Isaiah 8:23-9:3/ 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17/ Matthew 4:12-23
Standing at the beach and looking at the sea and hearing the sound of the waves can be quite relaxing and it also calms the mind.
The sea also gives a feeling of mystery and adventure.
And we also know of those songs written about the sea: “I am Sailing” (Rod Steward); “Beyond the Sea” (Bobby Darin).
For most of us, we know about the sea at surface level.
We see ships sailing on the sea; we see people surfing on the waves; we may have tried out the sea sports like water-skiing and para-sailing.
We know what is the sea, and what happens on the surface of the sea.
Beneath the surface of the sea is another world – the underwater world.
And considering the fact that about 70% of the earth is covered with water, then we are talking about quite a big world. Yes, it’s a big world down there.
Some have gone for scuba-diving to see what this underwater world is about. Others want to go deeper and submarines have been invented to do so.
Well, let’s see how much we know about the underwater world and see if you can answer these underwater riddles.
What did the sardine call the submarine? - A can of people.
What song did the boy octopus sing to the girl octopus? – I wanna hold your hand hand hand hand hand hand hand hand.
Yes, the sea and what is in the underwater world, is full of mystery, can also be a bit funny, and yet, it is also quite similar to our world on the dry land.
It is interesting to note that when Jesus began His ministry it was at the lakeside town of Capernaum, as the gospel tells us.
We are told that Capernaum is a lakeside town on the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali.
It was there at Capernaum that the prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled: “The people that lived in darkness has seen a great light; on those who dwell in the land and shadow of death, a light has dawned.”
And it was from that lakeside town of Capernaum that Jesus began His preaching with the message: Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is close at hand.
Jesus seemed to draw a lot of inspiration from the sea.
In fact, His first few disciples were people who were connected to the sea – they were fishermen, and they earned their living from the sea.
He called them from the sea, to leave their boats behind, but it is also with their knowledge of the sea that Jesus is going to teach them to be fishers of men.
So, let us just imagine the sea, and the underwater world. And yet the underwater world is so similar to our dry-land world.
For example, down there it is big fish eat small fish. Up here it is big boys bullying the weak boys. What happens down there also happens up here.
In the sea, one of the feared predators is the shark. On dry land, there is an equivalent called the loanshark, which is equally fearsome and troublesome.
Yes, the underwater world is very much like our dry land world.
Maybe that is why Jesus chose fishermen as His first disciples to make the connection.
And He said to them: Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.
So, the mission seems to be quite straight forward – they do the catching and Jesus will do the cleaning.
But there may be something more than this, just as how we can only look at the surface of the sea but there is much more beneath it.
In order to be “fishers of men”, Jesus is going to teach His disciples to be “fishes for men”.
As fishermen, they catch fish for a living. But as disciples of Jesus, they will have to be the fish.
In other words, where once they catch fish for they livelihood, now they are to be the fish for the life of the world.
Hence, it is not surprising that one of the earliest symbols of Christianity is the fish.
Fish, in Greek is called ICHTHUS. It is also an acronym to mean “Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior”.
Jesus called His disciples to be fishers of men. Yet, like Himself, they are to be the fish for men, the fish for the life of the world.
Jesus allowed Himself to be caught and killed in order to save us from our sin.
In order to be the “Fisher of men”, Jesus had to be the fish for men.
Likewise, as His disciples, in order to be fishers of men, we too have to be the fish for men, we too have to be the fish for the life of the world.
We become the fish when we offer ourselves in love and service to others, especially those who hunger for the love of God.
We become the fish for others when we love our enemies and pray for those who do wrong to us.
We become the fish for others when we offer care and compassion, forgiveness and reconciliation.
May we allow ourselves to be caught by the love of Jesus, in order to be the fish for men, so that in turn we can be fishers of men.