Fishers of Men

Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishermen.

And Jesus said unto them,

"Come, follow me," Jesus said,
"and I will make you fishers of men."

At once they left their nets and followed him.

When he had gone a little farther,

he saw James, son of Zebedee
and his brother John in a boat,
preparing their nets.

Without delay he called them,
and they left their father Zebedee
in the boat with the hired men
and followed him.

Mark 1:16-20



Responding to God's Call

It appears that for Jesus, the arrest of John the Baptist was a sort of signal that it was time for Him to begin His ministry in earnest.

Jesus had been given a task to accomplish during His time on this earth called disciples to share in His ministry with the intention that they would carry it on after He was gone.

It's fascinating to see how Jesus went about recruiting his disciples. He saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea -- for they were fishermen by trade. And He said to them: "'Follow me, and I will make you fish for people." Surely that must have struck Simon and Andrew as a curious and somewhat bizarre statement. Fishing was their livelihood, their means for feeding and supporting their families, how could they leave it? And what could Jesus possibly mean by "fishing for people"?

They didn't realize it at the time, but Jesus was doing just that when He called to them. He was calling them to follow, to become disciples, to refocus their lives on God and on the good news of the kingdom. He was calling them to a life of hope and empowerment, to a life of service and love. Mark tells us that immediately Peter and Andrew left their nets and followed Him. Then, a little farther up the beach, they encountered Zebedee's sons, James and John, in a boat mending their nets. Jesus called them too, and we are told that immediately they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and went with Him.

Jesus calls and they follow. Notice, too, that Jesus called His twelve apostles while they were engaged in doing their ordinary, daily work. They were not worshiping in the Temple or praying when Jesus approached them. They were involved in their normal, everyday activities when He asked them to follow Him.

And so it is for us. It is in the midst of life that God comes to us and calls us. It is in the midst of life's most ordinary situations that we are called to minister to others.

Sometimes God's call is soft and gentle, perhaps little more than a nudge or prodding to call a friend whom we know is going through a difficult time, or an impulse to drop a coin into the outstretched cup of a homeless person. Other times, however, God's call is loud and insistent, and challenging.

Sometimes the call causes disruptions in our life, as it must have done for Peter and Andrew, James and John. Leaving home and family and abandoning one's source of livelihood takes courage and commitment.

Some answer God's call without flinching, without giving it a second thought, while others, like Jonah, try to run away. Remember the story? God sends a great fish to swallow him up and gives Jonah three days in the stinking belly of that fish, to reconsider His call. Had Jonah not responded at last to God's call and delivered God's message, the history of Nineveh would have been written very differently.

The reality is that God has a message and a purpose for each of us. Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 12 that we all receive gifts of the Spirit. Jesus called on the disciples to use their gifts, just as God calls us today to use ours.

Jesus still needs disciples to be fishers of men and women. The message of repentance proclaimed by Jonah still needs to be heard, but so does the message of redemption and love and life everlasting.

The best bait when we fish for people is love; the only bait worthy of the Gospel is love – love which accepts people where they are, love which is shown through actions, not hollow words.

God has given each of us people that perhaps only we can reach with the Gospel.

God called Jonah to go to Nineveh; Jesus called Peter and Andrew, James and John and eight others, to become fishers of men and women; God called Mary to bear His Son, and Joseph to be a good and faithful husband in very unusual and trying circumstances.

It is not always easy to discern God's call.

To Moses it came in a burning bush and a rushing wind; to Samuel while he slept; to Jeremiah as a voice; and to Isaiah in a vision accompanied by a voice asking "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?"

Moses and Jeremiah tried to make excuses; Jonah ran away; and Isaiah, though trembling with fear and feeling very unworthy, responded,

"Here I am. Send me."

We are challenged as Christians to be alert to God's call, to be willing to respond, and to trust God to equip and empower us for the ministries to which He calls us. Let us listen attentively today and every day for God's call, and let us, like Isaiah, be ready and willing to say, "Here I am, Lord. Send me." Amen.

by Rev. Carol M. Simpson, Associate Pastor
Texts: Jonah 3:1-5, 10;
Mark 1:14-20
© 2000 C. M. Simpson

(Photo is entitled "Galilee Sunrise")