Matthew 4:12-23
Many stories within the Bible are known as ‘call stories.’ A call story tells how God invites someone to become something new and unexpected. God calls this person to begin and not only begin but persist so that this new thing can occur.
One day Andrew, Simon, James, and John got up before the sun came up, walked down to the sea, and hurled nets into the water, anticipating a catch of fish. It was a day like every other day – it was dark and probably cool, and the nets were smelly and heavy. They were, after all, fishermen. They were doing what they did every day.
Jesus comes down to the seaside amid the water and nets and fresh fish, roughly hewn boats of wood, the rhythm of the waves. He stands on the bank watching these men throw out the nets and then haul them back in, loaded with fish. He looks at these men and, in a very commanding voice, announces:
Follow me, and I will make you fish for people. (Matthew 4:19)
I imagine they looked at this man on shore as if he was a little crazy. He knew nothing about fishing – the idea that they could fish for humans!
Who is the crazy man, this itinerant preacher who calls them to ‘fish for people’? And where did he come from?
They were fishing near Bethsaida, an outpost of Palestine. This area was far removed from the country of Judea, part of Israel. What was this man doing there? And why had he come all this way from his home in Nazareth?
Jesus had come to the area around Capernaum, which is close to the Grand Trunk Road leading from Damascus to India, Afghanistan and China. Along the coast beside the Mediterranean Sea was the Via Mares, connecting Cairo to Asia Minor. This was the trade crossroads of the existing world. What better place for Jesus to escape to after the arrest of John the Baptist; here he could preach and teach to all sorts of people traveling through Galilee.
Jesus said to them:
Follow me and I will make you fish for people. (Matthew 4:19)
Why did he choose these men?
We know that Jesus did not read resumes before he calls people to be his disciples. He didn’t care what their history was. And as we now know, sometimes he didn’t always make the best decision on who he called. Simon, who became known as Peter, denied Jesus three times during his trials. James and John, often called the Sons of Thunder, think this calling will enthrone them in glory, quite the opposite of what Jesus taught. But Jesus called them, and despite their deficiencies, he still made them his partners. So, when he called, they left their old life, its security, and even their families; they may have been afraid, but not so afraid that their faith in Jesus does not lead them forward.
And why did they follow Jesus?
When Jesus called them, they must have felt the joy of the new world that Jesus was preaching. They were about to see miracles performed and illnesses cured. Jesus was going to show them a wonderful new world, touch everyone who heard him, and then make the ultimate sacrifice to bring about the new world.
If Jesus called this group of imperfect humans to be His fishers of men, why wouldn’t He call each of us to follow Him? Jesus comes to us and chooses us, and sends us out to do something new. Our discipleship means the same kind of new beginning; each of us are called to go to that edge of safety so we can bring people to Christ.
We Christians are called to be evangelists. . . to look for and bring people to Christ. We are called to say to others ‘Come and See’. But we can’t be fishers of people until Jesus has caught us. We need to ‘fish’ for others using our own personal experience as bait.
I remember giving a testimony at a church as part of the stewardship campaign about how the church and God had gotten me through a very rough time when my partner of 27 years was dying of cancer. After the service, a young man approached me and thanked me for my testimony. He seemed so depressed and sure that God hated him that he had been planning to go home and commit suicide.
Imagine how I felt at that moment. I certainly had not given the testimony with the intent of fishing for people. But with God’s help and direction, my little testimony was the bait that brought a young man back to God and salvation.
Religious Life Sunday
This is ‘Religious Life Sunday’ in the Episcopal Church. The General Convention in 2022, approved resolution, “Foundation of Religious Life Sunday,” to be held each year on the 3rd Sunday of Epiphany. This Sunday focuses efforts to tell all Episcopalians that residential monastic and dispersed Christian communities exist, who they are, and how to connect with them.
I remember the first time I saw some nuns at General Convention in 2003; I thought they were visiting Roman Catholics. By talking to them, I discovered that there are eighteen religious orders and eleven Christian communities in the Episcopal Church. They are the Episcopal Church’s ‘best-kept secret’. We have our Diocese’s Convent of the Transfiguration, located in Cincinnati and northern Ohio. Within the wider Anglican Communion, there are ninety orders.
What are the “religious” communities in The Episcopal Church?
Religious communities include monastic communities, whose members live together under a rule of life and under vows such as poverty, chastity, and obedience. “Religious Life” also includes dispersed Christian communities whose members are from all walks of life, have jobs, live in their own homes, some with families, and live under religious vows.
You or someone you know may have a vocation to religious life. Religious communities provide spiritual friendship and guidance, and our monastic communities offer retreats. You may want to establish a deeper relationship with one community by becoming an associate or oblate.
In addition, there are 92 missionaries from the Episcopal Church from 62 dioceses serving in 42 dioceses of the Anglican Communion throughout 36 countries. The Episcopal Church also supports 125 military chaplains worldwide, and The South American Missionary Society, Five Talents, African Palms, Anglican Frontiers, and the Daughters of the King.
These are people just like you and me, who have answered Jesus’ call to:
“Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19)
Looking deeper into today’s gospel, what does Jesus do besides announce the Good News? In this story set in Capernaum by the sea, what are all the things Jesus does to shine God’s light in the darkness?
We hear of his teaching, proclaiming the Good News, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. That is, Jesus does more than just talk about it. He rolls up his sleeves and gets to work. The Good News is Word joined with action.
And he invites others to join him.
And look who he calls: He gathers a community of common laborers, the sick, the halt, and the lame, those who are tired, broken, and divided. He does not ask them what they believe. He does not seek out the most competent or the most educated. Jesus says,
Come, follow me” (Matthew 4:19)
And all kinds of people do.
He is calling you and me.
Jesus says by his actions, “here is what the kingdom of God looks like.”
We might feel some dis-ease at the notion of immediately leaving work, family, and neighbors as Peter and Andrew and all the rest did. It seems as if Jesus is disrupting family structures and disturbing work and living patterns. But he does so not to destroy but to renew and make new! He gives new meaning to family, work, and lives.
Peter and Andrew did not cease being brothers, but they are brothers who do the will of God. James and John are not only children of Zebedee but children of God. All four leave their nets but do not stop fishing; they begin to fish for people!
Following Jesus, they become beacons of light, shining light through the darkness.
The Good News is that we, the spiritual heirs of Saints Peter, Andrew, James, and John, bring this light to hundreds of people every day in many ways. The even better news is that there is much, much more we can do to be so transformed ourselves that we change the world about us. It is, after all, Jesus who promises we will do more wondrous works than he did.
The Season of Epiphany reminds us that we, too, are the light of the world. And we are to let our lights shine, shine, shine like the Sun, the Son of God, who is coming into the world!
But how do we do that?
Think of one person you have a relationship with: it could be someone you love or someone that irritates or frustrates you. Now, take a moment to pray for them; believe that God is using you to make a difference in their lives.
You are now a ‘fisher of people’ – you have joined the ranks of those that Jesus first called on the banks of Galilee! You are caring for those whom God loves!
Let us go forth and ‘fish’!
Delivered at Saint John’s Episcopal Church, Columbus, OH; 22 January 2023
deni doulos 