In Matthew 4:19, Jesus tells his disciples to follow him and become fishers among men. As fishermen, they were used to spending many hours at sea catching large quantities of fish with nets or using a line to catch fish one at a time. Sometimes they were successful, but sometimes they caught nothing. In John 21:3-6, Peter and some other disciples went fishing and caught nothing, but with Jesus’ help, they caught more than their nets could hold. In Matthew 17:27, Jesus instructs Peter to cast a line to catch a single fish. There are examples of being fishers of men, such as when Paul taught in synagogues in various cities, and Philip, who shared the Gospel with the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8).
As followers of Jesus, we read, study, and attend church services and Bible classes. Now, as children of God, we are also expected to become fishers of men. Sometimes, we can throw out single lines to co-workers, friends, and family and see who will nibble or bite. Other times, we can use social media as a net to reach a large audience, as well as individuals with sermon shares, invitations to church events, or even just a heartfelt post of the blessings that God provides.
Be on your guard, for Satan has also learned through the ages how to catch people. He uses the lure of “choice” as a net to catch more souls than we can fathom. For example, does this sound familiar? “Attend the church of your choice.” He uses personalized and focused temptations as well. How about the phone that’s in your hand? As we scroll through the internet, how many times does something shiny or pleasing to the eye pop up?! Or anything that takes our attention away from God?
How do we, followers of Christ, combat this? Consider that someone is always looking over your shoulder and sees what has your attention. For temptations with the phone or computer, ask yourself, when God sees your choices, would he approve or be disappointed? “For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD, and he ponders all his paths” (Proverbs 5:21). Are you able, at any point, to allow a parent or spouse to see your browser history or text conversations? Reflect on this and make changes accordingly.