Let Us Be "Fishers Of Men"

Our careers often demand much of our time and attention, but our Lord has an interesting way of interrupting our business agendas. In fact, He invites us to be an active participant in His business (Luke 2:49; cf. Luke 4:14-22; Luke 4:31-37; John 4:34-38; Acts 8:4-13).

From the text of Matthew 4:18-22, let us notice the sequence of Jesus’ statement to His disciples who were fishermen:

“Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19).

Many times, we think that we should make something of our lives and at the same time follow Jesus, but that’s an incorrect concept. Our Lord calls us to first follow Him, and then He makes something of our lives. He wants us to prioritize our lives so that we see the spiritual needs of people “first” with eternity as the goal of all our endeavors (Matthew 6:33; Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-16; Colossians 3:1-2).

While God may not require us to give up our careers, following Him will guarantee that we will never look at our career in the same way again. Where we “fish” is not important, but if we are truly followers of Christ, we must “fish” for the souls of men wherever we are.

So what are we waiting for? Let’s immediately drop our nets, follow our Lord, and allow Him to make us “fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19-20).

—Mike Riley, Gospel Snippets