Fishers of Men
“Now as He walked by the sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew
his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And Jesus said
unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of
men” Mark 1:16-17. But Satan was, and is, a fisher of men. “Now the serpent was more subtle
than any beast of the field which the Lord had made. And he said unto the
woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” And
Eve misquotes, or adds to, the Word of God: “. . .God hath said, Ye shall not
eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” “And the serpent said unto the
woman, Ye shall not surely die.” Satan fed her a line; his glowing promises were the lure; he used the
world as the bait; sin became the hook, and she became the “catch” of the day.
Eve contracted “hook-in-mouth” disease. Men yet are fed the line [lie] of the devil; they are yet lured as they see
the tree as being “good for food,” and “pleasant to the eyes.” And they “take
the bait,” the forbidden fruit of the world; and the barbed hook of sin is forever
“set.” Then are they reeled in and cast forth into the darkened, troubled, murky
waters of Satan’s stronghold. Sadly enough, the shiny lure sparkles before their eyes and the bait of
worldly desire is ever there to tempt them. The hook remains securely lodged
in their mouth; they must know it’s there. But they will tolerate it, ever
reaching for the bait to which they were first attracted.
“No man can come to me, except the Father draw him. . .” John 6:44. “The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee” Jer. 31:3.
The disciples did their fishing with a net. On two occasions after they had fished all night and taken nothing, our Lord commanded that they cast their net on the other side of the ship. If we were to give a name to the net whereby men would be drawn, what better than that of lovingkindness? “therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.”
It’s not uncommon to hear a fisherman say, Throw that one back; it doesn’t measure up; it isn’t worth keeping! But such is not the case with our Lord Jesus! For He says, “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” John 6:37. Not only will He not cast out [or throw back] any that come, but will lose not even one. “And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing. . .” vs .39. There’s more. Those that are drawn to the Light [not by a lure] will come; they will not be thrown back; they will not be lost. . .“And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life. . .” vs. 40.
"And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely" Rev. 22:17.
