So God needs you.  To do what?  To go to the fish, where they are, because most of them won't come to us.  That's what the men in our text were doing: "casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen" (v. 16).

Fishermen in Jesus' day used two kinds of nets.  The sagene was a trawling net, dragged behind the boat.

The more common was the amphiblestron, a circular net weighted on the perimeter with a rope attached at the middle.  As it sank down into the water and closed, it trapped the fish, which were then hauled into the boat by hand.  This was the kind of fishing Peter and Andrew were doing.  These were the nets being "prepared" and repaired by James and John after their fishing was done.

This was hard, skilled work.  When our tour groups were in Israel recently, we took a brief boat ride on the Sea of Galilee.  The captain had a net like the amphiblestron, which he cast over the side while we watched.  It tangles very easily, and is hard to cast.  When it sinks into the water, it is very heavy to haul back.  It is not large, so the chances of catching fish on a single cast are small.  It would take many casts, throwing and retrieving all day or night, to catch enough fish for a man to support his family.

It would have been far easier for them to fish from the bank, waiting for the fish to come to them.  But fishing doesn't work that way.  Neither does fishing for men.

Most non-Christians feel about our faith like we feel about Mormonism or Islam or Buddhism.  You probably didn't decide between coming to Park Cities today or going to a Jehovah's Witnesses Kingdom Hall.  You're not really concerned with what Rabbi Stern talked about in his sermon last night at Temple Emmanuel, or what Imam Zia discussed in his sermon at the Irving Mosque on Friday.  You're not going to go to them.

Your non-Christian friends feel the same way about us.  How many non-Christians do you suppose are in worship today?  Of those who are here, how many do you suppose decided this morning to visit our worship service?  They would all be welcome, but not many would come.  That's why we must go to them.

God wants us to go fishing, using whatever technique will catch fish.

These men would rather have sat on the shore with a fishing pole in their hand, but that wasn't the way to catch fish.  If you've been fishing, you know that you have to go where the fish are and use whatever bait they're biting.  You may rather use artificial lures, since they're clean and tidy, rather than minnows or worms or shrimp eggs.  But what you want to use doesn't matter--what the fish want to bite is what counts.

We must meet the felt needs of our friends and neighbors if we want to meet their spiritual needs.  We must earn the right to tell them about our Lord.  Otherwise they'll feel that we're imposing our faith and values, intruding in their private lives, being judgmental and intolerant.  They must know that we care about them first.  As Ken Medema puts it, don't tell me I have a friend in Jesus until you show me I have a friend in you.

Who needs an encouraging note or email from you?  A phone call of support?  An offer of help?  What can you do to earn the right to tell your neighbor about your Lord?

God wants us to fish with the equipment he has given us for the job.

These men learned to be courageous, tough, strong, resilient in their work, all characteristics they would need in fishing for men.  They would face ridicule, slander, torture, prison, and martyrdom for their faith.  What they learned in risking their lives on the water they would use in risking their lives for the gospel.

In the same way, God has gifted and prepared you to serve him today.  You have experience and expertise he wants to use in his service.  That's why every believer absolutely should know his or her spiritual gifts.  We've made it easy for you--go to www.pcbc.org and  click on "ministries" and then "ministry discovery."  You'll find forms which will help you identify your spiritual gifts and calling for ministry.  They'll take you less than 30 minutes to complete.  Then contact the ministry discovery team so they can help you connect your gifts with a place of service. 

I am convinced that every Christian in this room should do this, this week.

And God wants us to define success as a church by the fish we catch for Christ.  Not by the size of our boat or number of our fishermen but by the fish we catch.  By souls saved and lives changed.  By the number of people we help to follow Jesus, the people we reach and disciples we make.