LISTEN TO JESUS
FOLLOW ME TO FISH
Susie: In this passage, we see Jesus officially calling Peter,
Andrew, James, and John. This is not His first encounter with Peter, Andrew,
and John. If you go back to John chapter 1 beginning at verse 37, you will see
that Andrew and probably John followed Jesus to where He was staying after
hearing their mentor, John the Baptist, clearly proclaim Him to be the Son of
God. (See the previous lesson titles “John the Baptist’s Disciples Follow Jesus
Home.”
Matthew
4:18 And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called
Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were
fishers.
Mark
1:16 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 fishers.
Susan: It was not “coincidence” that Jesus
chose to walk on the seashore that morning. Since He is fully human but still
fully God, He knew where He would find the fishermen He wished to call as His
disciples. Jesus did not relinquish His omniscience when He came to earth as
the God-man.
Susie: Peter and Andrew who were brothers were in the fishing
business together. In the passage in John’s gospel, after meeting Jesus, Andrew
felt compelled to go tell his brother Peter about his marvelous encounter with
the long-awaited Messiah. I remember when the Billy Graham crusade was coming
to the area in California where I was raised, we had an “Andrew” night before
the crusade began. The purpose of this night was to go out to our friends and
invite them all to come to the crusade in the hope that we might have the
opportunity to introduce them to our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Matthew
4:19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make
you fishers of men.
Mark
1:17 And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I
will make you to become fishers of men.
Susie: Although Peter and Andrew had spent some time with Jesus
earlier, they are now back to fishing. However, it is now time for Jesus to
begin His public ministry. He is ready to call disciples to follow Him
permanently and learn from Him daily. He issues the call, “Follow me,” to these
men who had already formed the opinion that He could be the Messiah the nation
of Israel was longing for.
Susan: Jesus tells them specifically that He will teach them to
fish for “men” which is more correctly translated “people” to include women as
well.
Susie: I cannot resist including a link to the song “I Catch ‘em,
God Cleans ‘em” sung by the Gaither Vocal Band:
Matthew
4:20 And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.
Mark
1:18 And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed him.
Susan: Peter and Andrew immediately left their livelihood as gifted
fishermen. At Jesus’s command, they followed Him. They made the decision to
accompany Him as devoted students, to learn all they could from Him.
Susie: They abandoned the life they had always lived to embark on
the adventure of discipleship. Much later, Peter would “remind” Jesus of this:
Matthew
19:27 (The Berean Study Bible) Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold,
we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?
Matthew
4:21 And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of
Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending
their nets; and he called them.
Mark
1:19 And when he had gone a little farther thence, he saw James the son of
Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the ship mending their nets.
Susie: Jesus, now followed by Peter and Andrew, continued walking
along the shore until He came to the boat where James, John, and their father,
Zebedee were mending nets. I have read commentary that Peter, Andrew, and
Zebedee’s family may have been in the fishing business together. They were
working in close proximity this day.
Susan: Jesus issued the same charge to James and John to become His
mentees. This was not the first time they had seen Jesus, either, since John
and probably James were among the disciples of John the Baptist.
Matthew
4:22 And they immediately left the ship and their father and followed him.
Mark
1:20 And straightway he called them: and they left their father Zebedee in the
ship with the hired servants, and went after him.
Susan: John and James immediately, without hesitation, left the
boat and their daddy behind to fix the nets with the hired servants.
Susie: The fact that Zebedee was able to hire crewmen says that
John and James left a thriving business to walk alongside Jesus. Do you think,
at this point, they already believe Jesus to be the Son of God? Was it His
magnetic personality that attracted them to Him in so few words?
Susan: I think there may have been a question mark in their minds
about Jesus’s deity, but I believe the Holy Spirit compelled them to follow
Jesus and investigate further and learn from Him as their Rabbi, their Teacher.
Ways
we can apply this to our lives:
· Peter, Andrew, James, and John did
not hesitate to answer the call of Jesus. When the Holy Spirit prompts us to
follow a specific path, we need to obey immediately and completely.
· The four fishermen gave up
everything to totally trust in Jesus. Are we willing to let go of everything (hold
possessions, reputation, even people lightly) and place ourselves totally in
God’s care?
No comments:
Post a Comment