Four Fishermen and the Command to Follow Jesus (Mark 1:16-20) Free Reprint Article

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Four Fishermen and the Command to Follow Jesus (Mark 1:16-20)

by Wayne Davies
9/20/2014 / Bible Studies

When reading the first chapter of Mark, one is captivated by this fast-moving account of Jesus' early ministry. In rapid-fire succession we see Jesus traveling from Nazareth to the Jordan River, where John the Baptizer baptizes him. Then the Spirit sends him into the wilderness for 40 days to fast and be tempted by the devil.

This brings us to Mark 1:14 "After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God." So John's imprisonment marks a turning point for Jesus. The disappearance of the Messiah's forerunner prompts Jesus to take center stage, and he goes to Galilee and establishes Capernaum as his base of operations while traveling from town to town in the northern part of Israel.

It is in this context that Mark 1:16-20 presents Jesus' encounter with two sets of brothers Peter and Andrew, and James and John. Capernaum is located on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, and one day Jesus is walking along this freshwater lake that served as the commercial center of the region. He sees these four men, hard at work, and simply says to them, "Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men" (Mark 1:17).

How do these full-time fishermen respond? "At once they left their nets and followed him" (Mark 1:17).

I've always been a bit baffled by this story. It seems as though Jesus walks up to these men out of the blue and says, "Men, it's time for a career change. From now on, you will no longer fish for a living. You are now enrolled in my full-time discipleship program. Get out of those boats, quit your jobs, pack your bags and come with me!"

And they did exactly what he told them to do! Peter and Andrew left their nets "at once" and followed Jesus (Mark 1:18). James and John did the same thing "they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him" (Mark 1:20).

It all seems so abrupt, doesn't it? Did these four men know what they were getting themselves into? Did they have any previous contact with Jesus?

Fortunately, we can turn to the gospel of John to answer these questions. Mark's gospel does not tell us that at least three of these four men have had previous contact with Jesus. But Mark chose not to tell us about some events that occur between Mark 1:11 (Jesus' baptism) and Mark 1:12 (Jesus' wilderness fast) that John records and shed much light on Mark 1:16-20.

So it would be good for us to read John 1:19-50, where we read a detailed account of four days in the ministry of John the Baptizer. Here we see John interacting with the religious leaders about his identity. He denies being the Messiah and tells them that the Messiah is on his way (v. 19-28). Then Jesus comes to the Jordan River to be baptized and we see John interacting with Jesus and telling everyone that Jesus is "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world . . . I have seen and testify that this is the Son of God" (v. 29, 34).

Here we see that John has his own disciples men that he has taken under his wing for the purpose of pointing them to Jesus. It turns out that Peter and Andrew were among these disciples of John the Baptizer. When Jesus comes to the Jordan, John the Baptizer first introduces Andrew to Jesus. Immediately, Andrew goes to Peter and tells him, "We have found the Messiah" (v. 35-41). Then Andrew introduces Peter to Jesus, and Jesus gives Peter a new name (v. 42), telling him that "You are Simon . . . You will be called Cephas". ("Cephas" is Aramaic for "Peter".)

Also, there is another disciple of John the Baptizer who was introduced to Jesus along with Andrew. Because this other disciple is not named, it is likely that it was John, the brother of James. This John (not to be confused with John the Baptizer), along with Andrew are therefore the two disciples who are introduced to Jesus by John the Baptizer, and who then spend an entire day with Jesus (v. 39).

Now, with all that in mind, fast forward to Mark 1:16-20. We now know that Jesus has already met Peter, Andrew and John. It is also likely that several months have transpired since their first meeting at the Jordan River. After his baptism and 40-day fast, Jesus travels back to Galilee and settles in Capernaum, where he encounters the fishermen again and commands them to become his full-time disciples.

Knowing that Peter, Andrew and John were disciples of John the Baptizer and had met Jesus by the Jordan River doesn't that help to better understand what is happening when Jesus tells them to "Come, follow me" by the Sea of Galilee? I think it does.

When we read Mark 1:16-20, it can come across as if this is the first time these men have met Jesus. But it isn't. They have spent time with Jesus before and have heard him preach and seen him perform miracles. This man Jesus is no stranger to them.

At the same time, there is something significant about the way Jesus calls these men to follow him. Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah, the King) Mark has told us that in no uncertain terms in Mark 1:1. And he demonstrates the authority of a king when he tells these men to leave their nets behind and start a new life.

Jesus continues to call people to himself with authority. He does it every day through his Word, the gospel, which is not so much an "invitation" as it is a "command" -- the command to repent of your sin (experience a radical change of heart toward Jesus, then turn around and go in the opposite direction) and follow Jesus. The gospel is the Good News that the King has come and he is building his kingdom by saving sinners and transforming them from the inside out to have radically different attitudes and behaviors that align with his purposes and desires.

Like the fisherman, perhaps you have encountered Jesus before but are not following him now. It is common in America for people to have had some exposure to Christianity as a child, often by attending church and Sunday school with their parents, but then to lose interest and drift way from the faith as adulthood approaches.

And so I write this article to encourage you to examine afresh the claims of Jesus. He is standing at the door of your heart with a simple command the same command he gave the fishermen "Come, follow me". Will you obey this command, or will you continue to ignore him? This is the most important question you will ever read: How will you respond to the command of Jesus to follow him?

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