This weekend, our Gospel reading is from Luke 5 where Jesus tells Simon (Peter), after Simon and his fishing mates pull in a huge catch of fish after Jesus tells them to drop their nets, that they were to become fishers of men.

One of the important aspects of sermon preparation is that sometimes English translations of the Holy Bible don’t truly explain fully the meaning of a particular word. We usually use the words "fishers" or "catchers of men" when we translate Jesus’ statement to Simon. The reason is simple: both words can be tied into the fishing aspect of the situation.

But there is more than just translating the Greek word as "catchers" or "fishers." A deeper understanding shows that the word we usually translate as those mentioned actually is a compound word – two words combined into one. Individually taken, the words can be defined as follows:

"Living"
"Catch or take"

So when we are talking about Simon Peter and the disciples becoming "fishers of men," it really means that the disciples were to become those who would catch or take the living. Looking at this word in this way, it opens the door to a deeper understanding of the power of God’s Word, in this context, and in this story from Luke. The disciples were to go out to the people of God and cast the net of the Word and catch those living in darkness and shining the light of the Gospel on them. They weren’t just fishing, as we learn in Sunday School. They were doing more.

And we do the same in our day. We, too, are catchers of the people of God, using the Word of God. It isn’t because we do such wonderful evangelism that people come to God’s house, but simply due to God’s Word that ties up those living in darkness and opens to them the light of the salvation offered through Jesus Christ.

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