CALLED TO FOLLOW
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And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.
Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
They immediately left their nets and followed Him.
Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them,
and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
Consider what comes to mind when you think about a politician, a CrossFit fanatic or a millennial. Odds are you have certain mental associations with each. Now, what comes to mind when you hear the word Christian? Odds are you associate that word with certain characteristics as well. The broader culture also forms impressions of what a Christian is and whether or not they are one.
The first followers of Jesus didn’t call themselves Christians. It was a derogatory term used by people outside of the faith. In , we see that the first Christians were known as disciples. The word Christian is used three times in the whole Bible; the word disciple is used 281 times. Disciple is a far more accurate and compelling description of what it means to follow Jesus. And, as we will see, the concept of a disciple exposes the fact that many who claim to be Christians are not actually disciples of Jesus.
READ MAIN TEXT
READ MAIN TEXT
Main Idea: Jesus calls disciples to make disciples.
Main Idea: Jesus calls disciples to make disciples.
Key Question: Are you a disciple?
Key Question: Are you a disciple?
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
• All Hebrew boys went to Torah school starting at age 5.
• By age 10, all young boys knew the Torah and the best students went on to study the remainder of the Old Testament. The rest returned home to work in their families’ businesses.
• At about age 17, if you wanted to go on and make a career out of religious studies, your next step was to find a rabbi you admired and apply to become one of his disciples (talmidim).
• When you found one, you would go and sit at his feet. That was your request to learn. And the rabbi would examine you with questions and put you through a series of tests to see if you were worthy to be his disciple.
• The rabbis could choose the smartest, most talented boys to be their disciples.
• Another reason the rabbis were so picky is that when they chose a disciple, they were choosing someone whom they believed could become just like them—to not just know what they knew, but to do what they did.
• For several years, these young disciples (talmidim) would follow their rabbis, imitating them in every way. The goal of a disciple was to be like the rabbi.
PASSAGE OUTLINE:
1. Jesus calls us. (v. 19)
1. Jesus calls us. (v. 19)
“Follow me,” he told them ...
Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
As I explained, the normal way this all went down is that if you were among the best of your class, you applied to a rabbi, and if he liked what he saw, he’d choose you back. Now, his selection gave them a great deal of confidence. If they were struggling, they could say, “Ah, but my rabbi believed in me! He chose me.” But Jesus started the process back even further. They didn’t even come to sit at His feet. He came seeking them when they weren’t even looking for Him.
As I explained, the normal way this all went down is that if you were among the best of your class, you applied to a rabbi, and if he liked what he saw, he’d choose you back. Now, his selection gave them a great deal of confidence. If they were struggling, they could say, “Ah, but my rabbi believed in me! He chose me.” But Jesus started the process back even further. They didn’t even come to sit at His feet. He came seeking them when they weren’t even looking for Him.
Some of you are struggling now—marriage, career, parenting. Believe this, friend: If you are Jesus’ disciple, then He chose you!
You did not choose me, but I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that what- ever you ask the Father in my name, he will give you. (, CSB)
You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.
2. Jesus doesn’t call the best, he calls the willing. (v. 18-19)
2. Jesus doesn’t call the best, he calls the willing. (v. 18-19)
for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly.”
The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.
And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.
Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
As he was walking along the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter), and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen.
In Matthew chapter four, Jesus, this new rabbi, chooses Peter and Andrew, who are fishermen. The fact that they are fishermen shows you what? They were part of the B-team. They weren’t the best of the best.
Ladies and gentlemen, let that sink in: When Jesus chose His squad to build His movement, He chose the B-team! So, of course, they went to follow Him. This rabbi had chosen them—guys without much potential or personal power—to follow Him and to become like Him, to know God like He knew God, to know what He knew, to do what He did and be filled with His power!
John MacArthur: “God skipped all the wise of the day! The great scholars were in Egypt; the great library was in Alexandria; the great philosophers were in Athens; the powerful were in Rome. He passed over Herodotus the historian and Socrates the great thinker and Julius Caesar. He chose men so ordinary it was comical. No Rabbis, no teachers, no religious experts...”
Jesus chose the B-team because His work in the world wouldn’t come from their abilities for Him, but from what He would do through them.
