The priority of Jesus' ministry was to proclaim the good news of God.
Mark 1:14-15 (NIV) says,"After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God.'The time has come,' he said. 'The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!' "
In these verses, we discover the urgent priority of Jesus’ ministry— to proclaim the good news of God. A new King was taking his throne. The kingdom of God was at hand. Augustus, and all mankind, was being put on notice. Jesus' appearance, his baptism by John, the confirmation of his Sonship by the Father in heaven, Jesus’ being driven into the wilderness under the power and leadership of the Holy Spirit-- all these events meant that, "The time has come…"
Jesus' message was thathis time on earth hadfinally come.God’s purpose in time, in history, was forcefully advancing. Century old prophecies were being fulfilled daily. God was proving his word to be faithful and true.
Exodus 15:18 (NIV) says, "The LORD will reign for ever and ever." Psalm 29:10 (NIV) says,"The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD is enthroned as King forever." Isaiah 43:15 (NIV) says, "I am the LORD, your Holy One, Israel’s Creator, your King." God was taking his throne.
You’ve heard the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-10 (NIV)."Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." The Jewish people prayed every day for God to reign over all the peoples of the earth. They prayed that all men would be brought into submission to the almighty God.
And Jesus' message? It was happening right then, intheir midst, in Galilee. King Herod thought he could arrest John the Baptist and stop its advance— but no! "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!" A new era had begun. No longer would men's sin and guilt destroy them. Instead,men could repent, they could turn to God, they could confess their sins and pray for forgiveness, and they could be baptized in the Holy Spirit to gain victory over sin once and for all.
How near is Jesus' kingdom?
Jesus saidthat the kingdom was near.Do you want to know just how near his kingdom really is? God’s kingdom is knocking at the door of your heart. The only thing between you and God’s kingdom is a broken and contrite spirit about your sin.The only thing between you and God is aheartfelt acknowledgement (confession) of your guilt.
The only thing between you and God’s kingdom is surrendering your whole life in the waters of baptism (from head to toe, total immersion in water), and asking God to wash you and forgive you and make you new.
The only thing between you and God’s kingdom is a declaration of your allegiance-- your declaration of faith, that Jesus become King of your life, and the Lord and Savior of your soul. You declare that you wantGod’s will to be done in your life just as it is heaven.
Jesus' first call is to salvation.
Jesus’ first call is a call to salvation— repent and believe the good news. Remember what Jesus said in Luke 17:21 (NIV), "… the kingdom of God is within you." There is no other way to be part of God’s kingdom thanto allow God to beruling from your heart. This is why no one can enter the kingdom unless he is born of water and the spirit. It takes the heart-work of repentance, confession, and baptism,but also the work of the Holy Spirit.
We have two choices when it comes to the rule of Christ. We can embrace God’s kingdom in our heart,or we can becrushed under Christ’s feet. 1 Corinthians 15:25 (NIV) says of Jesus, "For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet."
Either way, Christ reigns, with or without us. This past week another young lady (Bethany Snelson) embraced Christ’s reign through repentance, confession, and baptism. Some of you have been wrestling with baptism for years— there is an urgency to Christ’s kingdom. We must settle the matter of our own salvation immediately! In biblical times, people were immediately baptized the moment they recognized the power that could come from letting Christ reign over their whole lives from the inside-out. So what are you waiting for?
Jesus'second call is to discipleship and to become fishers of men.
But there is a second call in our text that we must resolve in our hearts. The first call is a call of salvation and discipleship, repent and believe. Salvation is letting God wash away your sin and guilt. It’s resolving Christ’s reign in your own heart, being forgiven and being adopted into God’s kingdom through faith in Christ. Discipleship is continually living under Christ’s lordship. It's being obedient to the King.
Salvation and living a life of discipleship are one and the same, not two separate things. Salvation is Christ becoming King of your heart through faith, repentance, confession, and baptism. Discipleship is Christ continuing to reign every day over your heart. Discipleship is living out the salvation within.
