The Call To Discipleship Series

GOSPEL OF MARK: GOD’S SERVANT IN ACTION

THE CALL TO DISCIPLESHIP

A. Mark 1:14-20 (READ)

1. How many of you like to FISH. (I know we have some avid fishermen in this church.)

ILLUSTRATION:

I used to FISH quite a bit when I was younger, but hardly ever anymore (last time was with Don Pettingill a few years ago). I remember the first time I went FISHING with Brenda. We hadn’t been MARRIED long. Brenda really hadn’t FISHED all that much, so I, being the EXPERIENCED FISHERMAN, was going to show her how to do it RIGHT. I put the BAIT on her LINE and she threw it out into the water. Then I CAST out my line.

Within MINUTES Brenda got a NIBBLE on her line. And I told her that when you feel the FISH biting on your LINE, just JERK it back and HOOK it. She JERKED that FISH back with such FORCE that it came FLYING out of the WATER, flew over her HEAD, and HIT the GROUND behind her so HARD that it KILLED it INSTANTLY. . . .If that FISH HIT any HARDER, it would have FILLETED the THING and been READY for the FRYING PAN.

By the time we left, Brenda had caught 3 or 4 more FISH and I caught absolutely NOTHING—I didn’t even get a NIBBLE. . . . By the way, the other FISH SURVIVED.

2. When I did FISH, it was more of a time of FELLOWSHIP—just to be have FUN with the GUYS.

a. I didn’t put a lot of INVESTMENT into it. (I had a couple of rod-and-reals and a small tackle

box full of cheap tackle.)

b. I didn’t spend a lot of money on BAIT. (Most of the time I just dug up some EARTHWORMS

or caught some Grasshoppers.)

c. I wasn’t too keen on GUTTING and FILLETING fish, so it was more CATCH and RELEASE or

GIVE them to the other GUYS.

B. Now for Peter, Andrew, James and John, FISHING wasn’t just some weekend PASTIME or something

they did for FUN. It was their JOB—their LIVELIHOOD.

1. Jesus was asking a lot from these men when he approached them one day while they were at WORK and said, “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

2. So, what can we learn from the story of these FISHERMEN regarding Christ’s call to DISCIPLESHIP?

MESSAGE:

I. JESUS CALLS HIS FIRST DISCIPLES

A. Jesus is just beginning His ministry and CALLING into SERVICE the men who will be His apostles.

1. He first calls the FISHERMEN, who will actually become His closest FRIENDS.

a. Once again, Mark, as well as Matthew, don’t go into a lot of DETAIL about this ENCOUNTER.

COMMENT:

Their accounts leave the IMPRESSION that Jesus was just walking on the BEACH one day and came across these FISHERMAN, and said, “Hey, guys, I know you are BUSY, but why don’t you just QUIT your JOBS, leave your BOATS and all your FISHING GEAR behind,

and come HANG OUT with me.”

b. That might have happened in the 60’s during the HIPPIE movement, but not here.

2. Luke’s gospel gives us more details as to what took place in Luke 5:1-3 (READ)

a. Jesus is not just taking a casual walk on the BEACH; He is TEACHING a CROWD of people

who had been FOLLOWING Him.

COMMENT:

Here we find the FISHERMEN “washing their nets” while in Mark’s account they are “casting their nets.” Some scholars believe that when Jesus first came on the SCENE with the CROWD of people the FISHERMEN were CASTING one last time, and by the time that JESUS and the CROWD got to them they were DONE fishing and putting up their GEAR.

Jesus gets into Peter’s BOAT and asks him to PUT OUT a little from SHORE. Then He sits down and begins TEACHING the people.

b. Now this seems a bit presumptuous of Jesus just to STEP into some strange fisherman’s BOAT, and then have the GALL to INTERRUPT his WORK to put his BOAT a little way from SHORE just so that He could have a place to SIT and TEACH.

3. In John’s gospel we learn that Peter had already met Jesus before this took place.

a. In fact, “Andrew was the one who introduced his brother Peter to Jesus” - John 1:40-42.

ILLUSTRATION:

Now, this PART takes a little IMAGINATION: From the day Peter first met Jesus I think he developed a LIKING for this new Rabbi. I suspect that Peter would slip away (once in a while) to hear Christ preach. It was a pleasant DIVERSION from the DAILY GRIND of FISHING… and he actually felt BETTER after LISTENING to Jesus.

You might say Peter had become a member of the “JESUS CHURCH.” But that’s pretty much all Peter had been up to this point. He was just a MEMBER—a PEW SITTER. He SANG a few songs, PRAYED a few prayers, quietly LISTENED to the sermon… then he’d go home. No