Get Wet

Jesus' first followers were fishermen.

Jesus' first followers were fishermen. Of all the people he could have chosen, priests, politicians, soldiers, or tradesmen, he first chose fishermen. Peter, Andrew, James, and John were all fishermen. Before they followed Jesus, they followed John the Baptist. Presumably, they were each baptized in the Jordan River.

There was something about the way of fishermen that Jesus found captivating. Now how many of you ever gone fishing before? Did you like it? Would you do it again? How many die-hard fishermen do we have out there? How many of you do all of your fishing in the frozen food section at Walmart or Country Market?

Bill Nyilas is a die-hard fisherman. Charles Neal, Roger Ford, and Dwain Lewey are all fishermen. Tony Waters... now there is a die-hard fishermen! Tony has won trophies, fishing gear, several bass boats, and tens of thousands of dollars in cash through fishing tournaments. I've spent tens of thousands of dollars, but have nothing to show for it!

One Sunday morning, maybe a decade ago, Tony and Anita got up and decided to go to a nearby church, but were late. As they turned around and headed home, they saw our sign and thought they would try attending Lakeside. That Sunday I happened to have a boat on the stage. Tony took that to be a sign from God that he should come to Lakeside. We agreed!

Fishermen understand that there are two worlds.

There is the world that we all know and love, with our trains, planes, and automobiles, homes and families, and daily comforts. But then there is the world below-- a world of darkness, mystery, and surprise. Fishermen know what it is to leave the comfort and familiarity of one world to descend into the danger and adventure of the other.

Fishermen do whatever it takes to get to the fish.

One time Dwain Lewey and I went fishing at Site M, just west of Pleasant Plains. We didn't have a boat, but that didn't deter us. We waded through the tall grass, snaked through the dense timber, baked in the sun, tracked through the mud, and fed the mosquitoes a gourmet meal. We had ticks sucking our blood. I had chiggers burrowing under my skin for days. I had cuts on my arms from the switch grass. I think I bought a boat after that experience!

But fishermen don't care about being comfortable. They'll do anything for the thrill of the catch. No guts, no glory. The big ones are in the deepest, more dangerous waters. One of the highest rated shows on television is "Deadliest Catch". Why? Because those guys are insane! They fish in hurricanes, violent seas, and ice flows, and they'll do it hundreds of miles from civilization and potential rescue.

With fishermen, we're talking about a particular mentality-- one that was just as vital to the expansion of God's kingdom two thousand years ago as it is today. Let's call it a "go fish-get wet" mentality.

In Matthew 28:19-20 (NIV) Jesus said, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

The overwhelming majority of us in the Church have stopped going! We've become immobilized and disobedient. We're afraid to get our feet wet, to get our hands dirty, or to shed a drop of blood.

Let's suppose Tony, Bill, Roger, Dwain, or Charles invited you to go fishing this afternoon. Write down all of the excuses you might make.

I'd love to fish but...

"I'd love to fish but, I'm too old. I've never done it before. I don't know how. I don't know how to swim." By the way, Bill doesn't know how to swim, but he still fishes.

"I'd love to fish but, it's not my thing. It's mean, it's cruel, it's wrong, and it's disgusting." This is a true story. I was at Walmart one night buying fishing lures with big shiny treble hooks. As I got to the cashier, a look of disgust swept across her face, like she wanted to know what kind of person got pleasure out of harming innocent creatures. I went to my car and just cried. Well, maybe that part isn't true.

"I'd love to fish, but it's boring. It takes too much time. I don't want to get bitten by bugs. It's too hot outside. The fish might not bite. I didn't catch anything the last time I went. It's too expensive. I don't have the right equipment. It's not worth the trouble. I've got to work."

"I'd love to fish, but it's not cool. What will people think?" One day I was fishing off Iron Bridge Road about the time school was being let out. I had my play clothes on, as Lara calls them, and a green fanny pack strapped around my waist holding all my lures. I was so contented. About that time some high school kids rolled down their window and shouted, "Hey @#$@#@, are you catching anything?"

Christians make a lot of excuses for not fishing.

Do you realize all the same excuses we make for not fishing are the same ones Christians use for not fishing? I have a joke for you, only it's not a joke. It's a sad fact. How many Christians does it take to catch a fish? On average, it takes one hundred Christians one year to catch one fish, to make a single convert. 85 percent of churches are in plateau or are declining. Only 15 percent of churches are growing numerically.

Of the 15 percent of churches that are growing, 85 percent are growing by transfer growth. They are attracting fish from one aquarium to the next-- not catching new ones!

