Mark 1:20

Verse of the Day Devotion.  Mark 1:20 

“And immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and went away to follow Him.” Mark 1:20.  

In this section of Mark, we see Jesus walking along the Sea of Galilee where He calls four of His twelve disciples. First, we see the account of the calling of Simon, also known as Peter, and his brother. “And as He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” Mark 1:16-17. Jesus saw these two casting a net into the sea. Jesus calls out to them saying, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” Mark 1:17. Now this was similar to the  Jewish practice of pupils toward their teacher. According Rabbinic literature, ‘a pupil sometimes goes after his teacher, i.e. joins him on his journey and maintains a respectful distance behind him; the following thus displays the pupil’s deference for his teacher, his personal commitment to him, and his desire to learn from the way in which the teacher handles the concrete problems of his journey through life.’ Sounds like what Jesus’ disciples were to do. So, how did Peter and Andrew respond? “And they immediately left the nets and followed Him.” Mark 1:18.

Next, we see a similar story regarding James and John. “And going on a little farther, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets. And immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and went away to follow Him.” Mark 1:19-20. Again, we see James and John are in a boat, but instead of casting their nets to catch fish, they were repairing their nets in preparation for casting them. It was a common practice to repair their nets rather than buying new ones if possible. And notice what happens. They also left immediately and followed Him.

Now, I want to point out a few important ideas here. First, these were not people with fancy credentials. These were common men, and Jesus met them as they labored as common men. Jesus chose these disciples not for who they were, but for what Jesus could do through them. Theologian Warren Wiersbe has this thought, “Surely the good qualities of successful fishermen would make for success in the difficult ministry of winning lost souls: courage, the ability to work together, patience, energy, stamina, faith, and tenacity. Professional fishermen simply could not afford to be quitters or complainers!” And with this invitation, Jesus demonstrated what Christianity is actually about. At it’s core Christianity is not about theological systems, rules, or even helping people, it is about following Jesus. Now, Jesus used His followers to accomplish His desires. It was essential that they understand there is nothing wrong with these deeds, and they needed to be open to doing them.

And today we, who are true followers of Christ, must do the same for we are His disciples today. And what did Jesus say to the Jews who believed? “Jesus therefore was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:31-32. And this is what He is saying to us today. It is not enough to receive God’s truth. We must retain and walk in it. And it is only when we receive the truth, love it, keep it, and walk in it, that we are genuine disciples of Christ. We must devote our lives to Christ and His ways, and not replace some of them with what we desire.

When Jesus called these four to be fishers of men, He called them to do what He did. He was the greatest fisher of men ever. But He wanted others to do the work He did; first these four, then the twelve, then hundreds, then thousands and thousands upon thousands through the centuries; which ultimately refers to us. He wants to use us in doing the work He started, which was making disciples. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20. And He is not saying we are to do this alone. Note the last part of verse 20. ‘and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ This is our calling, to make disciples who make disciples who make disciples for Christ. Let us go out there and reach out to everyone, declaring the truth and helping them learn how to do the same.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries, 

Amos 3:7

Verse of the Day Devotion Amos 3:7

“Surely the Lord GOD does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel To His servants the prophets.” –  Amos 3:7

This is an interesting verse spoken by God to His people.  This prophecy speaks of all the tribes of Israel. “Hear this word which the LORD has spoken against you, sons of Israel, against the entire family which He brought up from the land of Egypt, You only have I chosen among all the families of the earth; Therefore, I will punish you for all your iniquities.” Amos 3:1-2.  God brought Israel up out of the land of Egypt and proved His love and care for them. So now for God to speak against them shows He was no doubt greatly provoked. The central act of redemption in the Old Testament was Israel’s exodus from Egypt. All through the Old Testament, God called Israel to look back and remember Him as the one who freed them from Egypt. The central act of redemption in the New Testament, and in God’s whole plan of redemption, is the work of Jesus on the cross. In the same way, we are called to constantly look back and remember what Jesus did on the cross and to live in light of that great fact. He then completes this by saying, “You only have I chosen among all the families of the earth; Therefore, I will punish you for all your iniquities.” Amos 3:2. They are the only people He has chosen to be His, and thus because of their sins they will be punished.

Amos now asks five questions with each answer being an obvious No. “Do two men walk together unless they have made an appointment? Does a lion roar in the forest when he has no prey? Does a young lion growl from his den unless he has captured something? Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground when there is no bait in it? Does a trap spring up from the earth when it captures nothing at all?” Amos 3:3-5a.  Then He asks, leading up to the main purpose of these words. “If a trumpet is blown in a city will not the people tremble? If a calamity occurs in a city has not the LORD done it?”  Amos 3:6.

Now we come to our focus verse, “Surely the Lord GOD does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel To His servants the prophets.” Amos 3:7. Now, God had told them in verse two that He would punish them for all their iniquities.  However, for many years He had revealed warnings to His people, through the prophets, that if they did not stop their sinning, they would be punished.  Amos spoke of the coming judgment upon Israel. God revealed this secret to His prophets, and it was prophesied for years and years before it happened so Israel would have every opportunity to repent. Such secrets of God are revealed to them, that they may inform the people; that, by repentance and conversion, they may avoid the punishment, and, by walking closely with God, secure the continuance of his favor.

As a parent when my children were young, I would tell them I had warned them about doing wrong; sin, and therefore because they did it they would be punished.  Most of the time, that meant a spanking.  God, through the prophet Amos is doing the same thing.  He was saying He told them previously not to continue in their sin, and because they chose this path, they would be punished by a calamity in their city.  He had warned them many times, but they refused to listen. 

We must remember the context of the prophet Amos and understand that this does not mean that God does nothing without revealing it to a prophet first. He is speaking here of punishment for going against the ways of God.  There are times He will bring things about without initial revelation, i.e.: how God deliberately hid the nature of the church, it being a new body, neither Jewish nor Gentile specifically, from Old Testament prophets.  But when it comes to warnings of punishment for iniquities, we are warned.  Unfortunately, many times we do not listen to it.

In closing, God spoke to the prophets and warned the people through them to repent of their sins and follow God in all ways.  And throughout the scriptures we have been warned as well.  We are taught the  ways of God and that not following them is sin.  “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do, and does not do it, to him it is sin.” James 4:17.  Read His word and study it so you can know the life we have been called to live in Christ.  And reach out to those who are not Christians, helping them to see the truth and accept the salvation provided through Christ’s death.  “But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence; and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.” 1 Peter 3:15-16.  

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.