Mark 1:16-20
"And as He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, 'Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.' And they immediately left the nets and followed Him. And going on a little farther, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets. And immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went away to follow Him." (Mark 1:16-20)
What does it mean to follow Jesus? What does it mean to hear "the Master's call?" "Many are called but few are chosen," the Bible says. In order to understand that statement, we may say that many are called but few really respond to that call. You see, Jesus is ready to accept all who will follow Him at His call.
The Rich Young Ruler was called to follow Jesus. But the Rich Young Ruler had a problem. He had a love of money. His possessions possessed him. He had grown used to his comfortable lifestyle and was reluctant to give it up. Jesus had called him, but he would not respond to that call. The call was there, but the response was not.
What does it mean to respond to the call of Jesus Christ? In Revelation 17:14, we have a picture of the overcoming Lamb of God who is King of Kings. Jesus Christ is pictured there. The saints of God are with Him. In that passage, they are described as the called and chosen and faithful. This is a picture of what every saint of God should be in Christ. It is not enough to be called. Nor is it enough to respond properly and be chosen. We must also be faithful. Faithfulness is what the Lord desires of us.
Our text today is about the Master's Call. As we focus on it, we will see the power of his call and hopefully hear His call to us. I would like for us to look at two major areas. The first is The Nature Of The Call. The second is The Authority Of The Call.
The Nature Of The Call
What is the nature of the call of Christ which comes to us? What are its characteristics? There are several important truths concerning the call of Christ. The first is that it is made to ordinary people.
In our text, we see Jesus walking along the Sea of Galilee. But this was more than simply a casual afternoon stroll. Jesus was looking for people. He found Peter and Andrew, James and John. They were fishermen. They were just ordinary people. They were not trained in the Jewish religion, as the Scribes or Levites or Priests. They were not Rabbis. As a matter of fact, they were not even Pharisees or Sadducees. They were just common folk, ordinary fishermen; people like you and me. But apart from all others whom Jesus could have called, He called these. It is as if Jesus wanted to make a statement that anyone could be used by Him for His purpose. Jesus wasn't looking for the "cream of the crop." He was looking for ordinary people. Here he found four, and He called them.
1 Corinthians 1:26 reminds us of God's delight in calling ordinary people when it says, "For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble."
In other words, those characteristics which the world prides itself in having, God can create in the most humble of us. These are the kind of people He delights in using - just ordinary people. The Gospel is to the poor, the broken-hearted, the bound, the needy, the sinful. It is not for the proud one who needs nothing, but it is for the one who hungers and thirsts. Are you an ordinary person? God's call goes out to you. And I am encouraged that God uses ordinary people.
Further, we need to see that the call of Christ goes forth to busy people. The Master's call comes while we are in the midst of the affairs of this life. Look at what happened to these fishermen. They were in the midst of living their lives, of running their businesses. Perhaps they had spent a great deal of time planning their future and setting goals for themselves. Maybe they were moving right on schedule toward meeting these goals. Yet, the call of Christ came to them in the midst of their busy-ness.
As a matter of fact, our text, and especially the related passage in Luke chapter 5, indicates that they had a rather large and prosperous fishing business. In Luke, it states that James and John were partners with Simon Peter in the fishing business. And in Mark, we are informed that James and John, along with their father, Zebedee, had hired servants to help them in their boats. So, perhaps we have a corporation here. Whatever the case, it is apparent that they were involved in life. They were busy. They had a business to manage. They had employees to supervise. Yet Jesus called them.
Many people today are busy living their own lives, planning their own futures, setting their own goals, and building their own businesses when Jesus calls. And sadly, they, like the Rich Young Ruler, go away without responding when the call comes. It is as if they do not have time to get involved with Jesus. They can't leave off doing their own thing. They have spent too much time at it. They've planned too long. They have too much yet to do. You can almost hear them cry, "It's my life, my goals, my business!" The call of Christ comes and it threatens them. "Why, I can't follow Christ now. What will happen to my life? Who will take care of me?" And so, they go back to their lives to try to save their lives, only to lose them. You see, the divine paradox in Scripture is that if a man seeks to save his life, he will lose it. But it is only in losing our lives that we find them. Only as we turn our lives over to Jesus can we find true fulfillment in life. If we are grasping, constantly struggling with God, we end up frustrated and unfulfilled.