People with a lot of talent and ability would only get in the way because they would never learn to lean on His power. Jesus taught that His power in the weakest vessel was infinitely greater than the greatest talent without Him.
God wants to use you in your family, at your workplace. Stop making excuses that you are not able. He doesn’t need your ability; He requires only your availability. As we often say, He doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called. Have you made yourself available?
Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”
3. Jesus calls us to be with Him, first. (v. 19)
3. Jesus calls us to be with Him, first. (v. 19)
Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
“Follow me,” he told them ...
He didn’t tell them where they were going or what assignment He had for them. His primary call is not to do something; it is to become like Him. And to become like Him, you have to know Him. To know Him, you have to know His Word.
He didn’t tell them where they were going or what assignment He had for them. His primary call is not to do something; it is to become like Him. And to become like Him, you have to know Him. To know Him, you have to know His Word.
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
You have so many outlets here for this—weekly messages, small groups, special studies. If you are really serious about being His disciple, you’ll take advantage of a lot of these. Get His Word inside of you until it dominates all your thinking and all your behavior. Until you think it and talk it and quote it.
4. Jesus calls us to follow him, leaving all. (v. 20-22)
4. Jesus calls us to follow him, leaving all. (v. 20-22)
They immediately left their nets and followed Him.
matt 4
They immediately left their nets and followed Him.
Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them,
and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.
Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Why identify these two things? Because these are usually the two most significant things in our lives:
• Boat: Our careers (the way we take care of ourselves)
• Father: Our most significant relationships\
But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”
To follow Jesus, He has to take precedence over both. Most of you won’t literally lose your father and mother over Jesus ... Some might. For some, God may tell you to change careers. Maybe God will tell you transfer your job to be part of a church plant. Or leave your job and carry the gospel overseas. For many of you, it probably won’t be that dramatic. But you’ll have moments where you decide which holds greater sway over your life.
5. Jesus commands us to spiritually reproduce. (v. 19)
5. Jesus commands us to spiritually reproduce. (v. 19)
Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Following Jesus means you subject everything in your life to His lordship. You forsake all that He has forbidden and pursue all that He has prescribed. Just like He was a fisher of men, His followers would become fishers of men. This is an essential part of being a disciple. It’s not something that only a few of us do; it’s something that each of us does. There is no such thing as a non-reproducing Christian.
Following Jesus means you subject everything in your life to His lordship. You forsake all that He has forbidden and pursue all that He has prescribed. Just like He was a fisher of men, His followers would become fishers of men. This is an essential part of being a disciple. It’s not something that only a few of us do; it’s something that each of us does. There is no such thing as a non-reproducing Christian.
How do you prove you are a disciple? By bearing fruit. And if you are not bearing fruit, you have reason to question whether you are a disciple at all.
By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.
Jesus tells His disciples how to bear fruit in His famous Great Commission:
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (, CSB)
In Greek, the words go, baptize and teach are all participles that derive their force from the one controlling verb, make disciples. Which means that everything we do grows out of the call to make disciples. Jesus summarized His ministry, , by saying, “The Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.” If we are His disciples, that’s how we’ll summarize our lives, too.
In his book, The Master Plan of Evangelism, Robert Coleman said:
“When will the church learn this lesson? Preaching to the masses, although necessary, will never suffice in the work of preparing leaders for evangelism. Nor can occasional prayer meetings and training classes for Christian workers do this job... Individual women and men are God’s method. God’s plan for discipleship is not something, but someone.”
CONCLUSION:
You are God’s method. We want to see you become this, this year. We want you to commit to it. And don’t let it intimidate you. Disciple making is simply teaching someone to follow Jesus as you follow Jesus with the help of the Holy Spirit. And Jesus has promised to help you. So, identify your one. Ask God to help you identify one person you can, with the help of the Holy Spirit, bring to faith in Christ this year.
Can you imagine what would it look like if every one of the people here this weekend did this, and asked God, “God, give me one person I could bring to Jesus”? If every one of our small groups made it their goal to reach one person for Jesus? If each one committed to reach one?
INVITATION:
Are you a disciple? If not, maybe you are the one today.