Something Special

There is something special about Jesus.

As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea-for they were fishermen. And he said to them, 'Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.' Immediately they left their nets and followed him.  As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him. - Matthew 4:18-22

Imagine you are at work and it is like any other day.  Suddenly, you decide to give it all up and follow a charismatic leader who tells you your skills can be used for something quite different.

Can you see yourself doing that?

Peter had a wife and children that he needed to take care of.  How could he stop being a fisherman, the only life he knew?

It is easy to underestimate the gravity of this decision to leave their boats and follow him.

Unlike some who chose to follow Jesus after they were healed of some illness, these men had no such experience.  Matthew just describes an encounter that was literally life changing.

What was and is so special about Jesus?

There is no indication that these men thought he was the Messiah, or that they even longed to find one.  They were fishermen.  Jesus felt they would be perfect for the job of recruiting people to be saved, and so they came.

Perhaps there was a sense of urgency back then, people feeling something had to be done to change the world, to keep it from sliding into doom, but we don't know for sure how they felt, or what they cared about.

They were just at work, doing what they always did, until they saw Jesus.

So, how committed are we to our faith?

Are we willing to give up everything and follow?  Or are we waiting for something special?

And what will we do when that something special happens?  Will we follow?  Or will we look at all we have and say not now?

These are the thoughts Matthew plants in our heads with this Gospel.  Everything changed in an instant, and the fishermen were ready.

More to come...