マタイによる福音書4:18-22 Matthew 4:18-22

Today we will consider what it means to be a disciple of Jesus, based on the words of the Bible. In the region of Galilee where Jesus grew up, there was a large, beautiful lake called Lake Galilee. Lake Galilee was about a quarter the size of Lake Biwa in Japan, and it was full of fish. So around the lake there were fishermen who lived by catching fish.

One day, two fishermen brothers were casting their nets from the shore of Lake Galilee and taking fish. The two brothers were Simon Peter and his brother Andrew. When they cast their nets, the nets would fall where the fish were, sink into the water and surround the fish. Then they would pull it up and take the fish. Just then Jesus passed by and saw them. Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” “Follow me” means “Be my disciples.” “I will make you fishers of men” means “I will make you fishers of human souls.” Fishers catch fish for their own consumption or to sell to others. But “fishers of human souls” take them to save human souls and keep them alive. In other words, to tell people about Jesus so that those who hear about Jesus will believe in him and have eternal life. Did Peter and Andrew understand the meaning of the phrase “I will make you fishers of men”? They probably didn’t understand it all. Nevertheless, they probably thought that if they followed Jesus, they would be able to do a great job. They threw away their nets to catch fish, which they had treasured, and followed Jesus to become his disciples.

Some time later, Jesus saw James and John, the sons of Zebedee, in the boat with their father, Zebedee, tending the nets. The fact that they had a boat means that Jacob and John’s house may have been a rich house. Jesus called out to James and John as he did to Peter and Andrew. He must have said to them in the same way, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” What did James and John do? Would they have said, “We are busy at work right now, please come back later”? Or would they have said, “No, thank you, we have a boat and our lives are enough for now”? No. James and John left their father, who was working in the boat, behind and became disciples of Jesus.

We have our own work to do every day. If you are a child, your job may be to do various studies. For adults, there are people who do various kinds of work, such as fishermen, as in today’s story, farmers who grow grains, vegetables or fruits, people who make things in factories, people who do business in companies and shops, people who do housework at home, and so on. Sometimes, however, when they are doing their work in this way, Jesus calls out to them, “Follow me.” When he calls to you, it is not that you actually hear his voice with your ears. It means that the words of the Bible are in your mind and you hear Jesus calling to you in your heart. That would be when you first make the decision to believe in Jesus and be baptised. Then there will also be Jesus’ call to “follow me” when you do special service for Jesus.