Spiritual Service and the Spiritual Servant (10)
Spiritual Service and the Spiritual Servant (10)
Fishers of Men
The Lord chose them and said to them, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you” (John 15:16). He chose them even though they were occupied with matters other than service, and none of them had been thinking about consecration.
He passed by Matthew, who was at the tax collector’s booth, and said to him, “Follow Me” (Matthew 9:9). He passed by Saul of Tarsus, who was busy persecuting the Church, dragging men and women to prison (Acts 9:2), and called him to His service as a chosen vessel (Acts 9:15). He passed by Peter and Andrew, who were busy fishing, having toiled all night and caught nothing. While they were occupied with worldly matters and failing in them, He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19).
Fishing for people means winning souls for God and His Kingdom.
The Lord knows the kinds of souls fit to become fishers of men, even if they are currently occupied with fishing or collecting taxes. He knows them and calls them.
As the Apostle said, “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined… and those He predestined, He also called” (Romans 8:29–30).
He said to them, “Follow Me.” They followed Him in faith, not knowing where they were going. The Lord had no fixed dwelling place, “for the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head” (Luke 9:58). He went around cities and villages preaching, and had no steady income. Yet they followed Him, saying, “We have left everything and followed You” (Matthew 19:27).
He told them, “Follow Me,” not only in place, but also in everything — in His method, His teaching, His way of life: “Whoever claims to live in Him must live as Jesus did” (1 John 2:6). In this way, He made them fishers of men.
You cannot make yourself a fisher of men — He makes you one.
It is not your intelligence, experience, or people’s opinion that makes you so. He alone makes you a fisher. You may toil all night and catch nothing until the Lord comes to teach you how to cast your net into the deep and says, “Follow Me.” Thus He said to the apostles: “I will make you fishers of men.”
“I am the One who will fish for people — but through you, by My Spirit working in you, by the grace I have given you” (1 Corinthians 15:10).
“For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose” (Philippians 2:13).
“I will teach you how to fish and where to cast your nets. I am the One who created the sea, the lake, and the river. I created the fish and know where they are. I will guide them to your nets so that they may come to you.”
This is what the Lord did in the story of the fish and the coin.
He said to Peter: “Go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; when you open its mouth, you will find a coin. Take it and give it to them for Me and you” (Matthew 17:27). And so it was. He knew where that fish was, when it would approach Peter’s hook, and what was inside it. Truly, what a marvelous Fisherman!
The same applies to the apostles in fishing for men.
“I have sent you to teach the people. You will open your mouths to speak, but you will be given at that time what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you” (Matthew 10:19–20).
As for the hearers, His grace works in their ears to hear the word and in their hearts to be touched by it.
Saint Paul said to the Ephesians: “Pray in the Spirit on all occasions… and pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel” (Ephesians 6:18–19).
You are the vessels that carry His Spirit and His teaching.
He is the Teacher, but He teaches through your mouths. He is the Shepherd, but He shepherds the people through you. He works in you, with you, and through you. Saint Paul was right when he said, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). He who lives in him is the Fisherman who catches fish and the Teacher who instructs souls.
When the Lord chose His apostles, they had neither eloquence nor strength for service. As the Apostle said: “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27). Yet of them the Psalm says: “Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world” (Psalm 19:3–4).
The important thing is that God works in you and makes you a fisher of men.
Be discipled to His life and teachings as the apostles were, receive from Him what you will give to others, and say to Him the same words He said to the Father: “I have manifested Your name to the people… the words You gave Me I have given to them” (John 17:6–8).
How to Fish:
The first quality is wisdom: “He who wins souls is wise” (Proverbs 11:30).
When the seven deacons were chosen, the condition was that they be “full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom” (Acts 6:3). Though whoever is full of the Spirit must also be full of wisdom, since He is the “Spirit of wisdom and understanding” (Isaiah 11:2), the apostles emphasized “wisdom” for its great importance in fishing for people.
Saint Paul showed this wisdom in his service: “To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews… to those under the law, I became like one under the law… to those not having the law, I became like one not having the law… to the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9:20–22).
Let the fisher of men be wise — with heavenly wisdom.
A person who has walked the spiritual path, knows people’s natures, understands the devil’s tricks, and knows how to speak the right word at the right time.
Each person you meet in service has a unique personality, condition, and nature. He might not resemble you. Guide him to the truth itself, not to your own way of living. What suits you may not suit him.
Another quality of a wise fisher is patience.
He casts the net or the hook and waits, sometimes a long time, until the fish come. Likewise the fisher of men must not grow weary. Like a farmer who sows and waits for the crop to grow, do not be impatient or expect quick results.
If you give advice and it is not heeded, do not despair. Continue teaching patiently. Service requires long-suffering toward sinners until they repent — especially those bound by long habits or fixed temperaments. Be patient with the stubborn student, the erring youth, as the Lord was patient with Saint Augustine until he repented, with the Samaritan woman until she believed, with Saul the persecutor until he became an apostle, and with Cyprian the magician until he left sorcery and became a saint.
A wise fisher also uses bait that attracts the fish.
Likewise, offer something in your service that draws people — a word of benefit, a useful piece of advice, a touching sermon, a deep verse, a meaningful story, or information that captures minds and leads souls to God.
If you offer nothing else, offer a good example in your life — a living model of the ideal Christian path.
Be a successful fisher wherever you are.
Do not say, “I can fish only in the river, not the sea,” or “in the sea, not the lake.” Cast your nets everywhere — first in your home, to win your family to the Lord; then among your neighbors, friends, coworkers, classmates, even in clubs or fields — everyone you meet is a soul to reach.
– Philip, while walking on the road, met the Ethiopian eunuch, explained the Scriptures to him, led him to faith, and baptized him that same day (Acts 8:30–39).
– Saint Mark, when Anianus was repairing his sandal, used a single word from his mouth to start a conversation that led Anianus to faith — becoming the first believer in Alexandria.
– Saint Paul, though imprisoned with Silas, won the jailer of Philippi and his household to Christ (Acts 16:31).
– Saint Athanasius, though exiled by Arian persecution, preached the true Orthodox faith wherever he went.
– Saint Verena, serving with the Theban Legion, drew many women of Switzerland to faith through her service and became honored as a heroine of faith there.
– Saint George, when sent to the king’s court, brought even the queen to believe in Christ, and she became a martyr.
Be likewise — a light wherever you are, a skillful fisher who draws souls into your net.
The apostles were master fishers who brought multitudes to faith.
On Pentecost, through them, three thousand believed and were baptized (Acts 2:41). After the healing of the lame man at the Beautiful Gate, many more believed, “and the number of men grew to about five thousand” (Acts 4:4). Later, “more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number” (Acts 5:14). After the ordination of the seven deacons, “the word of God spread, and the number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith” (Acts 6:7). Then, as the Gospel spread through other cities, “the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened; living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers” (Acts 9:31).
And you — what is your catch? Will you stand before God empty-handed?
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Article by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, published in Watani newspaper, May 29, 2005.
