Mark 1: 16-18 – Jesus calls his first disciples, or was that the perfect fishing lesson?
16 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee,
he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting
a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.
17 ‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘and I will
send you out to fish for people.’
18 At once they
left their nets and followed him.
Working in Gibraltar means that it has given me the opportunity to rekindle a childhood passion of mine, fishing. As a young teenager, it was visits to the local stream and fishing off a bridge for small trout using garden worms as bait. Here in the Mediterranean, I use bread for catching Bream
and squid or artificial lures for catching other fish.
But it’s not just the bait you use, its also the depth you fish at, the time of day and the location where different fish tend to be found.
Quite complicated isn’t it! So often, a new activity or area of interest seems quite straightforward. However, the more you learn about
something, the more there is to find out.
On a first reading verses 16 and 17 seem straightforward. Jesus approaches two experienced fishermen and asks them to use their
skills to fish for men. However, a knowledge of fishing puts a whole new perspective on this call by Jesus. Just as catching fish in a net or
on a line takes skills, so Jesus was calling two individuals. They would learn that fishing for people was a lifetime’s work.
Jesus would train them, but they would also learn that all their own knowledge and skill alone was not enough. They needed the power
of the Holy Spirit working through them for any catch to be successful. That should be a tremendous encouragement to us – to know
that when we step out in the Lord’s service, we do so not just with the gifts God has given us, but with the power of the Holy Spirit working
in and through us.
Kevin
Elder
October 2019
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