And passing along 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 immediately they left their nets and followed him.
It’s interesting that, following Jesus’ urgent call to belief and repentance, his first followers are required simply to ‘follow’. They will learn their lessons as they go. Following Jesus is not a systematic undertaking; rather, at this point in the narrative, it is about taking place behind him and seeing what unfolds.
There is an emphasis in this passage on occupation. Mark stresses in verse 16 that these were fishermen. They weren’t just out indulging a hobby. The fishing business around Galilee was substantial, and the men Jesus calls here and in the next verses were committed to the local industry (Zebedee’s family even had hired servants). But their occupation is changed in an instant. ‘Follow me’, Jesus says, ‘and I will make you become fishers of men.’ Or more literally, I will make it so that you become fishers of men. These men who were fishermen are now disciples of Jesus. Before, their job was to go to inhospitable places in search of fish; now they will make their risky journeys, not for the sake of a good catch, but to gather more disciples in Jesus’ name.
There is a certain drama to this moment. Simon and Andrew were probably knee-deep in water when Jesus called them. They apparently drop their nets there and then. Their response teaches us about the conviction required in response to Jesus. He is worth following, no matter how much or how little we think we know of him. Peter (the principal disciple) and his brother Andrew will display this conviction all the way to their deaths: the disciple ultimately becomes the martyr.
Author Nick Raven
24/04/2020