Even more sadly, some Christians who have responded to the call, and at one time left all to follow Jesus, no longer have time for following him. Many in our churches today in America are in this category. They were once alive in their walk. They were once excited about the things of God. But now, it seems that the world has reclaimed them. The cares of this life seem to occupy their time and thinking. They used to be together with the saints of God in the House of the Lord when the Church met together. Now, they are doing other "good" things. It seems as if some people work at finding something to do during meeting times, or perhaps they use that time as a convenient time to "catch up" on other things. Busy, busy, busy...just don't have time to go tonight. But it's funny how unbusy they are on other occasions. The truth is, we do what we want to do. It's sad. What difference is there in them and the nominal church attender who is unsaved? What difference that the world can see? Even sadder, what can their children see? You cannot convince your children that the things of God are important to you unless you show them. Your words do not convince them.
Many in our churches today have let other "good" things crowd into their lives and rob them of their faithfulness. They have become American Christians instead of New Testament Christians. What happened to the vision which was once theirs? What happened to the burning heart which motivated them to faithfulness to Jesus Christ? What happened to the love for the brethren which caused them to take seriously their covenant relationship to fellowship and encourage one another? Was it lost in the affairs of this life? The Master's call goes forth to you in your busy-ness to come back to Him.
Notice also about this call that it is a call to follow Jesus. The call of Christ is a positive call. It is not a call to escape hell. It is not a call to fulfill our own desires. It is not a call to be blessed. It is not a call that is negative in nature. It is a call to follow Jesus, a positive call.
Following Jesus means that I am committed to Him, to do what He says, and to follow where He leads. It is not a call to a doctrine, although we ought to maintain sound doctrine. Rather, it is a call to allegiance to a person - God's Son and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Most folks' problems begin when they get a little off-course in their allegiance. We begin to say that Jesus would have us be a good business man. And so they give their time to their business, often to the exclusion of the Lord of the business. In other words, they pay more attention to the thing they think Jesus wants them to do, as if they could do it in their own power. But Jesus said, "Follow me, and I will make you..." We are to follow Christ. It is His job to make us what He wants us to be. He is the Potter and we are the clay. He will make us what He wants us to be if we will give ourselves to Him.
The Master's call is a call to be transformed by His power. As we follow Jesus, He gives us the power to become what He wants us to be.
It says in John, "But to as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God."
Only as we draw close to Jesus do we make any real progress in our walk. It is almost a paradox. Only by looking first to Jesus do we move the mountain. It is not by looking at the mountain, but it is by looking to the One who can move it. There is a real principle here. It is not by working harder at our business, though we ought to be a hard worker. But you can work hard without the Lord being in it. Someone said that most of us don't need to work harder, we need to work smarter. Working smart means letting the Lord control you in whatever you are doing. That is what makes the difference. It is looking first to your relationship to Him. That is what will make your business or home or marriage or ministry what it ought to be. Give time to Him. Pray faithfully. Read the Word faithfully. Do not neglect the assembling of the saints, but attend faithfully. Be called, chosen and faithful. And as you grow in the Lord, all else you are involved in will prosper. Remember what it says in
3 John 2, "Beloved, I pray that in all respects, you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers."
It is only as we have soul prosperity that we can prosper in other ways. And soul prosperity comes only by being faithful to Jesus. So, be faithful to Him and let Him make you what He wants you to be. He has committed Himself to do it. He said to Simon, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."
Now, what we become may differ. It is interesting to note how the text suggests the eventual ministries of these disciples. Simon and Andrew were casting their nets. Jesus said to them that He would make them fishers of men. It is often assumed that He said this to both groups of two. But the text may not support that assumption. We do know that He said this to Simon and Andrew. But later, He saw James and John mending their nets. The text just says that He called them. But the word in Greek for mending is the same word that is used in Ephesians 4 for "equipping."
The context of Ephesians 4 is that the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers are charged to equip the saints for the work of ministry. Peter and his brother, Andrew, were casting their nets. And Peter certainly did become a great fisher of men. He preached the sermon on Pentecost to open the door to the Jews. He preached to the household of Cornelius to open the door to the Gentiles. He was a fisher of men. But we also know that John became a great pastor, or equipper of saints. He was a teacher of the Word, a soul-mender. So, what God calls you to, so far as ministry is concerned, may be different than another. But the Lord is responsible to make you become whatever you are to be.
So what is the nature of the call? It is made to ordinary people. It is made to busy people. It is a call to follow Jesus. It is a call to be transformed by His power.
The Authority Of The Call
What is the authority of the call of Christ? Why does it have authority? The call has authority because Jesus is the Christ. In other words, Jesus is no mere mortal man. He is the Messiah of God. He is the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings. And it is on that basis that we must obey the call. If Jesus were simply a good man, or a good teacher, or a prophet, or priest, we might have reason to hesitate. But He is the Lord, and that leaves us no choice but to obey, if we would follow Him.
You see, following Jesus is not merely believing certain facts about Him. It is being so thoroughly convinced of those facts and so thoroughly committed to them that we obey, that we place our lives in His hands and trust Him with our welfare and future.