Folks, the mission of the Church isn't to attract fish from one aquarium to the next. Our mission is to go fish and to get wet. As Christians, we need to move from an attractive "Let's steal fish" mentality to a missional "Let's go fish" mentality. One of the most starling truths of scripture is that God has the mentality of a fisherman.

God left heaven for earth to fish, and to capture men and women for his glory.

Philippians 2:5-8 (NIV) is a hymn sung by the early Church. "Your attitude (mentality) should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross!"

If you were a fisherman, would you set aside your humanity to become a fish, so that you might catch a few more fish? Would you leave all you know, and all that's comfortable, and all that's safe? Maybe. Yet God became man, the eternal clothed himself in humanity, and he became a fish.

John 1:1-5 (NIV) says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it." And John 1:14 (NIV) says, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

John 3:16-17 (NIV) says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."

Not only did God enter our world, but no price was too great a price to pay to capture us for his glory.

Let's go back to Philippians 2:5-8 (NIV). "Your attitude (mentality) should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross!"

Bottom line. We cry if a mosquito bites us, but Christ shed his blood for us. He gave his life for us. He died at the hands of brutal executioners. He chummed the waters of humanity with his own spilled blood, so that he might draw all men unto himself. He invites us during communion to eat of his flesh and drink of his blood. He offers his very self in death so that we might have life everlasting. He left his world in order to enter our world, so that we might ascend to heaven with him and reign with him forever. He didn't come to condemn us, but to save us, and to give his life as a ransom for many of us. Jesus is the most insane and fanatical of all of us. He makes the "Deadliest Catch" guys look like sissies. Our God is a missionary God, who first sent his Son.

What was Jesus' first invitation?

So what did Jesus invite his first followers to do? What would he have us do? Mark 1:17 (NIV) says, " 'Come, follow me', Jesus said, 'and I will make you fishers of men.' " Fishing for fish is exciting. But there is no greater adventure than fishing for men. And any of us can do it if we're willing to let the Lord teach us how to fish. We don't learn how to fish by sitting in our fishbowls all day. We learn how to fish out there in the water.

In Luke 5:4 (NIV) Jesus invites his disciples, who hadn't caught anything all night to, "put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." The disciples caught so many fish that their nets broke, and their boats couldn't hold them all. What does it mean for a church to put out into deep waters?

How can a church let down its nets into deep waters?

85 percent of growing churches are growing by transfer growth. Fish are swimming from one aquarium to the next. Churches are more than happy to have their fish caught, cleaned, and delivered to their doorsteps for them. But do we want to be that kind of church? Would being that kind of church honor Christ?

If you're a fisherman, you know that the fish in the shallows will clamor after anything. They'll bite at any fad or gimmick thrown at them. There is a certain bounce any church can have by putting on a good show. You get your children's ministry looking like Disneyland. You can tune up the band and polish your preaching, and sure enough, the fish will swim from another aquarium to ours.

But if we're serious about Christ's call to go fish, we will not fish in the fish aisle of the supermarket. We will not fish in another church's aquarium. We will push out far from shore. We will throw our nets farther than ever before, and let them fall in deepest waters possible. We will bravely go where no church has ever gone before. We will get wet in the sea of humanity!

All of this requires a new mentality. Brad Owen, our youth pastor, played in a secular softball league. Dan Arseneau, our young adults pastor, plays basketball at the YMCA. Jake Morgan, our youth intern, hangs out with junior highers in the school cafeteria. Mark Gannar, one of our pastors, spends a typical week meeting with people in crisis in their homes, talking with landlords, repairmen, bill collectors, and family members. Amber Kunz, who works with our children, went to area daycares and local apartment complexes to build relationships. Ally Howell, one of our high schoolers, traveled to Haiti on a healthcare outreach mission. Samuel Green traveled to Africa. Clayton Chamberlain, one of our students at LCU, told me how he uses his card tricks to build relationships with disadvantaged kids. Ashlan Rose led a group of students to reach out to the campus of Lincoln College. Last week Mike and Tracy Hannah, Jan Little, Kelley Fahrenbaucher, Connie Matozzi, Leanne Logan, Stefanie Hannah, and Mark Gannar handed out water at UIS to students/families as they moved in to the dorms. These are just few examples!

We're excited about this September.

This past week I worked out a deal. I went to the Christian bookstore and brought back a hundred books on being missional. These are books that will help you share your faith, pray for the lost, reach your neighborhood, and grow your small group. For a donation you can buy these books cheaply, read them, and pass them along to others in your small group or in your church.

On Saturday, September 22 we're putting on a one day conference here at Lakeside called "Go Fish". It begins around 8:30 am and is over by 2 pm, and you get a meal too! We have invited all the area Christian churches, and a number of speakers, to come and equip our church to go out into the deep waters. You can register on your connection card or on our website.