“And the Lord said, “Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.” Luke 12:43 NKJV
A subject that usually comes up between believers who are faithfully watching for our Lord’s return concerns the question of what more is expected of us than just watching. A few years back I was fishing alone for my favorite species, largemouth bass, and while doing so began an interesting conversation with the Holy Spirit concerning fishing. Now that may sound funny to some, but we do talk a lot ( I mostly try to listen ) and He shared some things with me that I believe address the question of being a faithful and wise servant while waiting for His return.
“Then Jesus said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men." Mark 1:17 NKJV
This was the first thing the Spirit brought to mind as I was fishing, and then He asked a question; "why do you think so many of the disciples were fishermen"? As I thought that one over, it occurred to me that obviously there must be qualities a good fisherman must possess which are uniquely suited for spreading the gospel. As I then thought about that, I came up with what I will call the "essential three".
A good fisherman is always prepared. When I go fishing, I always try to take absolutely everything I think I might need in order to be prepared for anything that might happen. Things like extra tackle, rain jacket, life preserver, power bars, water, you name it I probably take it. How often and how many examples I could give that I was lucky I was prepared. As my friends like to say, if it can happen, it will probably happen to me. Did I mention the first aid kit? I will leave that story for another time.
A good fisherman is always patient. I think anyone who has ever fished understands the need for patience, for on any given day your luck can change. I remember fishing one day in a lake high in the Rockies that I had hiked two days to get to on the advice of a guide who had taken people there. I began fishing mid morning and for the next six hours caught NOTHING. I was so tempted to leave, but the guide had been adamant there were fish there. So I decided to finish the day, and it ended up that I was glad I did. About five o'clock or so the entire lake just erupted with fish trying to get dinner and I had an hour or so of fishing like I had never, ever experienced. I literally never threw a cast that did not result in a strike.
A good fisherman is persistent. You know, there are days where it seems all you do is lose fish. I have had days where I got strikes, saw fish following my lures, and even hooked several large ones. Yet I never landed a fish. Frustration is easy to come by on a day like that, and I think it is pretty easy to call it a day and decide to try again later when things like that happen. Yet I do recall someone telling me once "it's called fishing, not catching, for a reason". Persistence pays off eventually, so it's better not to get discouraged if you have a day of bad luck for there is always tomorrow.
As I was thinking of all of these qualities, the Spirit then told me to read the following verse and tell Him what I saw.
“Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.” 2 Timothy 4:2 NKJV
What did I see? Well, Jesus said if we follow Him, He will make us fishermen. So when He says "preach the word" I see it as telling us to go fish! As far as "be ready", I would certainly call that the same as being prepared. "Convince, rebuke, exhort" certainly looks a lot like being persistent, and there is no question "longsuffering" means be patient. So as always, my question to Him was, "is it really this simple"? His answer was, as you might expect, another question; "how are people like fish"?
So this one took a little more time to figure out, but here is what I came up with. In my experience, there are basically four types of fish out there.
1. Those that reject. No matter what you throw out there, they are not interested.
2. Those that are curious. They will follow your lure, maybe play with it, but never bite.
3. Those that nibble. They want a taste, but they won't swallow the hook.
4. Those who accept. They are not only interested, they swallow hook, line, and sinker.
After I thought of this, I realized that when teaching the Parable of the Sower, Jesus also said there were four types of "ground". As I have shared before, I do so appreciate the simplicity of the scripture. God has taken pains to write His message in such a way as to be simply shared and understood. As we "fish" by sharing the Gospel with an unbelieving world, remember the message from Paul to Timothy by being prepared, patient, and especially persistent. and never forget we are called to be fishers of men.
“For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.” Romans 11:25 NKJV
Scholars have noted that the phrase “fullness of the Gentiles has come in” is a term taken from the waterfront referring to a ship waiting to sail until all the crew has come onboard. The following is an excerpt from a teaching from Jack Kelley on this passage. “
There are two Greek words in this verse that lend critical support to a proper understanding. The first is translated “full number”. In Paul’s time it was a nautical term that stood for the predetermined number of sailors necessary to operate a ship. Until the ship had its full number of crew members, it could not legally set sail. Sometimes ship captains who found themselves a man or two short when it came time to leave the harbor went through the water front bars late at night looking for drunken sailors they could kidnap. When they had the number they needed they set sail immediately.
And the second, translated “come in” is also a nautical term that described the ship’s arrival at its intended destination. We’ve all heard people say how much better life will be “when my ship comes in.”
By using these terms, Paul was saying that the hardening of Israel’s heart will not be fully removed until the Church reaches its predetermined number and arrives at its intended destination, which the Lord called “my Father’s House” in John 14:2-3. It was a reference to the rapture. There’s nothing arbitrary about God’s action here. He has already determined the number and will take the Church to its intended destination as soon as it’s reached. But as far as I can tell no one on Earth knows either the full number or the current number. All we can know is that we’ll be raptured when the full number of Gentiles has come in and it could literally happen on any given day.
https://gracethrufaith.com/end-times-prophecy/no-one-knows-the-day-or-the-hour-2/
True believers who watch understand just how close we are to going home. Our responsibility to be found doing His business when He comes is in sharing the good news with others. If you are reading this and have never made the decision to accept Jesus Christ into your heart and accept the free gift of eternal life He has offered you, I urge you to do so right now. You can do that by praying this prayer and accepting the gift of eternal life God has offered you by the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ.
Dear Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner. I believe You died for my sins. Right now, I turn from my sins and open the door of my heart and life. I confess You as my personal Lord and Savior. Thank You for saving me. Amen.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.”
Romans 1:16 NKJV
May Jesus find us all “so doing” when He comes.
Keep watching.
