Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Making you become

“’I will make you fishers of people’” Matthew 4v19

This is a hugely encouraging verse for all of us. As I think about this, I see the following:

• God has a very clear purpose for each of our lives. His purpose is for us to be involved in bringing other people into God’s kingdom. Of course we all have different parts to play, but we are all together to achieve the same purpose in this world. It is a purpose to benefit the people around me. It is to contribute to their lives being transformed by the grace and love of God.
• I am not alone in this: the command is plural. We are all together in this.
• It is not about me doing fishing, but about me being a fisher. This ties in exactly with the next chapter in Matthew where Jesus says “you are the light of the world” and “you are the salt of the earth”. The only requirement of the light and the salt is to maintain their stand-out attributes and to be present in the world.
• My capacity to do this is dependent on Jesus because he has given a clear promise: “I will make you.” The same verse in Mark gives a slight expansion, “I will make you become fishers of people.” You are the work of Jesus as he transforms you day by day! And Jesus always does a great job!

What should our response to this be? Surely it is to ask him, “Lord you have said you will make me a fisher of people, and so I ask you to fulfil your promise in my life.” And then it is to be out in the world as the person Jesus is making you to be!

With love and blessing,

Roland