“Jesus called out to them, ‘Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people’!” Matthew 4:19
Although I love to fish, I’m by no means an “angler.” For me it’s more about being on or near the water that I enjoy most. And yes, I love catching the fish when they’re biting, but just being out there on a beautiful day is plenty satisfying to me. I do have a friend, however, who’s a real pro when it comes to fishing and he’d be considered a pretty good angler by most anyone’s standard. He knows exactly what the best bait is to use, where to cast and at what depth to keep your bait based on water temperature, wind direction and so on. My friend’s knowledge of fishing amazes me! And on days when no one’s catching a thing, he usually ends up with a cooler full.
Jesus was a master angler, not for fish, but instead for people. He called Peter, Andrew, James and John, along with eight others, to join Him on a three and a half year fishing expedition. This fishing excursion would end with Jesus commissioning the twelve, and many more, including us today, to be fishers of people too.
So as the “Master Angler of People,” what would you guess would be the bait of choice Jesus would teach His followers to use? Themselves! Jesus knew that the best bait to use when fishing for people was people themselves. And in particular, people whose lives have been changed and transformed by the Good News of the Kingdom.
Because of His love and goodness, Jesus wants to pour out Sozo Salvation on you and me and then use us to draw people to Himself. Today, let’s allow Him to do just that and then use us to reach others.