Well, fishing season has opened back up recently for us on the river. Got out the fly rod and chucked it around for awhile but haven't landed anything.
I was on this week for telling the kids story at church and it got me to thinking about Jesus' call to the fishermen from Galilee; that they would stop fishing for fish and start fishing for men and women.
Here I was on the dock using a single line and hook, attempting to lure in the fish, to trick them into thinking that biting my fake lure would make their life better, only to find that they have been deceived and now their life is on the line. Didn't bring positive thoughts to my mind about sharing the gospel! Are we to "lure" people in, reel them in against their will (fighting the whole way), only to bonk them on the head and throw them in a hot frying pan!!! Well, I suppose an analogy can only go so far sometimes.
Now, when Jesus uttered these words about fishing it's important to remember that fishing has come a long way since then. That isn't to say they didn't use single hooks and lines, but that would have not likely been the common commercial fisherman's tool of the trade. Likely, a fisherman's most common form of fishing would've been by a net. Dragging the net along the bottom of the shallow shore and then drawing the net up to the boat (or onto shore) in order to gather the fish. Now, again, I don't think what happened next was what Jesus was talking about; that we are not to then bonk people on the head and throw them in a frying pan (but read into that what you will).
I imagine the gathering by net was a more gentle method of fishing. And that made me think about how I've sometimes thought about sharing the gospel. There are some things about current fishing methods that I've used and would say many continue to use. Take for example the fly fishing angler. He scouts his spot, tests the water temperature, watches which bugs fly around, calculate the depth of where the fish are located; they consider their prey, plot the most convincing strategy and execute their plan. This is largely successful. In fact, much of my graduate studies focussed on how to do this in regards to effective missional activity for churches and individuals.
Now, I'm not in any way suggesting that Jesus was wrong or used a poor analogy to call his disciples. What I'm struggling with is how easy it is for me to read the Scriptures through a very small personal lens; that my upbringing, experience of church, education, life lessons...these all shape the lens, the perspective by which I often default to when reading God's Word. In essence I easily fall into the pattern of thinking that the Scriptures were written "to me" instead of "for me."
And there is a difference. Even though God had everyone in mind when graciously giving us his word, we also must realize that God was speaking to a certain people, in a certain time, in a certain cultural context. As N.T. Wright suggests (And I paraphrase), "The Word of God cannot mean anything different than it meant to the original audience." Essentially, what the Word of God meant to the original audience is what it means for us today. Now, how we apply that truth may indeed look different today because of the ever changing culture we find ourselves in. That's why it's so important to understand why the original author wrote what they did for the audience at that time. If I only read God's Word through my very limited perspective then it opens the door for endless mis-truths and heresies.
So, what did Jesus really mean when he told the fishermen they would become people fishers? Well, he probably meant more than what those first disciples could understand. Jesus, I imagine, would have intended his words to inspire men to leave their earthly calling and pursue God's call in God's kingdom initiative; that they would lose their lives in order to find them. Did Jesus mean he wanted us to be gatherers instead of fly fishers? Probably not. Would Jesus want us to be more gentle, respectful and kind towards those who have not yet embraced his love? Probably yes.
I'm torn while I attempt to process this. I love strategizing, planning, organizing and creating an ethos which attracts people to hear about Jesus' love for them. But is the intensity by which an experienced angler who knows very well how to deceive their prey a necessary exercise for us in sharing the gospel?
What say you? I'm curious to know your thoughts...really!
