"While walking by the Sea of Galilee, Jesus saw the brothers Simon and Andrew casting their nets into the sea, since they fished by trade. Jesus said to them, 'Follow me; I will make you fishers of humankind.' They immediately abandoned their nets and followed Jesus." [Mk 1:16-18, The Inclusive Bible]
One of the most well known images for evangelism comes from last Sunday's gospel lesson. This same invitation is also found in Matthew 4:18-20. The image of fishing for people is well known in Christian circles. However, is fishing for people really the best analogy for evangelism in our day and age?
Imagine yourself as a fish in a quiet, tranquil lake. You're blissfully swimming along with all the other little fishies. You're happy and content, when all of a sudden you see what you thought was a tasty snack. You swim up to it and swallow it whole only to discover that you now have a hook snagged in your jaw. The pain is unbelievable.
Before you know it, you're snatched from the lake and are flopping desperately on the shore, trying to breathe. Then you're gutted, cleaned, dusted with flour and cornmeal and end up in a frying pan. Is this really the image we want to use for evangelism in our day and age?
It may well be that we are so fixed on the image of being fishers of people that we are missing the deeper meaning of what Jesus was trying say. Perhaps Jesus invited Simon and Andrew to "fish for people" because that's who they were...fishermen. If Simon and Andrew had been farmers, would Jesus have invited them to "fish for people" or would he have issued an invitation to become "Kingdom seed planters"?
Perhaps Jesus invited Simon and Andrew to "fish for people" because it fit who they were. It was a metaphor they could understand. It took advantage of their unique abilities. If this is the case, then it only makes sense that Jesus calls us to follow him in a way that fits who we are, too.
We don't have to become someone we aren't in order to follow Jesus. We don't have to have a special skill set in order to be used by God to build the Kingdom. Instead, Jesus frees us to simply be ourselves; to use our unique abilities in service of him.
Whether we are a doctor or an artist, a factory worker or a stay-at-home parent, a teacher or a supervisor, an engineer or a waitress, Jesus calls us to use the talents and strengths we have to make a contribution to the God’s Kingdom that we alone can make.
Imagine the freedom and excitement Jesus offers each of us by inviting us to be ourselves, and use our unique abilities to bless others! We don't need to be anybody other than who we already are. We simply need to trust that God can and will use us to build the Kingdom and bless others in the name of Christ.
Therefore, we can stop worrying about what we don't have or who we aren't as an excuse for not ministering to others. Instead, we can celebrate our uniqueness, as individuals and as churches, and begin to ask the exciting question "What metaphor does Jesus intend for us as we answer the call to follow him?" Think about it.
1 comments:
Just wanted to say that this post really struck home for me. I grew up in a certain type of family and we are often pushed toward areas of ministry and evangelism where we are not called. It's important for me, especially, to remember that God has called me to be a certain person, in a certain time, for a certain place, and that I don't have to be anything else, as long as I am following his will.
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