But here is the second call in our text in Mark 1:16-20 (NIV)."As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 'Come, follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I will make you fishers of men.' At once they left their nets and followed him.When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him."
When God calls you to salvation through the gospel, that is about you getting right with God. But when God calls you to become a, "fisher of men", that is about you following and walking with Jesus in the world helping others get right with God.
The phrase "fisher of men" comes from the Old Testament. For example, examineJeremiah 16. The whole chapter is about God’s judgment against sin. But right in the middle of the chapter, God promises to restore his people who had been scattered among the nations. And how would God do this?
God promised to send sportsmen— literally hunters and fishermen-- to seek out men. Jeremiah 16:16 (NIV) says, " 'But now I will send for many fishermen,' declares the LORD, 'and they will catch them. After that I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them down on every mountain and hill and from the crevices of the rocks.' "
Now that you have resolved Christ’s reign in your heart and responded to the first call,how about capturing other men’s hearts for Jesus Christ? This second call is a call to ministry, to evangelism, and to making disciples.
Jesus called fishermen, business men, to become his disciples.
When you read Mark 1:16-20 you get the impression that Andrew, Simon, James, and John were meeting Jesus for the first time. But this isn’t true. Several months earlier, according to John 1:35-49 these men had already met Jesus and begun to follow him.
But after receiving salvation, and seeing John the Baptist arrested, these fishermen returned to their family fishing business. But now Jesus was calling them into service. The same qualities that had made these men good hunters and fishermen were the qualities thatJesus was encouraging them to use to expand his kingdom.
Jesus was inviting them to use their courage, their ability to work together, their patience, energy, stamina, faith, and tenacity to capture hearts for God’s kingdom. Why did Jesus choose fishermen? Because most of them (at least those who did it professionally) couldn’t afford to be quitters and complainers. These were men of action, not mere talkers. These men were already busy, demonstrating their dependability in service.
What does Paul say in 2 Timothy 2:2-3 (NIV)? "And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus."
Praise God that you have responded to the call of salvation. God is looking for reliable men who can be entrusted with the gospel, who are willing to endure hardship and keep their hands to the plow, and never look back. God is looking for a Jeff and Laura Wilhoit, a Jim and Karen Bettison. These are people who will lay down everything to serve God and remain steady in service.
Fickle servants accomplish very little for God’s kingdom. Fickle Christians pose the greatest challenge to God’s kingdom. The greatest challenge is not the force of evil, not even Satan himself,but fickle servants who don’t want to be inconvenienced, who give up when the going gets tough, who don’t avail themselves for service, who have a hundred other priorities, andwho want to serve on their schedule instead of on God’s schedule.
What are we willing to do for Jesus?
The past few weeks, I’ve been awakened by gunshots. Those hunters and fishermen are a dedicated bunch. It’s 5:00 AM, below zero wind-chill, and they're out in the fields setting up decoys and sitting on a bucket waiting for the next goose to land. If you’ll do that for a goose, what would you be willing to do for a King like Jesus?
Simon, Andrew, James, and John were prosperous middle class fishermen. They had large boats and they had hired servants. They had business contracts to regularly sell fish to the priestly families in Jerusalem. They were expected to carry on their fathers' business for future generations. But when presented the opportunity to serve Jesus, they abruptly sacrificed everything.
Later, in Mark 10:28 (NIV) Peter would say to Jesus, "We have left everything to follow you!" And Jesus would commend these men. Mark 10:29-30 (NIV) says, "'I tell you the truth,' Jesus replied, 'no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospelwill fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields— and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.' "
There is more to say, but so little time. This morning God is calling you to salvation. Repent and believe and be baptized. Will you let Christ be King of your heart?
But this morning, God is also calling you to service, to become fishers of men. There is no greater joy than snatching men from the dominion of darkness and helping them into the kingdom of God. It’s tough work that takes reliable men and women.