An old-timer sat on the river bank, obviously awaiting a
nibble, though the fishing season had not officially opened. A
uniformed officer stood behind him quietly for several minutes.
"You the game warden?" the old-timer inquired.
"Yup."
Unruffled, the old man began to move the fishing pole from
side to side. Finally, he lifted the line out of the water.
Pointing to a minnow wriggling on the end of the line, he said,
"Just teaching him how to swim."(1)
Mark Twain once spent a pleasant three weeks in the Maine
woods but was now on his way home. As he was making himself
comfortable in the train on the way back to New York, a sour-faced New Englander sat down next to him, and the two struck up a
conversation. "Been to the woods, have ye?" asked the stranger.
"I have indeed," replied Twain. "And let me tell you
something. It may be closed season for fishing up here in Maine,
but I have a couple of hundred pounds of the finest rock bass you
ever saw iced down in the baggage car. By the way, who are you,
sir?"
"I'm the state game warden. Who are you?" was the reply.
Said Twain, "Pleased to meet you. Who am I? Only the
biggest liar in these United States."(2)
Two ardent fishermen met on their vacation and began
swapping stories about the different places they had fished, the
kind of tackle used, the best bait, and finally about some of the
fish they had caught. One of them told of a vicious battle he
once had with a 300-pound salmon. The other man listened
attentively. He frankly admitted he had never caught anything
quite that big. However, he told about the time his hook snagged
a lantern from the depths of a lake. The lantern carried a tag
proving it was lost back in 1912. But the strangest thing of all
was the fact that it was a waterproof lantern and the light was
still lit.
For a long time the first man said nothing. Then he took
one long deep breath. "I'll tell you what I'll do," he said
slowly. "I'll take 200 pounds off my fish, if you'll put out the
light in your lantern."(3)
Fish stories. Gotta love 'em. What brings them to mind
this morning are these lectionary texts - the Gospel
lesson with Jesus' call to four fishermen who he says he will
make into "fishers of men," and the Old Testament text from the
mother of all fish stories, Jonah. I would like to share a few
thoughts about the texts and then move on to consider this
"fishers of men" phrase and what that might mean for us today.
A few notes on the lesson. First, the players. Simon,
Andrew, James, and John - names with which the world has become
familiar over two millennia of Christian history - but, in their
own day, just average folks. It was Abraham Lincoln who said,
"God must love the common people - He made so many of them."(4)
And the selection of these first disciples is just one more
affirmation that God USES common people - just like you and me -
to get the work of the kingdom done. A bit scary for us,
perhaps, because we are talking BIG responsibility here. But
more on that in a minute.
Where were these folks when Jesus called them? Church?
Synagogue? Some spiritual retreat? No. They were at work -
catching fish, mending nets - going about their normal routine.
Jesus is not limited to church; he can and often does meet us in
the midst of our everyday lives.
What did Jesus call them to do? "Follow me." Not worship
me...FOLLOW me. Tag along. "Hang" with me. No doubt these men
had encountered this fascinating preacher before. "No doubt they
had stood in the crowd and listened; no doubt they had stayed to
talk long after the rest of the crowd had drifted away. No doubt
they already had felt the magic of his presence."(5) Perhaps there
is a lesson there in how folks become disciples. Just being
around Jesus. Picking up on the things that Jesus thinks are
important. Seeing what Jesus cares about...and what he gets
upset about. Learning what his priorities are. The more time we
spend with Jesus - prayer, Bible study, the fellowship of the
body of Christ - the better disciples we become.
One more point to note: Jesus had a task for them. I will
make you FISHERS OF MEN! You have some skills already; now put
them to work in the service of the Kingdom! And this is the
primary task of Christian disciples - cast the nets, bait the
hooks, reach OUTSIDE of the boat. I wish I could say that the
church through the centuries has taken that task seriously, but
we know better. For what it is worth, the story of Jonah offers
some perverse comfort in the realization that reluctant witness
is nothing new. Perhaps we would improve if we analyzed the
problem and then found some ways to do a better job and handle
this BIG responsibility we mentioned a moment ago.
