Title: Sea of Galilee/Matthew 4:18-22
Contents The Great Pilgrimage of Life (8) Sea of Galilee/Matt 4:18-22
The full-scale ministry of Jesus' public life begins with calling his disciples from the Sea of Galilee. He wanted to do the work of changing the world by calling his disciples, joining them, and planting them with a vision of the kingdom of God. He started life with his disciples with a simple and direct call to the disciples, <Follow Me!>. In Christian history, the life of following Jesus has long been called “discipleship”. The word ‘disciple’ is originally derived from the Greek word mathetes, which means ‘learner’. In a word, disciple means “those who follow Jesus Christ throughout their lives to learn the person and life of Jesus Christ.”
Today’s text also shows the scene where Jesus calls ‘Simon Peter and Andrew’ (brother) and then ‘James and John’ (brother) as disciples. Today's text records that the meaningful meeting and calling of Jesus and some of the disciples mentioned in the text was 'beautiful Galilee' (Galilee means Kineret-Haf, Gennesaret, Tiberias, etc.). Called by various names/Lake 21km in length, 13km in width, 55km in circumference, 40km in depth of lake/scape) So today we also sing the gospel hymn, saying, “The Lord will meet you again in the forest of the village of Galilee.” All encounters are beautiful and precious, but the encounter with the Galilean fishermen and Jesus was a special event. Because they met Jesus here, who would just end their lives fishing in the Sea of Galilee, and became disciples of Jesus who changed fellow humans and changed the world.
As I was preparing this sermon, when I was thinking of fishermen in Galilee, a poem that suddenly came to my mind was Kim Chun-su’s poem “Flower”. “Before I called his name/He was but a gesture/When I called his name/He came to me and became a flower.” Yes. The fishermen who lived simple and honest lives in Galilee, but the moment Jesus of Nazareth called their names, they became the flowers of heaven and the stars of the dark world. But the important thing is that the call to summon Jesus' disciples is not yet finished. The same person who called Simon and Andrew, and James and John, is now calling you and me by name. It is to make us his disciples in the 21st century. So, what does it mean that we are called to be disciples of Jesus today, not in the Galilee beach, but in the apartment jungles of Seoul, Bundang, Suwon and Suji? *What is the core of <Discipleship of Jesus>?
1. The composition of <Discipleship of Jesus> starts as a community.
If so, I hope that this year will also be a year in which the members of our church go deep into the ranch again, take care of each other and learn true discipleship that builds up each other. Because that is the only way to become a light to each other and finally to become a training ground for true discipleship where we learn to live as the light of the world. Writer Inho Choi, in his recent essay, Relationships, describes the beauty of the formation of personality through human relationships with the following words: Let me quote a paragraph. “We are all stars in the night sky. It is by divine providence that these stars meet, part, and disappear. This divine providence is what we call relationship. This relationship is precious because it shines. When I receive your light and you can receive my light and shoot it back, the stars begin to twinkle,” he says. Even if we feel comfortable living alone, we are never trained alone. Together we learn to pray, together we learn to love, together we learn to serve. That is why training to build each other up within the ranch community, even if it seems uncomfortable, is important.
2. The essence of <Discipleship of Jesus> aims at the salvation of souls.
Let's look at verse 19. “He said, ‘Follow me. I will make you fishers of men.” Here is the command and the promise. What is the command? It says, “Follow me.” What is the promise? “I will make you fishers of men.” The ultimate result of following Jesus is that you will live a life of fishing for people. To catch people means to save souls. Those who catch people like this are called evangelists. In his last command on this earth, Jesus says that this command is “to go and preach the gospel to all nations and make disciples of me.” This is what we call the Great Commission of Christ. How does Paul leave his last will to his disciple Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:5? “But be careful in all things, endure hardships, do the work of an evangelist, and fulfill your duties.”
Therefore, if we are truly living the life of a disciple who follows Jesus, people who believe and follow Jesus must arise under my influence. That is the ultimate test of discipleship. Therefore, the essence of Jesus' discipleship training should be aimed at saving souls. If a person confesses that he is a disciple of Jesus and no one is saved under the influence of his faith, we should fully doubt whether he is a disciple of Jesus. We must live this life of discipleship in our daily life. Evangelism is not only held once a year at the Love Neighbor Festival. From now on, at that time, you must start meeting and dating souls who will lead you to the Lord. Prepare your ‘VIP List’ now. Is evangelism too hard? That is why the Lord gave a community of disciples to evangelize together. Pray together, strategize together, and plan a meeting by sharing roles together. That is why our ranch exists.
3. The realization of <Discipleship of Jesus> is possible through dedicated sacrifice.
As I wrap up today's sermon, I think of Kim Chun-soo's poem "Flower" again. This is the last paragraph of his poem. “Someone call my name./I want to go to him/I want to be his flower./We all want to be something/You, me, I, to you,/I want to be an unforgettable meaning.” That's right. The Bible says that Jesus is calling on you and me by name. He calls us to live life in a meaning that will never be forgotten. Also, in Jesus, we should call each other by name and live a life in which we are a blessing to each other. Now, who will respond to this holy call to discipleship? If we don't respond, who will? If you do not respond now, when will you respond? Now is the time for all of us to meet anew in our Galilee with the one who calls us to discipleship.