A Fisher of Men

"There it is," Andrew said, pointing to the town that sat invitingly in the distance. "Home sweet home."

It had been several days since they left Nazareth, and now the eight of them stood by the Lake of Galilee, near the town of Capernaum.

"You should stay at my mother's house," James said to Joshua. John gave him a look. "Well, our mother's house: myself and John. She's the finest cook in all of Galilee."

"It would be good to stay some-place out of the wilderness." Philip said. He wasn't exactly accustom to living as the disciples did.

They continued on their way to the town. Just then, some people started calling out "There He is!" and "It's Joshua!" among other such cries. Soon the eight of them found themselves surrounded by people on all sides in close press. They could not move, or was there a high place for Him to speak to them from atop.

Slowly but surely, the huge crowd was drawing them closer to the town. Though it was hard to do any moving with so great a press about them, Joshua and the disciples found themselves by the docks, where fishing boats were moored. The smell of the sea was not unpleasant to Joshua, but something else brought a grimace to His otherwise pleasantly-smiling face.

It was not that the people were ready and open to hear what He had to say. Far from it: his concern was for one close at hand. Peter's faith was faltering and he thought himself as insignificant.

"I must preach." Joshua said to His disciples.

"Master," Peter stated. "Shall I prepare a boat that You may preach to those upon the shore undisturbed?"

"Thank you, Peter." Joshua answered.

The disciple, eager to please his LORD, walked over to a group of boats and started un-tethering the boat that belonged to him.

"Going out, are you Simeon?" one of his fellow fishermen, who was of the crowd, asked. He laughed. "God be with you, for the fish sure won't."

"He's right," another answered. "We've been out since nightfall yesterday and caught nothing."

Peter said something ugly back at them. He was short-tempered, that was plain to see. He finished un-tethering the boat and brought it up to the shore. After running it a little aground on the shoreline, Peter helped Joshua into the boat. He stood on the bow, which faced the people, and Peter and Andrew sat in the boat with Him. The other disciples sat around the boat and listened to what He had to say.

"Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!" Joshua said to the multitude.

"Master," one from among the crowd asked. "What is the Kingdom of Heaven like, that we might know it when it comes?"

"Once a man sowed seed." Joshua began in parable. "Some seeds fell upon the roadside, and were devoured easily by the birds. Others fell in rocky places, where they sprouted up fast, but withered because they had no grounding and could not live when the sun came to scorch them. Others yet fell among weeds and thorny plants. These, in their attempts to grow, choked the sun and virtue out of the plants and therefore the seed died. But some came upon good soil, and brought forth by the handfuls, yea, even more so: in thirties, sixties and even in hundreds! Whomever has ears that can hear, let him hear!"

"Master," Philip, who sat on the ground beside the boat, asked. "why do You speak to us in parables?"

"It is for you to understand the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, but not for them." Joshua replied to Philip. "Whosoever has, it shall be given to him, and he shall increase. But he that has not, it shall be taken away from him. For this reason do I speak in parables: though they are not blind, they do not see. Though they are not deaf, they do not hear. And though they are not slow, they do not understand. For their hearts have hardened, their eyes have been shut and their ears have grown deaf. If not, then they would understand with their hearts, see with their eyes, hear with their ears, turn and I would heal them.

"But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear. I tell you that many patriarchs, prophets and kings desired to see, hear and understand that which you see, hear, and understand now, and yet they have not." He then turned back to the multitude.

"Also, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who planted good seed in his well-tiled field. But while he slept, his enemy came and sowed cockle and thistle in his fields. Upon awaking, the servants asked: 'Master, did we not sow good seed? From whence have these tares sprung up?' 'An enemy', the Master replied. 'has put them there.' 'Shall we not then pull out the tares from among the wheat?' his servants asked. 'Not so,' the Master commanded. 'in so doing, you might accidentally pull out good wheat. Here is what you shall do: let them grow together. At harvest-time, we shall know which ones are which. At that time, I will declare that the reapers gather the tares together and burn them away with fire, but that the wheat is gathered and stored in My granaries.'

"Also, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a grain of mustard seed. It is the smallest of all seeds, but once planted within one's garden, grows into a mighty tree, to be the shelter of all birds and animals. Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like leaven, which a baker hid in three measures of wheat, until the whole was leavened. Also, it is like a treasure hid in a field. When one finds this treasure, he goes, sells all that he has, and purchases that field. Whomever has ears that can hear, let him hear!

"Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a precious pearl of great price. And if a merchant seeking goodly pearls should happen to find it, he goes and, after selling all that he has, buys that one pearl. Do you understand this?"

Words of affirmation came from the gathered crowd.

"Therefore every scribe who is instructed unto the Kingdom of Heaven is like a householder, who brings out of his house treasures both old and new. Now, I have one last parable for you all. Worry not, for I shall be with you in the synagogue on the Sabbath."

Since this was to be His last parable for the day, they listened eagerly.

"The Kingdom of Heaven is like a great net, thrown into the sea. It catches all kinds of fish, and it has to be drug to shore since it cannot be held in the boat. Afterward the fishers come and separate the good fish from the bad fish. The good fish they keep, but the bad fish they throw away." At this, Joshua became silent. The hushed voices of the crowd and the gentle laughing of the sea on the shore was all that could be heard. Then Joshua continued:

"So it shall be at the End of the World. The angels shall come forth, and those that are wicked shall be cast into a lake of fire, where there is wailing and gnashing of teeth, but only for a moment, and then they are burned out and utterly consumed and forgotten forever."

On this ominous tone, the sermon ended and the people went back to their daily lives.

"Speaking of nets," Joshua said to Peter. "Take this boat out and go fishing."

"But, Master," Peter said to Joshua. "I heard some of the fishermen say that the fishing this time of year is terrible. Not one of them has caught anything, and they have been up all night. But, since You have commanded it, I shall do so."

Andrew, Peter, Joshua and Philip got in one boat, while James, John, Nathanael and Thomas got in another boat. As they unfurled the sails and rowed out into the Sea, Philip asked Joshua something.

"Master," he said. "Tell me, what does the parable of the Seed Sown in various Soils represent?"

"Had you not asked," Joshua said to him. "I would have held My peace, but since you have asked, it shall be given you. The seed that fell on the roadside are they that receive the Word, but the Evil One tempts them, and there are convinced that the Word is wrong, and cast it away. The seed that fell on rocky soil are they that receive the Word and, with vigor and joy, rise to the occasion, but when trials and persecutions come upon them, they lose heart. The seed that fell among thorns are those who receive the Word, and even begin to grow, but the cares of this life take hold on their hearts and they reject the Word. Therefore the seed that fell in good soil are those that receive the Word, hears it, understands it, and brings forth fruit; by thirties, sixties, even hundreds."

"What about the parable of the Tares in the Field represent?" Andrew asked.

"The one who sowed good seed is the Son of Man," Joshua began. "The field is the world, the good seed are the children of the Kingdom, and the tares are the children of wickedness. He that sowed the tares is Satan, the Adversary. The harvest is the End of the World, and the reapers are God's angels. At the End of the World, the Angels shall take up the from the Kingdom those that are evil and, in fulfillment of the prophecy of Malachi, 'all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly shall be stubble, and the day that cometh shall burn them up, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in His wings, and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.'"

By this time, they were some ways out. Taking their nets, the four Galilean fishermen tossed them out into the sea. There they waited for a while. Suddenly the net jerked. Then the boat teetered to one side. Andrew and Peter ran over and tried to pull up the net, but they could not. Philip added his weight, and they were barely able to see that the net was teeming with fish. It took all of their effort to keep both the nets from breaking, and their little boats from sinking. The other boat also began to sink, for it too was filled with much fish. Therefore they rowed back to shore, lest they sink in the midst of the ocean.

It took them many hours to count out the fish, and they lost count more than five times. Tired and weary, Peter looked up at Joshua. He knew that it was He that had caused this to occur.

"Leave me, O LORD." Peter said, with tears in his eyes. "I am unfit to be Your disciple, for I am a sinner."

Joshua then knelt beside Peter and embraced him as a friend.

"Fear not, for from now on I have made you a fisher of men." Joshua replied.

That day was Peter's faith reaffirmed, and they departed after the great incident of the day. Peter, however, was happier than the others. For now he felt honored in the sight of Joshua, and that meant the world to him.

(I hope you enjoyed this. I specifically changed references to Hell in order to neither confirm nor deny the existence of Hell. It's a rather personal thing. It is not my reason to depict Hell, just the story. Review with relevant information!)