Now, most of you are aware that I know a lot more about many
more things than fishing, but even one who has spent little time
with a rod & reel can see a few basics. For example, you cannot
catch any fish if there are none to be caught. Makes sense. And
that IS the excuse many folks use for not being "fishers of men"
- they say they do not know anyone who is not already "caught,"
already a part of Christ's church. Want to know the facts?
Listen. Since 1991, the adult population in the United States
has grown by 15%. During that same period the number of adults
who do not attend church has nearly doubled, rising from 39
million to 75 million - a 92% increase! Hmm. These statistics
come from The Barna Group, a company that follows trends related
to faith, culture and leadership in America. The latest study
shows that the percentage of adults that is unchurched - defined
as not having attended a Christian church service, other than for
a holiday service, such as Christmas or Easter, or for special
events such as a wedding or funeral, at any time in the past six
months - has risen from 21% in 1991 to 34% today.(6) If you are
worried about there being no fish out there, don't. There are
gracious plenty.
Another basic: it helps to know when the fish are biting.
During warmer months, some TV weathercasters even give the best
times of the day for anglers to be out on the water. How about
the "fish" that Jesus sends us after? One of the best
opportunities is at a moment of transition. Perhaps a birth or a
death, new home, new job, NO job. One cyberfriend of mine
writes,
The dedicated fishermen in my parish...are ever
watchful and sensitive to change - they watch the
currents in the water, sniff the air for moisture,
aware of changes in weather as lows and highs invade
the atmosphere, watch the terrain under the boat
looking for habitat that contain the fish. And they
change - when the circumstances change going deeper in
the water, switching lures when light intensity in the
water changes or when they are in clear water vs darker
water.(7)
Good lesson for "fishers of men" as well. Be sensitive to
the changes in people's lives that might make them hungry for a
word of good news.
Speaking of hunger, that brings to mind another basic: bait.
You have to have something to attract the fish. It might be a
flashy lure or some mouthwateringly scrumptious worm (gag), but
to expect the fish to just jump in the boat for no reason will
not work. Successful "fishers of men" will offer something to
attract. For example, an invitation to "Come to church with me
sometime" will rarely work. It is too easy to say "Sure" to that
and never give it another thought. Instead, invite your friend
to something particular: a special event or a distinctive worship
service (Ash Wednesday, Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Mothers
Day), some outstanding program. Be creative, but be specific.
That way someone must actually make a decision, rather than put
you off with a meaningless "Sure."
Some time back the Alban Institute published a report
called, "Why Some Churches Don't Grow: Factors That Might
Motivate Those Not Interested in Growth." It was funded by a
Lutheran organization and focused on Lutheran congregations,(8) but
their observations cover the mainline spectrum. The report
concludes,
How easy it is for us to forget what draws people to
congregations in the first place, namely their hunger
for an authentic encounter with God, one which has a
transformative effect on their lives. The...
congregations in our study were much more intent on
maintaining their corporate life than they were on
offering transformative experiences for either visitors
or long-term members...A basic assumption...appeared to
be, "If we serve our own people well, outsiders will
see this and want to become insiders." [Sound
familiar?] Missing completely was any desire to find
out about the spiritual needs of outsiders or to see if
their congregation had resources to meet those needs.
Also missing was any sort of strategy for reaching the
unchurched of their area.
Somebody want to check the bait box again?
By the way, there is an ancillary bit of advice for those of
you reluctant people-fishers who are afraid you might be using
the wrong bait; in other words, saying the wrong thing. Worry
not! Remember Jonah! There was nothing winsome or attractive
about his message to Ninevah, but look what happened - the whole
city was converted. My point is that God can and does use the
strangest witnesses to accomplish the kingdom's purpose. Let
yourself go - bait the hook, cast the net, reach out - in the
name of the one who called those first fishermen on the shores of
Galilee.
