Pastoral Letter 93
Dear Members of St. Andrew’s Uniting Church, Friends and Adherents,
Grace and peace to you all.
I hope that last Sunday was a special day for those who were able to join our Sunday Service, when we reopened our church doors for worship after five long months. It was our first service after this year’s lockdown. A major difference from last year’s reopening was our singing, though with masks on. For this Sunday we have invited our neighbours by dropping Invitation Notes in their mailboxes, inviting them to join us to celebrate St. Andrew’s Day, as well as the first Sunday in Advent. We will have a COVID-safe Morning Tea and offer free sausage sizzle for everyone between 11:00 am and 12:00 noon. For any reason if you will not be able to come, please join us at home by following the Order of Service, and please light a candle.
As we are coming to the end of the year and Christmas, we are doing our traditional Exodus Foundation Christmas Appeal. By clicking the website link below, you can see the complete list of Christmas food and gift collection.The Foundation will be happy to accept new toys, gifts and food as per the suggested list: Christmas puddings, UHT custard mince pies, bon bons and serviettes, potato chips (large packets), sweets, tea/coffee, fish and meat (ring pull cans only), beans and spaghetti (ring pull cans only) and cups of noodles. Another option is a store gift card.
On the right-hand side check ‘give hope’ for the complete list.
So, please bring your unwrapped gifts and non-perishable food tomorrow and during the week. All gifts should be in by Sunday 12 December.
The bimonthly Newsletter is ready for collection, which includes details and dates for the next couple of months.
In the meantime, please continue to pray, remembering those who need our care, support and love.
Here are some prayer points for this week:
- Pray for our Service tomorrow as well as the services during the Advent and Christmas Season.
- Pray for the poor, the sick, the vulnerable, the struggling and the stressed.
- Pray for world peace and ask for God’s blessings
Please let me know if you or anyone else has prayer points.
Krikor
MESSAGE
Fisherman to Fisher of Men
Matthew 4:17-22
Let us pray.
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable to You, my Lord and my Redeemer. Amen.
St. Andrew’s Day is celebrated each year on the 30th of November and is Scotland’s national day.
St. Andrew is the patron saint of Scotland, as well as several other countries including Greece, Romania, Russia and Ukraine.
As we celebrate St. Andrew’s Day today it is appropriate to look at the Apostle himself. He is rarely mentioned in the Bible in the order of the disciples. He does not have a primary state in the accounts of the gospels. He has not written a gospel, or an epistle and he has not done any big act in our human standards. He is mentioned as the brother of Peter.
Two brothers of totally different personalities and characters. Peter was known as the impulsive and fiery disciple, while Andrew was more practical. Peter was easily tempered, while Andrew was cautious and reserved. Peter was always the leader, while Andrew was more of a follower. We don’t see Andrew restless or agitated. He did not step down from the boat and attempt to walk on the water, he did not rebuke his teacher, and he did not cut the ear of the temple guard and did not cause three thousand people to repent with his sermon.
But it is worthwhile to note that every time we hear about him in the gospels, we see that he leads someone to Jesus.
Similar to John’s version of Jesus calling Andrew and Simon as disciples, today, we heard the very familiar scripture calling them to be ‘fishers of men’. According to John’s version, Jesus asked Andrew and Simon to ‘come and see’; in Matthew’s version His calling is for more active participation by both these men.
There are many stories within the Bible that are known as ‘call stories’. A call story related how someone is invited by God to become something new and unexpected. God calls this person to begin, and not only begin, but persist so that this new thing can take place.
One day Andrew, Simon, James and John got up before the sun came up, walked down to the sea and threw nets into the water, anticipating a catch of fish. It was a day just like every other day – it was dark and probably cool, and the nets were smelly and heavy. They were doing what they did every day. There were, after all, fishermen. Fishing was one of the ordinary occupations in those days.
Jesus came down to the seaside, amid the water and nets and fresh fish, roughly shaped boats of wood, the rhythm of the waves. He stood on the bank watching these men throw out the nets and then drag them back in, loaded with fish. He looked at these men, and in a very commanding voice, announced:
“Follow me and I will make you fish for men”.
I imagine they looked at this man on shore as if he was a little crazy. Obviously, He knew nothing about fishing – the very idea that they could fish for humans!
Who is the crazy man, this wandering preacher who calls them to ‘fish for people’? And where did He come from?
They were fishing near Bethsaida, an outpost of Palestine. This area was far removed from the country of Judea, part of Israel.
What was this man doing there? And why had He come all this way from his home in Nazareth?
Jesus had come to the area around Capernaum, which was the trade crossroads of the existing world. What better place for Jesus to escape to after the arrest of John the Baptist; here He could preach and teach to all sorts of people traveling through Galilee.
