and 4 fisherman had to be rescued from the frigid waters of the North Atlantic early yesterday
morning. Each year tragedy occurs off our coast as fisherman struggle to make a living in
harsh conditions. I have two friends who are fisherman from here in Yarmouth, and I know
that their wives breathe much easier when they know that they have tied up safe and sound
in port each night.
Jesus was close friends with some fisherman. Some of his disciples had been fisherman
before they had left their boats and nets and followed Him.
Matthew 4:18 - 22 "And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon
called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.
And He saith unto them, Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they
straightway left their nets, and followed Him. And going on from thence, He saw other
two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee
their father, mending their nets: and He called them. And they immediately left the
ship and their father, and followed Him."
These four men, Peter, Andrew, James and John were all fishermen. They knew the hard-
ships and struggles of the life of a fisherman. The hard work, long hours and fighting the
elements that went along with that life. Did you notice what the four of them did when the
Lord called for them to follow Him? They all immediately left all and followed Him.
Do we follow the Lord like that? Do we immediately answer His call to the work He has
for us to do for Him? Theirs was an obedience without question. I'm sure that they did
not understand what the Lord meant when He told them He would make them "fishers of
men." But it didn't matter to them, they left their nets, ships and even family to follow the
Lord.
What does it really mean, to follow the Lord? For these men, it meant their jobs, homes
and families. What does it mean to you? What sacrifices have you made to follow the
Lord? In order to follow the Lord all the way, it means turning your back on your past
life, friends, habits, pleasures...giving up all for the Lord. Our earthy pleasures should
be done away with when we become followers of Christ. When we are saved, the old life
should not have the same allure to us that it once did. And when we take a stand for the
Lord, our old friends will leave us, and perhaps even family. Taking a stand with Christ
will always cost us, but it should be a price that we are happy to pay.
The life of a true believer will not be an easy one. The Lord taught this in Matthew 5:11
& 12 "Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say
all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad:
for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were
before you." The life of the child of God has never been an easy one. But it is a life
that means more than any other you could live, for this life has eternal rewards. The
disciples would learn this.
There is a new TV program that just started. It is out to dispute the validity of the Bible.
It says that the gospels were written by 4 men who had never even met the Lord Jesus!
May I say right that this is completely false! The Gospels were written by Matthew,
Mark, Luke and John. These four men, not only met Jesus, but they spent 3 years in
close company with Him. They learned from Him, traveled with Him, saw the miracles
He performed, saw Him tried and crucified, saw Him resurrected, and saw Him ascend
in Heaven. These men knew what it was to be a disciple of Christ, to live a life of full
sacrifice and commitment to Him. And these men died in the service of their Lord. Don't
listen to these TV shows, produced by the unsaved, that claim they know the truth, for it
is all lies. It is Satan, out to try to deceive man again, by throwing doubt on the Word of
God. Don't be deceived, the Bible is true, get your facts from it, and take a stand against
this wickedness!
Matthew 10:37 - 39 "He that loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy
of Me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And
he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after Me, is not worthy of Me. He that
findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for My sake shall find it."
This is not saying that we shouldn't love our families, it is saying that we should love
God more. God needs to come first. When we die to self, lose our old man to the new,
we shall be alive in Christ. That is when He can work through us. And just what is it
that He wants us to do? He wants us to be like Peter, Andrew, James and John, to
become fishers of men.
Matthew 16:24 "Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after
Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
We are all able to tell another about the wondrous salvation we have through Jesus
Christ. We can tell how He found us, washed us with His blood and made us fit for
His service and Heaven. It really is just that simple. Like I said earlier, its not just
the job of the Pastor or missionary, its the responsibility of every blood washed
believer. The only thing that we can take from this life to Heaven with us, are the
souls of those that have been saved due to our witness. What a treasure to take to
Heaven with us!
How concerned are you for your unsaved family, friends, co-workers, neighbors?
These are all lost souls who will spend eternity in hell unless they hear the good
news of the Gospel and accept it. Who is there to tell them? It is your responsibility.
God will hold you accountable for the people in your life who don't hear. I don't
want the lost souls of my family and friends to be on my head. We can't save them,
but we can point them to the Lamb of God who can! We are only responsible to
tell, the rest is up to them.
Isaiah 6:8 "And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and
who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I: send me."
A lot of times we associate this verse with missionaries in the foreign fields. But we
all have a field in which the Lord has placed us to work. Are you willing to work the
field that God has given you? There are lost souls all around us just waiting to hear
the good news of the Gospel of Christ. Will you be the one to tell them? Are you
willing to say like Isaiah did, "Here am I: send me."
Lord, lay some soul upon my heart,
And love that soul through me;
And may I faithfully do my part
To win that soul for Thee.
Lord, there are souls that I should win,
Lost souls, for whom You died;
And may I never draw back, or sin
With fear, or foolish pride.
Lord, may I love, as You have loved
The souls of those I know;
And grant me power from Heaven above
Thy love for them to show.
Anon.
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