One final bit of fishing advice (and I say final only
because of time considerations - whole books of advice for
anglers are out there). Be patient. No one can be successful at
fishing without perseverance. If you give up after a few
minutes, a few casts, without any bites or nibbles, you will
never catch any fish. 'Tis the same in fishing for people: you
have to keep on casting, keep on extending the invitation,
sometimes adjusting the bait. Give your efforts time to make an
impact, then let the Holy Spirit do the rest.
"Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men," says Jesus.
And Paul Harvey has noted, "Too many Christians are no longer
fishers of men but keepers of the aquarium."(9) Sad.
Max Lucado has a wonderful story in one of his books (I wish I
could remember which one!) about a boy who went fishing with his
Dad and his best friend. Torrential rains kept them from doing
any fishing for the entire week they had planned to fish. They
got on each others nerves and ended up nearly killing each other.
His moral was that when those who are called to fish, don't fish,
they fight.(10) A word to the wise. Or in biblical language, "Let
anyone who has an ear HEAR!"
"Follow me," says Jesus. Tag along. "Hang" with me. A
simple, straight-forward invitation which we can echo. And when
we DO, it makes all the difference in the world. For all the
allure of fancy church buildings, the charm of the world's
greatest preacher who pastors the world's friendliest
congregation, they pale in comparison to the hand of the person
who reaches out to their friend, neighbor, or colleague, and
says, "Come with me." Statistics are overwhelming, better than
70%, in the response people gave when asked why they joined a
church - they said that someone had asked them.(11)
Are you ready to launch out? The word is that there ARE
fish out there, LOTS of them...lots more than we might suspect.
What are we going to do about it? How about, with the help of
God, GOIN' FISHIN'?
We live in an exceedingly mobile society...nothing is nailed
down, change is a constant. But if times of transition and
change are good moments to extend our nets in the name of Jesus,
what might we do? How about GOIN' FISHIN'?
What makes fish want to swim our way? The bait. And how
do the fish get hold of the bait? They get it when we bring it
to them, when we are GOIN' FISHIN'.
But suppose we are not very good at preparing our hook, or
heaven forbid, our bait is bad? No problem. The witness of both
scripture and history is that God can use some strange bait to
get the fishing done. Not knowing how or being afraid of doing
it incorrectly is no excuse to keep us from GOIN' FISHIN'.
Finally, remember patience. God does not work according to
our Timex, even in getting fish to respond to our efforts. Stick
with the program. Do not let discouragement keep you from GOIN'
FISHIN'.
One day, long ago, Jesus said to some friends, "Follow me,
and I will make you fishers of men." They dropped what they were
doing and came along. Now Jesus says to 21st century friends,
"Follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Our response?
How about, "OK, Lord. Let's do it. We're GOIN' FISHIN'."
Amen!
1. Jacob M. Braude, Braude's Treasury of Humor, (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall,
1964), p. 78
2. James C. Humes, Podium Humor, (New York: Harper & Row, 1975), pp. 189-190
3. Braude, ibid.
4. Quoted by William Barclay, The Gospel of Mark, Daily Study Bible Series,
(Philadelphia: Westminster, 1956), p. 19
5. Barclay, p.20
6. "Number of Unchurched Adults Has Nearly Doubled Since 1991," 5/4/04,
http://www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=BarnaUpdateNarrow&BarnaUpdateID=163
7. G. Duane Baun via Ecunet, "Gospel Notes for Next Sunday," #2946, 1/24/97
8. Brian Stoffregen, Rock Springs, WY via Ecunet, "Gospel Notes for Next Sunday, #2918,
1/20/97
9. Bible Illustrator for Windows, (Hiawatha, IO: Parsons Technology, 1994)
10. Charlie Ellis via Ecunet, "Sermonshop Discussion," #1613, 1/22/97
11. Jim Boldman via Ecunet, "Gospel Notes for Next Sunday, #2937 ,1/23 /97
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