The Church And The Sea
Matthew 4:12-23
Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: “Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles — the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.” From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea — for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him. Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.
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This morning we continue a series of sermons that focus on the idea and practice of discipleship. It is an opportunity for us to consider what it means for us to live and grow as a faith community here in Mahopac, and a chance to grow as individuals who come with sets of unique skills, talents, and abilities.
A classic novel came to mind after reading the Scripture passage for this morning. Considered to be a pivotal work in the life of Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and The Sea tells the story of an aged fisherman who desires to go out to sea once more in search of a big catch. This fisherman named Santiago has gone 84 days without catching anything and is considered "unlucky." He sets out into the Gulf Stream one day in search of a large fish. Throughout Hemingway's tale, we see the hardship and trials of an old fisherman who desires to live in glory one more time. Fishing is hard work, it requires constant vigilance, and a desire to pass those skills along as we find that Santiago also teaches a young boy how to fish. We’re never sure what we will find when we cast our nets out into the sea, but we can be confident that we will never be able to go back in time, chasing after tales of former glory.
Perhaps there is something in the character of Santiago that resonates with ourselves. As a people, we can probably look back at some things with a longing heart. We might gaze back at our youth, our past successes, or abilities that we might not have any longer. As a church, a community of faith, we might look back at times when we had more people in the pews, more children, and had other activities/programs that we might no longer host. There is something tempting to the idea that we can go back and reclaim some victory or golden era that happened long ago. Yet, we know that life doesn’t work like that, and often we find that the only thing we can do is cast our nets out on the other side of the boat with the knowledge that something new will appear with enough time and enough work. What starts this journey of casting our nets out for something new? Jesus, walking along the lakeshore, asking us to come and fish for something bigger than ourselves.
Can you imagine being one of the first disciples? Please take a moment to place yourself in their position. It must have been something to be out fishing, and then have someone, a stranger, appear saying, “Follow me.” I imagine that those first disciples were perplexed, especially when this stranger told them that they would be fishing for people instead of fish. Yet here we are this morning, standing with Simon and Andrew as Jesus asks us to mend and repurpose our nets for something new. Heading out into an unknown world though like that can be a scary experience, especially if we feel like we haven’t figured out everything out about ourselves. But in faith, we go out and cast our nets in search of people, in search of something that goes beyond us, knowing that what we are doing will create a better community, a stronger community, and a more loving community.
Perhaps we need to look at our nets and see what kind of shape they are currently in now. Maybe they are worn and torn from the many battles we have put them through. There's the chance that we were using the wrong tool altogether, and instead of a big fishing net we were using a small scoop, you know the ones that you use for goldfish. We are good at going through the motions and relying on habits and practices that have kept us going, yet those same things might not work when Jesus comes a-knocking asking us to transform the skills and talents we have to offer. This transformation or repurposing requires something, though, and that is a willingness to take a hard look at ourselves to make room for something new. Because while Jesus calls us to go out and build an active community, he also asks that we do the complicated and uncomfortable work of tending to the worn-out portions of ourselves.
The thing about fishing and discipleship is that we can never return to our former days of glory. We can only cast our nets in search of something new, mending our tools, our skills, and traditions, all while trusting that God is moving with us. There is this beautiful line that comes from Santiago while he is out at sea, where he says, “Now is no time to think of what you do not have. Think of what you can do with that there is.” So how will we use what we have? How will we mend our nets, repurpose our tools so that we can sustain our vital outreach and well being as people created in the image of God? On the outside, it may not look like there is much to work with, but if we opened our minds and hearts, we would find that there are countless possibilities if we allow the Spirit of God to show us the way.
So ponder this day, and this week what you might bring with you what we may bring as the “old church” as we head out into the vast ocean of our world. What is it that you think will sustain us? There are many provisions we could bring, and there a multitude of traditions and keepsakes we might want to bring as well. However, the purpose of casting our nets out is not to find what has been, but what could be.
What is one thing that you wish you mend as you go “fishing?”
What is one way you can cast your net this year?
We will find that as we continue to look at discipleship, there is an overarching theme. And that theme is that Jesus comes and disrupts the status quo. I hope that over the course of this year, we can continue to evaluate ourselves so that we may reform and reuse what may be stagnant and make way for something that is new and exciting. But this vision for what the church, what our church, what our journey together in spirit, requires is a willingness to set aside our pride and hastiness so that we may genuinely hear where it is God is leading us.
If we are willing and eager to go when Jesus says, “Follow me,” and if we are willing to do the hard work of reassessing our time, tools, and talent we will have already taken the first significant step in allowing our hearts to cast a new vision for what it means to be the church and a uniquely and wonderfully made person who has been endowed with love divine. BUT it’s something that requires all of us. This vision casting, this work together, this being the hands and feet of Jesus, and being people who seek to fill their souls cannot be done by one person! It cannot be done by a pastor, by members of the session, deacons, or anyone else. Because it is a group effort that requires the buy-in of all people as we seek to be faithful stewards and disciples who “fish” for the sake of something more than the ordinary and mundane.
So? Are you ready? Because if we head out together into the vast sea where God is calling us, there is something worth fishing out if we dedicate ourselves to pursue it hand in hand together. Amen.