Follow Me and I Will Make You Fishers of Men

I love what Jesus says when He calls His disciples, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Matthew 4:19). I hear Jesus words in three ways:

1. I hear a promise. Jesus takes the responsibility on Himself to transform my life. He makes me significant and useful by leading me and teaching me. I am not significant nor useful on my own strength or ability... that only comes from my continued determination to listen and follow.
2. I hear an instruction. The instruction is to follow. Following is a challenge to me. It means that I am not in charge and that I am not free to evaluate the path that I am on. My role is to keep seeking Jesus and asking Him if I am on track. When I choose to embrace this mentality (rather than trying to be a smart, savvy, independent sheep), I find deep peace and confidence.
3. I hear an example. The invitation to "Follow me" reveals the heart of a shepherd. It isn't prideful or manipulative to make that invitation to people. Quite the opposite! It's a choice to make a place of safety and fruitfulness for those whom we love. Just as Jesus takes responsibility for my growth and development, and He gives me instructions to follow, He asks me to be the same for another person. It's a sobering thing to step into that role in another person's life. But it's the most rewarding, exciting thing too! It's a place that God wants for every single one of us. Every single child of God is made to have a role of incredible significance and influence in others' lives.

When Peter first meets Jesus, he felt disqualified and inadequate. He feared that his sin would disgust, offend, or maybe even defile Jesus, "Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man!" (Luke 5:8). But Jesus replies, "Do not fear, from now on you will be catching men" (Luke 5:10).

Many of us either disqualify ourselves or we never understand that we can aspire to such significance. Sometimes our sin feels more real than our significance in Jesus. But He says, "Nevermind about that... just keep following Me. I've got you covered and I want to use you."

Follow the Leader

This past weekend, Hilary taught on Psalm 23. I love listening to her teach... she's entertaining, deep, and authentic -- exposing the realities of her thought process (good and bad).

I won't try to summarize her teaching, but just encourage you to check it out yourself (it's not up there right now, but it should be by tomorrow). Instead I wanted to share a few of my own thoughts on life as a sheep (and a shepherd).

Sheep are defenseless, directionless, and dependent. They are the perfect prey--without claws or sharp teeth they can't fight, with heavy coats and stubby legs, they can't outrun or outmaneuver their predators. They will wander into dangerous predicaments, even following other sheep to slaughter or off a cliff. They are one of the few animals that simply can't survive without attentive care (I had fun browsing this site for some of these interesting sheep factoids).

Any of this sound familiar?

Our natural tendency is to overcome our shortcomings--to try develop a strong defense, to be highly motivated, and to gain independence. While we can keep up appearances for a time, it's short-lived. No matter how impressive our lives might seem to the other sheep around us, it eventually falls short.

Jesus, who is our Good Shepherd, invites us to become shepherds, too. Check out this interaction between Jesus and Peter:

Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My lambs.” He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Tend My sheep." John 21:15-17

One of the primary ways that Jesus asks us to show our love for Him is to take responsibility to care for His little lambs. Many believers make the mistake of thinking that Jesus is mostly interested in having us stop sinning. While that's partly true, it's not for the reasons that many people think! We could be morally perfect and still completely miss the point (that's the mistake the Pharisees made). The point isn't how much sin is in my life, but rather how much of my life am I using to serve and bless Jesus' little lambs?

As a sheep, it's logical to have a problem with the concept of shepherding. Isn't that like the blind leading the blind? That's true if we're trying to lead people on our own strength and with our own wisdom. But we're not! The goal is to pass along to others what we've received from Jesus.

Our thinking about spiritual leadership / shepherding / ministry tends to be tinted with fleshly, human thinking. Our natural thinking tells us that a person must be extraordinarily charismatic or otherwise talented in order to lead other people (apparently there's actually an Icelandic sheep-breed that's famous for it's leader-like qualities). But unlike the Icelandic sheep, we don't need any special gifting or ability! All we need is an experience with Jesus and the courage to pass it along!

I love this passage in Isaiah:

The smallest one will become a clan, and the least one a mighty nation. I, the Lord, will hasten it in its time. Isaiah 60:22

No matter how insignificant we see ourselves as being, God wants to make us into a person of tremendous influence! That doesn't mean that we will necessarily fill stadiums. But it means that He's designed each of us to have a big impact on others. He's arranged our gifting and our life to bring us into contact with people who need what He has given us. Being a shepherd simply means loving and serving other people the way Jesus has loved and served me.

God says that He will "hasten" this process "in its time." In other words, God wants to speed you and me into the process of becoming a leader / influencer / minister / shepherd / servant / big brother or sister (take your pick of words... it's all the same thing), BUT He's not in a rush, either.

Maybe this is a time God is urging you to step forward and begin leading. Remember playing "follow the leader" as a kid? Wasn't it lame when the same kid always wanted to lead? That's because back then we thought it was fun to be the kid at the front of the line... but that was before a lot of painful stuff happened to us (rejection, failure, betrayal, etc.). But as Jesus heals us, we can find that spunk and spontaneity to enjoy showing others His goodness once again.

Over the last couple months, I've had fun working with a group of guys to plan our upcoming Men's Advance. There have been several great moments, but the best have all been in helping other guys remember / discover how God made them to help bless / serve / lead others. The reason I'm a pastor is because I love to help people let go of self-defeating ideas and identities and grab onto the truth of who Jesus says they are. When we begin to understand how GOOD God is and how lovingly He made us, we aren't quite so afraid to take our turn at the front of the line.