JESUS MAKES FISHERS OF MEN
Matt. 4:18-22; Luke 5:1-11
By David J. Riggs
Intro.
A. From Matt. 4:18-22, we see Jesus walking by Himself along the
seashore and He calls two sets of brothers who were fishermen.
B. From Luke 5:1-11, we see that there was a crowd pressing about
Him - thus, a crowd had gathered - and He gets into a boat,
moves out a little from land, and teaches the people from the
boat.
1. After He teaches for a while, He worked the miracle of "the
great catch of fish."
a. Peter, being a seasoned fisherman, realized that fishing
was better during the night, and if they hadn't caught
anything all night, they certainly wouldn't during the
day.
b. Notice Peter's humble obedience in verses 5.
c. Also, after seeing the miracle, Peter realized his
unworthiness to be in the presence of the Lord. (Vs. 8)
C. In this lesson, let us consider Jesus' calling of these men.
I. A SOUL-SAVING WORK.
A. Jesus said, "Follow Me, I make you fishers of men" (Matt.
4:19); and, "Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men"
(Luke 5:10).
1. Actually, Jesus was catching men when He called these four
men.
B. Jesus' work is directed toward souls (people, persons,
individuals) and not things.
1. He came to seek and save that which is lost. Matt. 18:11-14
2. As Matthew continued, he showed that this also includes a
brother who might be lost. Matt. 18:15-18; James 5:19-20
C. We need more zeal in this endeavor. Gal. 4:18
1. Sometimes the zeal of denominational people puts us to
shame. Just the other day, two well dressed-ladies
(Jehovah's Witnesses) stood at my door on a very cool
morning, trying to present what they understood what they
thought was important for others.
a. I admired their zeal, and thought to myself, how many
of us are out doing the same?
2. Consider the zeal of Phinehas. Num. 25:6-13
D. Notice that Jesus chose those who were busy. They were busy in
their profession.
1. There is an old saying, "If you want to get something done,
give it to the busiest person you can find."
2. The busy person will re-schedule so as to make time to do
important jobs.
3. The idle will never find the time to get anything done.
II. JESUS' PROMISE.
A. Jesus said, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men."
Thus, Jesus Himself said He would do this for them.
B. Jesus gave them "hands-on" training.
1. They saw and heard Him teach. Thus, they were hearing
what was taught and seeing how to teach it.
2. They saw the great faith-building miracles.
a. Those same mighty demonstrations of power do for us
what it did for them. John 20:30-31
b. Jesus sent them on limited missions. (Matt. 10 & Luke
10).
c. Jesus demonstrated how to deal with people who
disagree, and how to handle false charges. For example,
He answered questions by counter questions. Matt.
21:23-27
(1) We, too, are to be wise as serpents an harmless a
doves. Matt. 10:16
d. He had plainly told them that He would be crucified and
would arise the third day. Matt. 20:18-19
e. He gave them ample proof that He was raised. Acts 1:3
f. When Jesus appeared to the two disciples on the road to
Emmaus and unfolded the Scriptures to them, they
spoke of how their hearts burned within them. Luke
24:32
g. If only the great story of the resurrected Christ would
burn in our hearts as it did in those early disciples!
h. No doubt, God will take into account that we are not
eye-witnesses. John 20:29
(1) However, let us do our best that we might be as
zealous as they were.
(2) Often we are distracted by too many things of
lesser importance.
(3) A man bought a new hunting dog. Eager to see
how he would perform, he took him out to track a
bear. No sooner had they gotten into the woods
than the dog picked up the trail. Suddenly he
stopped, sniffed the ground, and headed in a new
direction. He had caught the scent of a deer that
had crossed the bear's path. A few moments later
he halted again, this time smelling a racoon that
had crossed the path of the deer. Then a turkey, a
rabbit, and so on, until finally the breathless
hunter caught up with his dog, only to find him
barking triumphantly down the hole of a field mouse.
(4) Often we start out with high resolve, putting the
kingdom of God first in our lives, but our attention
is soon diverted to things of lesser worth.
(5) One pursuit leads to another until we've strayed
far from our original purpose. Let us do our best
to put first things first.
C. Jesus did a great job in the training of those disciples to be
fishers of men; thus, He fulfilled His promise. Acts 4:13
1. Those rulers saw that the disciples were just like Jesus.
They thought: "We thought we got rid of the man Jesus, but
now there are many more just like Him who are ready to take
His place!"
III. A HIGHER CALLING.
A. It is amazing how quickly those men left everything and
followed Jesus.
B. They had a large business.
1. We learn from the account in the gospels that the four were
partners in the fishing business. They had several boats,
several different kinds of nets, and hired servants. See
also Mark's account. Mark 1:16-20
C. What is amazing is how these four men immediately recognized
that the work of Christ was far superior to their earthly
obligations.
1. They straightway (immediately) left all and followed Jesus.
D. Please consider the importance of our heavenly calling.
1. God has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light.
2. Often, it is easy to see where one's priorities are. This ad
appeared in a newspaper in Tucumcari, New Mexico, June,
1978: "Farmer with 160 acres wants marriage with woman
who owns a tractor. When replying, please send picture of
tractor."
IV. REMEMBER, WE, TOO, ARE FISHERS OF MEN.
A. Several things are required for one to be a good fisherman:
desire, skill, patience.
1. Desire.
a. People won't catch fish unless they want to catch fish.
b. We need to have a genuine, intense desire to save souls.
c. If one owned all the rich oil fields, all the giant
skyscrapers, all the large ships, all the factories, all
the silver and gold, all the land, all the livestock, all
the buildings, and all the houses in the world, it would
not equal the value of one's soul. Matt. 16:26
d. Winning souls is more important than feeding the
hungry, sheltering the homeless, or providing healthcare
for the sick.
e. I heard of a situation where the men in a Business
Meeting had a long discussion on "personal work." The
preacher said to the men, "Aren't you concerned about
people going to hell? They answered, "Why should we
be? We're not the ones going to hell."
f. Let us truly care about the souls of men. If we knew a
bridge was out, would we not try to stop cars from
plunging over into the river? Why not, then, try to keep
souls from plunging over into eternal torment?
2. Skill.
a. In every worthwhile endeavor in life, it takes a certain
amount of training. One doesn't wake up one morning
and become a world-class golfer, stock-broker, or
whatever.
b. We need to develop the skills to be capable teachers.
c. Reading books on personal work would help. There are
some good ones on the market today.
d. Even books on salesmanship will help. Some of the best
personal workers are those who were former salesmen.
e. The word of God gives instructions on how to be good
teachers. 2 Tim. 2:24-26
(1) Let us learn and take heed.
3. Patience.
a. Just because Peter and the others had not caught a
single fish after toiling all night, would not have made
them give up their fishing profession.
b. Consistency is vitally important. 2 Tim. 4:2
(1) We need to be always ready and alert to every
opportunity. 1 Pet. 3:15
c. We often get fired up for a time and then cool down and
quit.
(1) We must continue to be diligent, even when it
seems we are having no success.
d. We need to always be busy teaching God's word, and
leave the results to God. 1 Cor. 3:6-8
Concl.
A. Jesus said to those early disciples, "Follow me, and I will
make you fishers of men."
B. Let us also take His words to heart, and do our best to save
souls. Prov. 11:30
Chart:
JESUS MAKES FISHERS OF MEN
Matt. 4:18-22; Luke 5:1-11
I. A SOUL-SAVING WORK.
II. JESUS' PROMISE.
III. A HIGHER CALLING.
IV. WE, TOO, ARE FISHERS OF MEN.