S2 Ep. 21-Follow Me Part 2: Fishers of People

“Follow me” sounds simple until it asks you to loosen your grip on the life you can control. We return to the Sea of Galilee with Simon Peter and Andrew, two working fishermen who respond to Jesus fast, not because they have a blueprint, but because they sense a deeper invitation than their nets. Their story is familiar, but the question behind it still bites: what does it actually mean to become “fishers of people” in the modern world?

We explore why this calling is bigger than winning arguments or perfecting an evangelism script. Fishing is about feeding, sustaining life, and making sure others have what they need. So we talk about Christian discipleship as embodied love: hungry neighbors fed, lonely people visited, struggling families supported, and dignity restored. We look at how Jesus gathers people through compassion and grace, and why “different” can become beautiful when it leads to longer tables and shorter fences.

We also name the reality that many have been hurt by religion and feel wary of churches and institutions. If that’s you, you’re not alone. The most powerful witness might not be a rebuttal, but kindness, generosity, and presence rooted in the way of Jesus and echoed in Matthew 25. By the end, we come back to Peter and Andrew leaving their nets and consider what it looks like to trust without a map, casting nets of mercy strong enough to hold a hurting world.

If this reframes faith for you, subscribe, share the episode with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find it. What would it look like for you to “feed first” this week?

Let's Get Into It!!

Transcript

Welcome And Series Setup

Speaker 0:08

Hello, friends, and welcome back to Ancient Truth for the Modern Heart. I'm Steve Pozzato, and as always, I am grateful that you have chosen to spend even just a little time with me today. Well, we are continuing our series called Follow Me, Exploring the Stories of People Who Encountered Jesus and chose to walk a new path because of that encounter. In our first episode, we looked at Matthew, who left behind a tax booth and discovered a new purpose.

Peter And Andrew By The Sea

Speaker 0:41

And today we turn to two brothers, Simon Peter and Andrew. Their story may be one of the most familiar in all of Scripture. They are fishermen standing by the Sea of Galilee when Jesus approaches and says, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people. And immediately they leave their nets and they follow him after this great impossible catch happens. It's a very simple story. Jesus shows up, a miracle occurs, those he asks to follow follow. But it does raise a question: what exactly does it mean to become fishers of people, and what might that calling mean for us today? So let's spend a moment with Peter and Andrew. They were not wealthy men, they were workers, fishermen. Their lives were shaped by early mornings, by hard labor, uncertainty, the viciousness of the sun, and dependence upon nature itself. Fishing was not a hobby. Fishing was survival. Every cast of the net represented food on the table, money for the taxes. Every hall represented provisions for the family, and every empty net represented serious risk. Peter and Andrew knew what it meant to work hard for the sake of others. They knew what it meant to provide and they knew what it meant to endure. And perhaps that is part of why Jesus called them. Not because they were religious experts, and not because they had all the answers, but because they already understood what it meant to give themselves away for the well-being of others.

Fishers Of People Means Feeding

Speaker 3:01

For generations, Christians have heard Jesus' words and understood them primarily as a call, perhaps, to evangelism. And certainly there is truth to that. The gospel is meant to be shared, and the love of God is not something that we keep to ourselves. But I wonder if there is something deeper happening here. The fishing is not merely about catching. Fishing is about feeding. Fishing is about sustaining life, and fishing is about making sure people have what they need. Especially when we are the ones who are able to provide it. Perhaps Jesus is inviting Peter and Andrew to continue doing what they already know how to do, except now in a slightly different way. They have spent their lives feeding bodies, and now they are to help nourish souls. They have spent their lives gathering food, and now they will gather people into communities of hope. They have spent their lives helping families survive, and now they will help communities flourish.

Jesus Gathers Through Compassion

Speaker 4:31

What about the kind of people that Jesus gathered? When we look at his ministry, we notice something very important. Jesus did not spend most of his time trying to win arguments. He fed hungry people, he healed sick people, he touched those that society rejected. He welcomed children, he sat with sinners, he forgave failures, he restored dignity. Again and again, Jesus gathered people not through force or fear, but through love and acceptance. People followed because they experienced compassion with Jesus. People followed because they encountered grace. People followed because they saw a different way to live. I think we all know something about that. Perhaps it would it is what keeps some of us from following Christ in earnest because we know that things will have to change, that things will be different. And we're afraid of that because people don't do change well. We just aren't wired like that. So, my friends, my question to you is this. If you are not following Christ, because you are afraid that things will be different, how do you know what different is until you go and see it? Because what we learn here from Jesus' message is that when you follow him, different becomes beautiful. Different becomes loving. Different means sitting at the table with people you may never thought you would sit with in the first place. We have to build longer tables if we are going to build shorter fences. My good friend Ray Perez said that for years. Take your seat at the table. And as is quoted from the show Chosen, get used to different. It's a beautiful thing. And people being fishers of people, of others, is less about convincing people to join something and more about helping them discover that they are already loved by God. So if there is something holding you back, if there is a fear or doubt, a feeling of unworthiness or whatever it is that makes you hesitate when you think, give your life over to Christ, as I have done in my own life. Get used to different. I love that line from the show. It's not about doing something new, it's about discovering how loved you already are. And being with others who are also finding out how loved they are. And then those others are finding out how best to share that love and that compassion. You feel that love and you want to shout it from the rooftops, my friends. Different is an alteration that I think many of us would find welcoming. Just food for thought. And,

