Article February 26, 1938 Issue

"Fishers of men"

NORAH M. COSTERTON

IN Matthew's Gospel it is related that as Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee he watched two fishermen casting their nets into the sea. With his spiritual insight he discerned their readiness to respond to his call to follow him in his ministry. These men had already learned from the great Teacher the good news of the kingdom, and now they were to accompany him, as he preached the glad tidings to a weary, sick, and sin-laden world. Joyously they must have left their nets as the gracious call fell on their ears, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."

What did that loving invitation mean to them? Fishers of men! Were they, then, to leave their only means of livelihood and forsake the work that supplied the daily bread for themselves and their families? And yet any misgiving must have been instantly dispelled, for we read that "straightway" Simon and Andrew left their nets to follow the Master. From henceforth they were to be no longer toilers of the deep, but "fishers of men." The fishes Simon and Andrew caught daily had no doubt satisfied their material needs, but when their thought had become so spiritual that they were ready to respond to the higher spiritual demand, the Christly call came to them.

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Our beloved Leader, Mary Baker Eddy, received a summons to leave all, in order to follow in the footsteps of the Master. She, too, was obedient to Truth's call, and through her readiness to obey the divine direction the Christian Science movement, with its healing and redemptive mission, came into being.

To leave all for Christ, to become "fishers of men," is the earnest desire of every sincere seeker for Truth; and this can be accomplished only by walking in the straight and narrow way of self-renunciation. In "The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany" Mrs. Eddy writes (p. 295): "Christian Scientists are fishers of men. The Bible is our sea-beaten rock. It guides the fishermen." This Book, which has for so many centuries withstood the besetments of malice, criticism, and the fury of the carnal mind's antagonism to Truth, is the "sea-beaten rock" on which these "fishers of men" build. Their foundation is steadfast, unerring divine Principle, invincible Truth.

The first of the six Tenets of Christian Science, as given by Mrs. Eddy in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 497), reads, "As adherents of Truth, we take the inspired Word of the Bible as our sufficient guide to eternal Life." This beacon light of Truth, the "inspired Word," is "a lamp unto [our] feet," guiding through the dark and often tempestuous waters of mortal mind, until the haven is reached through spiritual understanding.

And what is the work the "fishers of men" have to do? Again, the Scriptures must be searched for instruction concerning the Messianic work. In the Gospels the commands of the Master ring out imperatively: "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." "Heal the sick." The promise forever stands that to those who follow in his footsteps is given power from on high to do the works, and prepare the hearts of men for the coming of the kingdom, through spiritual renewal, purification, and spiritualization of thought. Through prayerful study of the loving Master's healing ministry, the spiritual vision may be gained which alone pierces the darkness of material sense with Truth's bright rays. The sick and the weary ones constantly thronged the Master, seeking release from fleshly ills. His mission was to preach deliverance to the captives of sense, that they might realize "the glorious liberty of the children of God."

Equipped spiritually with faith, love, and self-immolation, the "fishers of men" of today go forth under divine guidance, to preach and teach the good news of the kingdom and demonstrate the healing power of Truth through the recognition of man's spiritual sonship with the Father and his God-given dominion over all.

"In simple trust like theirs who heard,
Beside the Syrian sea,
The gracious calling of the Lord,
Let us, like them, without a word
Rise up and follow thee."

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Truth, the Healing Power
February 26, 1938
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