Why did He choose these men?
Why did He choose fishermen?
Why did He choose these particular fishermen?
We know that Jesus did not read resumes before He called people to be His disciples. He didn’t care what their history was. And as we now know, sometimes we even think that He didn’t always make the best decision on who He called. Simon, who became known as Peter, denied Jesus three times during His trials. James and John, often called the Sons of Thunder, thought this calling is going to enthrone them in glory – quite the opposite of what Jesus taught. And the famous Jude, who betrayed Him for thirty pieces of silver. But Jesus called them, and in spite of their own personal deficiencies, He still made them His partners and companions. And they left their old life, its security, and even their families – they may have been afraid, but not so afraid that their faith in Jesus does not lead them forward.
Jesus had told Peter and Andrew to quit their fishing business and become ‘fishers of men‘, to help other people discover God. Jesus called them from their earthly trade to a spiritual trade. If we all were to do what Christ taught and spread the Gospel to others, the Holy Spirit would draw people around us to Christ like a fisherman who moves fish into his boat. James, his brother John, Peter, and Andrew, were the first Jesus called to work with Him.
These men were motivated to leave their jobs and follow Jesus when they heard His call. They didn’t make excuses. They were altogether persuaded that following Jesus would change their lives forever, so they left immediately and followed. Jesus calls every one of us to follow Him. We should resemble the disciples, when Jesus calls us to service, and do it without a moment’s delay. Those who will follow Christ, will have to abandon all to follow Him.
Andrew was one of the first that Jesus called. The scripture tells us that Andrew became a faithful follower and disciple of Christ. As I said earlier, every time we hear about him in the gospels, we see that he leads someone to Jesus.
First, he brings his brother Simon/Peter to Jesus. Then he brings a young boy to Jesus who had five loaves and two fish, which was the food to be fed to the five thousand, and also with Phillip he leads a group of Greeks to Jesus.
Andrew, the fisherman, became a faithful, diligent, loyal and devoted fisher of men. He did his part with commitment and dedication. He followed the example of His teacher and Lord going around to spread the good news. Responding to Jesus’ great commissioning, Andrew travelled far and according to the tradition he reached Scotland to become the patron saint, as well as to Russia. He became a real ‘fisher of men’.
We may not have ability to ‘fish’, but the key is willingness to serve in whatever capacity God calls us to do.
And why did they follow Jesus?
When they were called by Jesus, they must have felt the joy of the new world that Jesus was preaching. They were about to see miracles performed and illnesses cured. Jesus was going to show them a wonderful new world, touch everyone who heard Him and then make the ultimate sacrifice to bring about the new world.
If Jesus called this group of imperfect humans to be His ‘fishers of men’, then why wouldn’t He call each of us to follow Him?
Our discipleship means the same kind of new beginning; each of us are called to go to that edge of safety out of our comfort zones so we can bring people to Christ. Jesus comes to us and chooses us and sends us out to do something new.
We Christians are called to be evangelists. . . to look for and bring people to Christ. We are called to say to others ‘Come and See’. But we can’t be fishers of people until we have been ‘caught’ by Jesus. We need to fish for others using our own personal experience as bait.
We are called to bring others to the kingdom of Christ. . . where we are all one in His love.
As we pray, we can find strength not only in the prayers of brothers and sisters across the world who pray with us at this time, but also in the prayers of Christians of all denominations over the past century. With them, we root our desire in the prayers of Jesus Christ, the source of our unity – Jesus Christ, who died and prayed among us ‘so that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him’. This unity is the oneness in Christ that Jesus preached and taught – the thing that He is calling us to.
He calls us to follow Him, even if that means to take up our cross, a cross of suffering. Usually, Andrew is pictured with the cross. Which identifies him as a real follower of Christ. The X-shaped cross on which he is said to have been martyred by crucifixion. He became a member of the oneness of Christ.
How do we become a member of the oneness of Christ?
What can we do to facilitate Christian unity?
Within our church?
Within the Christian community?
Within the world?
By praying unceasingly and willing to accept His call and follow Him!
He can make us ‘fishers of men’ as well.
Let us pray:
Open our hearts, God, to Your vision of peace, where our jealousies vanish because we are whole, and our pride falls away because we are healed. Open our hearts, God, to Your vision of peace, and inspire our work as we make it real. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Deep desiring God, in the secret of our hearts You teach us wisdom. Teach us to encourage each other along the road to unity. Show us the changes needed for reconciliation. Amen.
Jesus Christ, Saviour of the world, who was crucified in weakness but lives by the power of God, help us to know our own weaknesses as well as those of others, that together with them we might experience Your risen power. Amen.
Jesus calls us, as He called His first disciples, to come, follow Him and He will make us fishers of men. Amen!