Are you willing to trust Jesus with your life? On one day in 1860, a huge crowd was watching the famous tightrope walker, Blonden, cross Niagara falls. This is a picture of Nik Wallenda crossing Niagra. You know, he recently crossed the Grand Canyon, too. Blonden crossed Niagra numerous times. It was a 1,000 foot trip, 160 feet above the raging waters. He turned to the crowd and asked them if they believed he could take a person across. Everyone agreed. Then he approached one man and asked him to get on his back and go with him. The man refused. You see, mental agreement with the facts, or even verbal agreement is not real trust. It is not real faith. Faith produces faithfulness. To trust Christ with our lives means that we put our lives in His hands by our actions. To follow Christ means we live for Him. The call goes forth in the authority and power of Jesus Christ. Our response can only be obedience.
What else can we say about the authority of the Master's call? We can say that the call of Christ supersedes our occupation. What happened to these Jesus called? Well, when Jesus called them, the left their nets. That is symbolic of their occupation. What is being illustrated here is the extent of the authority of the call of Christ on a human soul. How far do we go? How much are we to give up? Just how much can the Lord expect from us? ALL!! All that we are, and all that we have!!
The call also supersedes material possessions. This is implied in the leaving of the nets and boats. They left their occupation, but that was the source of their money and material wealth. Jesus told the Rich Young Ruler to sell all that he had, give it to the poor, and come follow Him. But the Rich Young Ruler loved what he had, and that kept him from the Lord. Some of us may leave our jobs, if we have a nice bank roll to fall back on. But what if Christ called us, not only to leave our occupation, but to sell all we had? You see, it is the love of money, and by that, the love of all material things, that causes us to be caught up in the world.
It is all contained in what 1 John 2:15 calls "the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life." Scripture calls this "loving the world."
But not only does the call of Christ supercede occupation and material things, it supercedes even family ties. We must be very clear, at this point, in what we are talking about. Perhaps the best thing to do is to say what we are not talking about. We are not talking about using the Lord as a reason to neglect your family. Nor are we talking about husbands or wives leaving their mate to pursue a "ministry." Some have done this, and we condemn such perversion of the call of God. But what we are talking about is the call of Jesus to discipleship, to following Him. When He calls us, we must not let family ties stand in the way. Here, James and John left their father. The Scripture makes a point of this. What does it mean?
So many people have let the Spiritual condition of their mate keep them from a full commitment to Christ. There are wives who let the lack of interest by their husbands keep them from a walk with God. And, there are husbands who use an unsaved wife as an excuse for their lack of commitment. But Jesus calls us individually. And Jesus must deal with us individually. And while it would be wonderful for the whole family to come along, we must go, even if they do not. Perhaps if we did go on with the Lord, they would come. More times than not, this is what, in fact, happens. More times than not, when a mate does not go on with the Lord without the spouse, they are both drawn down. Oh, it is our prayer that our mates do come. But whether they do or not, we must obey the Lord.
This can be true for children, too. They cannot come between us and the call of God. How do we win our children to the Lord? The best way is by showing them that He is important to us. We must show our children, not by our words, but by our actions, that Jesus Christ is supreme in our life. As our children really see that the things of God are important to us, they will have driven into their consciousness an understanding that God is important. They may not come right away, but they will have that impression registered indelibly with them.
On Sunday morning, September 27, 1959, President Eisenhower invited Khrushchev to accompany him to a worship service at Gettysburg Presbyterian Church. The Red leader declined. What did Eisenhower do? Eisenhower went without him. Now, what do you think would have made a better impression for the Gospel? For Eisenhower to go or to "out of good manners" stay with Khrushchev? After all, they did only have a limited amount of time to be together. Their meeting was undoubtedly important. These were the two leaders of the greatest nations on earth. Yet, I believe, a greater statement was made about the importance of the Christian faith by Eisenhower going without Khrushchev, then would have ever been made if Eisenhower had stayed home. Yet there are some who would never leave their guests to go to church. What are we saying to people? Now, you may think you are saying that people are important by staying home with them. In fact, you are saying quite the opposite. You are saying that their souls are so unimportant to you, that you are unwilling to point them to Jesus.
If our children, our wives, our husbands, and the world saw that we were committed enough to Jesus Christ to order our lives with time for the Lord, His Church, and the things of God, they might believe us when we say we are committed.
The Master's call -- it comes to ordinary people who are engaged in the business of life. It is a call to follow Jesus and to become what He desires us to be. He will give us the grace. It is a call that supersedes all earthly ties - occupations, material possessions, family and friends. And it is based on the authority of the risen Christ who is Lord of all. But knowing about this is not enough.
Where there is a call there must be a response. What is your response to that call today?
Largely written from a sermon by JD Hoke
