When It’s Time to Stop Wrestling and Jump Inside the Boat

I’ll never forget it, waking up before the sun rose, climbing in my dad’s vehicle, boat on top, headed for lake waters.

My timid nature and blonde locks bounced, yet inside I felt brave, being able to bait a line with a wiggly worm, all by myself, thanks to lessons from my older brother.

Inside I was shy, private, didn’t speak much… but this place in a small, man-powered row boat, with my dad and brother, was safe, even as a Kindergartener.

Fishing was a part of my childhood memories, but also something that parallel’s the Christian message. We are “fisher’s of men” Jesus tells us.

Yet often in the hype of throwing our line and catching what lies under the deep, we pull and tug, stand tall in our boats….Forgetting we too once were, still are…fish, needing a savior to redeem us.

I open scripture this morning and am reminded of Luke 13:2. The verse talks about a day when there were presumptions about the Galilians who suffered, stating they were somehow worse Christian’s, than those who didn’t.

But Jesus, stood amidst that lie. Like He has done and continues to do throughout time.

Can’t you just imagine Him speaking; boldly, collectively, to those anticipating his answer in favor of casts or some people’s perceived eliteism?

Instead, Jesus points right back at them, those dividers, accusers, and judgers; “No”, they are not worse sinners, Jesus reminds them. “Unless YOU repent, you will all likewise perish.”

It sounds like a harsh word, very unlike the gentle, loving, peaceful Jesus we hear about in some circles. Instead, Jesus unites. Putting a stop to the dividing that we can all do as people.

Whispers often condemn, stating, “We are Christian, they are not.” Or, “I am good, they are bad.” The deception that pride creeps in, “We are ‘this’ kind of person”, or “They appear different.”

Unlike the divides people in scripture used to place, Jesus compiled all people into one group, echoing the truth he just blasted at them, “Unless you repent you will likewise perish.”

In fact, Jesus seemed to humiliate the hearts who lifted themselves up as superior in comparison to other people….those that made the claim that if you suffer, you must have somewhere sinned….as if their perfection was conditioned on THEM.

What scripture teaches? We have ALL sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23) We are all fish swimming aimless without THE fisherman, Jesus, to save us.

Sinner is the word “opheiletes” in Greek. It means; “debtor, one who owes a moral obligation, an offender, a deliquent.”

We all live a life failing in performance, and become deptors to God’s divine judgement without His grace.

Yet, Jesus came and fished us out of the swamp of our disgust and choices. He gathered a people to himself and reminds us, we are not better, whether we suffer at the hands of a man named Pilot, or appear to live perfect to other humans.

I am humbled by this word this morning…humbled because I too can sometimes even unkowingly, be very catagoric in my thinking; labeling, placing different values, dividing, or compartmentalizing in my thinking…

Most of the time, when fishing, you hold the line tight and pull fast and hard when you feel a tug. (Or at least that’s how I remember it, forty years later) But, there are times, especially when fishing carp, when you let the fish “think” it has some space.

When a fish doesn’t feel pressure, it comes out from hiding and stops playing that little game of going towards the fisherman, then swimming away.

A fish with seemingly extra line, feels safe. They don’t see danger, and maybe even thinks they are getting away with the bait the Master Fisherman has carefully laid for them.

But then, the slow gentle call, the winding that brings the fish close to the hands of the Father.

I remember that early morning fishing trip well as a child. I was the only one who caught a fish that day, beating my father and brother in who-can-catch-the-most-fish.

I likely was too young at the time to really embrace the fully excitement of my catch. But what I did know was…what I did was remarkeable, according to my brother who screamed and shouted when I pulled my fish in.

Little did I know, this morning, with the mirror as my Bible, I would see fishing much the same. It is not the BIGGEST or LOUDEST who catch the most….

It’s those like little children, who don’t see prizes or power in what they are doing.

It is in those who recognize they themselves are hungry and defenseless and have nothing to bring the Fisherman in the sky who longs to catch them.

I want to stop judging people for what their cirumstances look like in the moment, remembering the heart of God is recognizing we too have fallen short, offended, have a moral obligation to God.

We all are just sinners saved only by grace. (Ephesians 2:8)

It’s not the rich or poor, one or another race that holds all the cards in their hands. The glory comes when we are one man, needing One God, seeking His face, regardless of who we are, or where we have been.

How might the world look, if we stopped dividing people? Stopped putting them in catagories based on outward appearances? How might we learn to love, if we just stepped back and listened to other people’s stories.

Recognizing we are sinners, saved by a father who holds a line out, and welcomes us to the only safe place there is….

In the loving, welcoming, protection of His blessed arms.