When Religion Hurts Choose Kindness

Speaker 8:35

you know, we live in a time when many people have been hurt by religion. So many are skeptical of institutions, and many carry wounds from churches. We have heard Christians speak loudly, but have rarely experienced Christian love, especially if we keep our eyes on the news. In such a world, perhaps the most powerful witness we can offer is not a perfectly crafted argument. We don't need to rebut. Perhaps what we need to share is kindness, generosity, compassion. Maybe it's just about showing up. When we feed hungry neighbors, we are fishing. Not when we are trying to convince somebody that God is real. When we help a struggling family, we are fishing. Not when we're trying to convince somebody that this is what the family needs to do for themselves. When we welcome someone who feels forgotten, we are fishing. Not when we are pushing people away because they do not believe the things that we believe. Or do you just feed them? One of those is fishing, the other is not. When we clothe those in need, when we visit the lonely, when we advocate for justice and care for the vulnerable, we are casting nets of grace into a world desperate for hope. And Jesus tells us in Matthew 25 that whatever we do for the least of these, we do for Him. And my friends, when we say the least of these, it does not mean that somebody is lesser than another. I tend to think of this as the least fortunate. Because the least fortunate generally means most in need. So the gospel is not something that we proclaim, it is something that we embody, something that we do, not something we hear on television or through advertisements, not something that we hear from comment sections on social media platforms. It's not somebody saying that this is bad or that is good or this is what a Christian is. Following Christ in your own heart and loving as he loved, and loving God with all your heart and loving one another, forgiving your enemies these commandments that Jesus Christ set for us, that is Christianity. And what that means to you will mean something different to me and to another person. Do not be dismayed at what different is. Do not be dismayed at what sometimes Christianity proclaims itself to be through the mouths of others. I won't tell you what is or is not Christian, because it is different for me than it is different for you. My friends, if there is one thing that I can say is true of following Christ, it is love. Because all else is possible because of love. Because he loved us first, and because he gave us the ability to love him back, because he gave us the ability to love one another. Do not fear and do not doubt. You are loved. You have the capacity, the capability, and the invitation to love. And my friends, the more love, the merrier.

Leave The Nets Trust Without Maps

Speaker 13:38

Let's get back to Peter and Andrew. What has always amazed me about Peter and Andrew is how quickly they respond to Jesus. They just leave their nets. And not because they know exactly where Jesus is leading them, just like we spoke about last time, Jesus doesn't give people maps and say, this is where you're going, everything will be okay. They don't have that detailed plan. And as we find throughout the Gospels, so many of their questions are not answered directly. Jesus gives them the answers, but sometimes it's not the exact words they're looking for. But in this moment, they simply trust. They trust that there is something more important than the nets that they are holding, and perhaps that remains the invitation to this day. Loosen your grip on certainty. Release your need for control. Let go of whatever it is that keeps you, that has kept me from loving more deeply. We are invited to follow Jesus into places where compassion is needed, and into relationships that require grace, and into communities that are longing for hope. The world does not need more people shouting from a distance. The world needs more people willing to draw near, to listen, to serve, to love. And maybe that's what Jesus meant all along. Maybe being fishers of people means helping others discover that they belong, that they matter, that they are beloved, that God's grace reaches farther than they could ever imagine.

Nets Of Grace In Daily Life

Speaker 15:48

And so maybe the nets we cast today are acts of kindness, mercy, generosity, and compassion. They're nets woven from love, nets that are strong enough to hold a hurting world. My friends, this is a gift. To be fishers of people is to sit with them. It is to follow Christ and to know that we will not have a map. It is to know that the tool that we have been given, the gift of love, is the only tool we ever really needed in the first place. Because through love all things are possible. What a wonderful sentiment. What a wonderful truth that is. That love truly does conquer all. So be comforted in your hearts, my friends. To be fishers of people does not mean that you must convert them. To be fishers of people means to feed those who are hungry, to clothe those who are cold, to comfort those in their moments of struggle, and allow ourselves to be comforted. It also means that we will be fed to allow ourselves to drink of that water that Jesus provides, that water by which we will never be thirsty again. It means to go forward and be with those who are in need, to sit with the lonely, to sit with the broken, to sit with the afraid, to be present, and to recognize that all of this, all of the kindnesses that you may offer, are possible through Jesus Christ's love. And because we were given the ability to love in return.

Prayer For Courage And Service

Speaker 18:26

Let's pray together, friends. Gracious and loving God, you called Peter and Andrew from their boats and invited them into a life of service, of compassion and hope. Call us again today. Teach us to follow where Christ leads. Help us to see our neighbors as beloved children of God as they truly are. Give us the courage to feed the hungry, to welcome the stranger, to comfort the lonely, and to stand beside those who suffer. May our lives reflect your love so clearly that others encounter your grace through us. And may we become fishes of people not through fear or pressure, but through kindness, mercy, and faithful service. And let us recognize that that love that you gave us, that we now give, is capable of so much more than we realize. In the name of Jesus Christ who calls us still. Amen.

Closing Blessing And Sending

Speaker 19:44

My friends, thank you for joining me for this episode of Ancient Truth for the Modern Heart. Until next time, may Christ walk beside you and may the Spirit guide your path, my friends. Remember to carry the light of love with you wherever you go. Because where you carry love, there also will you go in peace. Be well, my friends, and until next time, farewell.