“As He was passing along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, Simon’s brother. They were casting a net into the sea since they were fishermen. ‘Follow me,’ Jesus told them, ‘and I will make you fish for people!’ Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.” Mark 1:16–18

I became a Christian when I was eight years old. The pastor of the First Baptist Church of Canyon, TX, was Brother Jim Hancock, and Brother Jim was faithful to present the gospel almost every single Sunday. By the time minute 27 of the sermon rolled around, he would close his message with something like this:

“I want everyone to bow their heads and close their eyes. I’m going to ask you a question. If you were to die tonight, are you absolutely certain that you would go to heaven? And if the answer is no, I will ask you to lift up your hand and pray silently after me.”

I heard this week in and week out, and eventually, the reality of my own need for forgiveness fell down on me. So one Sunday, I walked down the aisle, and Brother Jim led me to Christ at the altar. I was baptized a few weeks later, and that’s my story.

Perhaps it’s similar to your story, but then again, perhaps not. Maybe you came to Christ later in life. Maybe you came to Christ after a night of partying when your life felt empty. Or when a roommate gave you a Bible, and you started reading. Or perhaps it was when one of your children came to Vacation Bible School, and then you started attending church. There are a myriad of ways in which God draws us to Himself. From our perspective, some are boring and mundane, and some are exciting. Some take time, and some are immediate. 

And yet, despite all these ways we might come to Christ, there is only one way we can follow Christ –and that is complete. 

Today’s scripture provides an illustration to help:

“As He was passing along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, Simon’s brother. They were casting a net into the sea since they were fishermen. “Follow me,” Jesus told them, “and I will make you fish for people!” Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. Mark 1:16–18

The same call goes out today. It’s simple in its wording but profound in its implications. To every one of us, Jesus still says, “Follow me.”

But a little detail at the end of these verses is slyly descriptive of some of the implications of embracing that call of Christ. 

The detail in question is here:

They left their nets…

Why would Mark drip this little detail into the account? Perhaps he was just trying to be descriptive. They were holding something, and then they weren’t, and Mark wanted us to have a full picture of what happened. That’s fine, except that as a writer, Mark is known to use an economy of words. His gospel is the most streamlined and brief, so he isn’t a writer who would want to paint a verbal picture.

No, there is something else here. And the “something else” involves not just the physical presence of those nets but what they represented for these men.

These men were fishermen. And they were fishermen because their daddy was a fisherman. And his daddy was too. In a society in which there wasn’t the same upward mobility through education and opportunity as we have today, these nets were not only a tool of trade; they were the source of family stability and security. Even more, they were emblematic of their identity in the community. When you add that all together, those “nets” aren’t so easy to drop.

But they did. They dropped their nets. They physically and symbolically left their old way of life and embraced the future with Jesus. 

That’s what a disciple does. And that’s what Christians are. Disciples.

But according to Jesus, a disciple not only drop their nets but a disciple also takes up the cross. “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me” (Mark 8:34).

Here’s the thing. You can’t pick up the cross if you still hold onto the nets. You can’t follow Jesus if you still hold onto your old self-identification. 

You can’t embrace the Savior if you’re holding onto yourself.

Once again – there is only one way to follow Jesus. And that is to follow Him completely, which means totally and utterly. 

These disciples suddenly realized they had a greater purpose than merely fishing, so they laid down their nets and followed Jesus. 

My friends, will you lay down the nets of your life and follow Jesus and Him alone?

Written by Michael Kelley, Guest Contributor

To read more of Michael’s writing, check out his daily blog, “Forward Progress.” http://michaelkelley.co/