FY 18
February 18
Matthew 4:18-22. Christ calls Peter, Andrew, James, and John.
Was it not a high honor to follow the Lord Jesus from place to place, to hear his word both in private and public, and to behold his works of power and love? Whom did he call to enjoy this honor? Poor ignorant fishermen; these became his intimate companions, his bosom friends, and his holy apostles. Thus, our glorious Lord stained the pride of all human glory; as he had done before, by lying in a manger, and as he did afterwards, by dying on a cross between two thieves. How ill pride befits us, when the Lord of glory was so lowly! Ought we to look down upon anyone as beneath our notice, when the Son of God was so condescending? It is true that there are different stations in society, and some stations are counted high, and others low. It is well that this difference should exist; it is God's own wise appointment. But it is not his will that the rich should despise the poor; no, he has made us all of one blood, and he has commanded us to love each other as brethren.
Jesus might have chosen princes for his companions, or even angels, and sent them out as ministers of his Gospel; but he preferred to prepare poor fishermen for the glorious work. Before he sent them out, he taught them for three years, and afterwards the Spirit caused them to know in a moment various languages. Education is now an important preparation for the work of the ministry, as the wonderful gifts the apostles enjoyed are no longer bestowed.
These men were employed in an industrious manner when Jesus called them. When God called Moses, he was keeping sheep; Gideon, he was thrashing; Elisha, he was guiding the plough. Industry in our common callings is pleasing in God's sight; a Christian should not be slothful in business. Yet these men were not so fond of their trade, or of their gains, as to prefer them to the service of Jesus. When he called, they left all and followed him. He did not bribe or entice them to come by promising them temporal rewards; he told them plainly that his design in calling them was to make them fishers of men. The net they would hereafter use would be the Word of God; the fish they would catch, the souls of men; and the reward they would obtain, a heavenly crown. They had often toiled in fishing, but they would toil more arduously in preaching; they would find men more hard to catch than fish, and the hatred of the world more terrible to bear than the winds and the waves. Christ has now many faithful fishermen, who, for his name's sake, are laboring to convert souls. Has their labor for us been in vain? Have we yet been caught in the Gospel net—willing captives? The poor fish, indeed, finds death in the net, but we find life in it. Well may the fish struggle and strive to escape; but it would be in us the height of folly; for the day in which a perishing sinner is caught in the heavenly net, is the first happy day of his existence; even the tears of the penitent are sweeter than the laughter of the world.