Bible Text: Matthew 4:18-19 | Speaker: Dr. Harold J. Sala | Series: Guidelines For Living | As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” Matthew 4:18-19

Tell me what is important in your life, and I’ll tell you who your God really is. What you spend your money for, what you give your time to, where you invest your resources, is what you really consider important—whether it is your family, your hobby, or your work.

What is important to you? The tension between work, family, and God isn’t new. No matter how much you love your family, you’ve got to earn a living, and yet Jesus was so clear as He said, “Seek first my kingdom and my righteousness and all these other things will be given to you as well” (see Matthew 6:33). It’s the other things that crowd your schedule, that keep you from prioritizing your time and energy, and dissipate your determination to accomplish your goals. How do we balance all of the demands that are made on us today? No wonder you feel like a juggler who keeps tossing more and more glass balls into the air until it becomes certain that things are about to crash.

Question: Have you ever noticed that the very last thing which Jesus said to Peter was exactly the same words as their first encounter? Remember? Jesus simply said, “Follow me…” That was it. It was what Jesus wanted from start to finish and everything else in between.

Just a minute, you say. These guys had to make a living and so do I. True. When Jesus called Peter and his brother James, they had their fishing nets in their hands. They were about to throw the net into the sea. Small businessmen such as Peter and James don’t have a very great margin of profit. Living near Capernaum, which was the trade route between Assyria and Egypt, they sold fish daily and had little left over.

I’m wondering—for a few fleeting seconds anyway—if Peter thought, “Hey, maybe we can make a deal. I’m willing to follow you, but I’d like to keep my fishing nets handy, and when things slack off a bit, I’ll still fish on the side.” In other words, keep the fishing nets in the grip of your hand.

She was an old maid watchmaker with a heart for Jewish people. Her name: Corrie ten Boom. She was arrested and sent to a concentration camp in World War 2 because she was a friend to those whose lives were periled because they happened to be descendants of Abraham. Corrie used to say that it is best to hold your treasures lightly because otherwise it hurts too much when God pries them out of your hand.

“What does that mean?” you may be thinking. You’re still holding the nets when you want to follow Jesus Christ but not all the way. You don’t mind Easter and Christmas and perhaps taking the kids to church occasionally, but don’t get too excited about this business of following Jesus Christ. After all, you don’t want to be considered a fanatic.

You hold onto the nets when you want to cut a deal with God. It just doesn’t work. “If anyone would come after me,” said Jesus, “he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23).   No wonder Deitrich Bonhoffer, who died under the hand of the Gestapo, called it “radical discipleship.” OK, you may be thinking, so Jesus wanted His men to leave their nets.   Does that mean walking out from my business or work? No, not necessarily. But it does mean you let Him be Lord of your life, of your home, of your leisure, and your thoughts as well. Jesus’ promises of adding all these other things when you make Him first are still true. Turn loose of the net, friend, and you’ll discover that God will fill it more times than you can count.

Resource reading: Matthew 4:18-22