April 3

Mark 1:16-20 (Click to see scripture)

Bible in One Year Passages:

Journal Entry

Scripture

And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” 18 And immediately they left their nets and followed him. And immediately they left their nets and followed him. Mark 1:17-18

Observation

The interaction is more involved than what is recorded in Mark. Just reading the words of Mark, Jesus appears to a crowd assembled at the shore and commands some fishermen to follow him. And they respond immediately by following him. Looking ahead to Luke, the parallel passage (Lake Gennesaret = Sea of Galilee) describes the event in more detail. The fishermen had returned from a futile night of fishing with nothing to show for. They were probably very tired and rather dejected. Enter Jesus. He commands them to cast their net and despite his skepticism, Simon does what he is asked and the result is a catch so large that it is difficult to haul it in. Simon's spiritual eyes are opened and he sees the contrast of his sinfulness in the light of this extraordinary Teacher and asks Jesus to leave him. Leave? No, Jesus extends his hand as Mentor-to-be and says "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men." I have no idea whether Simon and the others that responded similarly knew exactly what was meant by "fishers of men." But Jesus had this effect on people. You either follow him completely or reject him completely. Maybe there was a short internal discussion in Simon's heart. If I leave this line of work, how will I make ends meet? Is this fishing of men a comparable career? What will my family think? What if, what if, what if? But all we know about is the resulting action, of leaving that former life and following the New Master.

Application

I think that the testimonies of believers are remarkably similar. Jesus is not merely an entry in a long list of competing philosophies or a new guru with an interesting idea, in a crowded marketplace. He takes the initiative, invades our territory, demands exclusivity and we are forced to decide what we must do with Him. That is what happened in my life, many years ago. Like Simon, the hook was the realization of my own sinfulness and the futility of any sort of self-help approach to my personal problem of sin. How can I forget that emotional response flowing from deep within to this Shepherd who called out my name, told me that He loved me, and asked me to follow Him? I am not advocating that we live and relive our memories, recalling past experiences and dwelling on how things were. But it is good to remember so that I can renew that decision and know my place as a follower.

Prayer

Lord, thank you for personally reaching out to me, calling me to follow you. Help me to remember and continue to live out the commitment to live as your follower, and to help others that you are calling on.

--John H. Hong