APPROACH, OR AVOID?

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On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord."
Luke 5:1‭, ‬3‭-‬4‭, ‬6‭, ‬8 ESV

¶While the crowd pressed in on Jesus, Peter, His close friend, pleaded with Him to go away. At least Peter understood the issue was not Jesus's power, but His purity. I have heard of a man who stayed away from church because the atmosphere there was "too pure". In his time, Isaiah's response before the throne of God was "woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips". Did Simon Peter fear more for himself in the presence of such holiness, or was he concerned that his impure presence might contaminate and defile it? We do not bow to Jesus, however, merely because of how much more wise and powerful than us He is, but because of how much He loves us.

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