Forsake Your Nets and Follow God

Terrance L. Culp
Mark 1:14-28 (NRSV)
14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, 15and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’
16 As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake—for they were fishermen. 17And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fish for people.’ 18And immediately they left their nets and followed him. 19As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. 20Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.
21 They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. 22They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. 23Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, 24and he cried out, ‘What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.’ 25But Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be silent, and come out of him!’ 26And the unclean spirit, throwing him into convulsions and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. 27They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, ‘What is this? A new teaching—with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.’ 28At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee

I often look at my life and say the phrase that others have said:”If only there were more hours in the day….” The inescapable reality is that if there were more hours in our day, we would probably continue to fill those hours with meaningless, mundane tasks that would leave us still seeking for more hours to continue these works of our hands. I see people who have so many irons in the fire that their lives become stagnant, continually striving to have the appearance of success, progress, and accomplishment. This is not a rebuke of industrious people, “for whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required :”( Luke 12:48B). This missive does serve to bring awareness to you and I who often use our life’s work as an escape of the call of God on our lives.

The call of God is not a call to preach or a call to pastor: it is a call to follow. The initial exuberance of following Christ can be lost in the work of ministry if the joy of following Christ is not properly maintained. The scary part for many believers, new and seasoned, is that the work of God is so intense and unending. It requires sacrifice and dedication, and for some, they believe that it is not worth it. Simon, Andrew, James, and John followed Christ based on an invitation and immediately they were introduced to the work of ministry. To go from fisherman to being a fisher of men is a daunting proposition, to say the least. But, if one seeks to experience God’s glory, we must understand that to love Him is to follow Him and to follow Him requires us to perform the work of Him. As we follow, we will see miracles, large and small. Following anything means that some things will be left behind. Leave your past behind. Leave your inhibitions behind. Forsake the nets that entangle you and answer the greatest call on your life: to follow God.

Prayer: Give us this day, our daily bread….

Terrance L. Culp, Associate Minister
The Life Cathedral
Orangeburg, SC
www.twitter.com/terrancelculp