This morning we looked at our identity as the people of God as ‘fishers of men’. The call of God to Simon and Andrew (Matt 4:18-22, Mark 1:17-20, Luke 5:1-10) reminds us that God gives us a new identity and purpose when we come to know Him. The metaphor about fishing for people was obviously relevant to fishermen whose living was made by fishing, but when Jesus the carpenter told them to let down their nets for a catch which was greater than anything they had achieved on their own, they must have realised that here was someone with far greater authority and power than anything they had ever seen before.
The metaphor of fishing may not seem relevant to us nowadays, but the call to share the good news of Jesus Christ remains (Matt 28:18-20). Our identity can never be divorced from Him. He calls us to tell others what He has done for us, which involves being with people and being willing to speak openly about our faith and what Jesus means to us. We have to understand, as with fishermen, that this can take time and patience, but what matters is our willingness to testify when opportunities arise. We are not responsible for how people respond to what we say, but we must give the invitation to follow Jesus whenever we can.
We are all chosen by God and empowered to serve Him, but like those first disciples, we must respond to His call – something they did without delay (Matt 4:20, Mark 1:18, 20). Our lives, our words, our patience, our kindness, our generosity, our tenderness and faithfulness matter enormously. The call to evangelise and make disciples of all nations is not meant to burden us and make us feel inadequate; it is an open invitation to follow Him and invite others to join us on this wonderful adventure of faith.