jesus performed a miracle of having the disciples catch a net full of fish. Today we are going to play a game to help us remember the details of that miracle." Preparation: Teacher should write a key word from the story on a slip of paper and tape these slips to a small toy fish or to a fish shape cut from card stock. Place the fish with the words in a small net. (Netting or tulle will work for this bag.) Words to use on the slips of paper include: fish, net, Jesus, disciples, Peter, coin, taxes, boat, night, fishers of men, etc. Procedure: Seat the students in a circle. Pass the small fish net around the circle with the fish prepared above in it. Each child will take a fish out of the net. After all the children have a fish, give children opportunities to read what is on their fish and to share any ideas they might have about today's lesson or about fishing. Use the words to review the key points in the lesson.

Craft Learning Activity: Heart Shaped Fish (Grades K-3) Supplies: heart shaped cutouts made from colored construction paper, glue, crayons Before class cut a 2 and 4 inch hearts from colored construction paper. You'll need one 2 inch heart and one 4 inch heart for each child. Give each child a small heart and a large heart. Show children how to make fish by gluing the hearts together at the points. Point out that the larger heart is the fish's head and the body and the smaller heart is its tail. Using crayons or colored marking pens the children can draw fins and scales on their fish. As children work, review the main points of the Bible lesson when Jesus performed the miraculous catch of fish.

Craft Learning Activity: "Wire" Heart Shaped Fish Mobile (Grades 3-5) Provide hangar wire or pliable, narrow gauge wire and a pair of pliers for each student. Make a template of the heart shaped fish above for students to use as a guide for shaping narrow gauge wire into the fish shape. As children work, review the main points of the Bible lesson when Jesus performed the miraculous catch of fish. Give a 36" length of fishing line to hang the mobile from the ceiling.

Craft Learning Activity: Paper Plate Fish Materials: white paper plate (any size will do); craft glue; scraps of colorful tissue paper; paints or markers; google eyes, scissors Paint the paper plate or use solid colored ones. Let paint dry completely. Cut a 1/4 section from the paper plate. This section will be the fish's tail. Using fractions is a good math activity for older students. Use a stapler, glue or tape to attach the tail to the end of the fish. Decorate the fish using glue, glitter, scrunched up bits of colorful tissue paper. Add a large goggle eye.

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Snack Learning Activity: Fishing Snack Supplies: Fish crackers; fish fruit snacks; and coffee filters OR waffle pretzels, Hershey kisses and goldfish. Give everyone a coffee filter to use as their "fishing net." Pour in the "catch" fish crackers and fish fruit snacks. You can make snack nets with fish made from waffle pretzels, Hershey kisses and goldfish. Place Hershey kiss on pretzel and melt them for a few minutes in the oven. Take out and press fish into chocolate.

Life Application Challenge: Net Full of Prayer Gather the students into a circle. Say:"We have been learning that Jesus performed miracles to prove that He had the power of God. He made people well, fed over 5,000 people, and helped the disciples catch a net full of fish. Isn't it great that Jesus loved us so much that He wanted to show us all these wonderful things. Today we are going to use our fish net and a fish shaped card to say a thank you prayer to Jesus." (Give each child a fish shaped card.) "We are going to go around the circle and drop out fish into the net. As you drop you fish into the net, say one thing that you would like to thank Jesus for. You might choose something from the Bible lesson or you might choose something else you're thankful for such as your family, your home, or your friends. I'll go first." Drop your fish into the net and say something you're thankful for. If some children can't think of anything, encourage them to place their fish in the net and simply say, "Thank you Jesus."

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The Miraculous Catch

Romans 13: 6-7 "This is also why you pay taxes, since the authorities are God's public servants

Give everyone what you owe him. If you owe taxes, pay taxes.

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