On Leaving Nets

Sunday Morning I was preaching from Mark 1:14-20. In the passage Jesus calls Simon, Andrew, James and John to be a part of his mission with the simple phrase, "Come, Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men" Upon hearing the invitation Mark records "At once they left their nets and followed him"

What was it about the invitation of Jesus that compelled these men to leave their nets and follow him. Understand nets were very important to the the fishermen. In Sunday's message I said, A fisherman knew his nets. His nets are his livelihood. The nets were the only thing that keeps his family going. Without nets he and his family would starve. Fishermen took care of their nets. Every day the nets would be cleaned repaired and stored away with great care. The fisherman not only cared for his net, he knew how to use the net with great detail. He knew when to cast and when to draw it back in. He also knew who the best net makers were and who knew best to replace a broken net. Fishermen knew their nets and their net makers. He knew everything there was to know about nets. So when Jesus gave the invitation to come and follow him; his was an invitation to leave the familiar (nets) and join him in unfamiliar territory.

While I challenged the congregation to leave their nets Sunday, I have to admit I am trying to figure out what does it mean to leave the familiar and and go into unfamiliar territory with Jesus. 

While I am not sure what the unfamiliar is today, I know what is familiar;

• The familiar is safe
• The familiar is certainty
• The famiar is security
• The familiar takes very little faith
• The familiar goes with the flow
• The familiar takes less effort
• The familiar known
• The familiar is routine
• The familiar is normal 
• The familiar is followed by the majority
• The familiar has more answers than questions
• The familiar if acceptable 
• The familiar is seldom questioned
• The familiar is the status quo

After to looking at this list, I am beginning to understand what it means to leave the familiar and follow Jesus into unfamiliar territory. Now all I need is the courage to do it!