PREACHING THROUGH THE PARABLES-PART I

1. Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else." (Isaiah 45:22)
2. Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price." (Isaiah 55:1)
3. "Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage." (Matthew 22:9)
4. "In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink." (John 7:37)
5. "For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him." (Romans 10:12)
6. "Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth?" (I Timothy 2:4)
7. "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come and let him that heareth say, Come and let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." (Revelation 22:17)

The parable of the FISH and NET is similar to the parable illustration of the sheep and goats. The fisherman works with fish. The shepherd works with sheep. It is also somewhat like the parable of the wheat and the tares. This is the first sermon in our series of several messages on the Parables in Matthew 13. Let us see three points in the Parable of the Fish and Net: first, the magnificent Word; secondly, the Manifestation of Wisdom; and thirdly, the Mighty Works.

There were two things that amazed the people of Nazareth: the words spoken by Jesus and His works among the people. His own people had rejected Him once and yet He returns for another chance for them to hear His words and see His mighty works. Jesus had a love for all people; a natural and normal love for His own countrymen.

This parable, found in Matthew, has to do with fishermen casting the net into the sea to catch fish, all kinds of fish. And is a perfect picture of throwing the Gospel net, spreading the Word of God among the nations of the world. The world is filled with millions and even billions of people all through the earth and the Gospel net is being thrown out to catch people of every kind, of all tongues, and of every Nationality.

"The casting of the net is the preaching of the gospel. This gathers both good and evil into the church. When the mission of the gospel is completed, the judgment will accomplish the work of separation. Christ saw how the existence of false brethren in the church would cause the way of truth to be evil spoken of. The world would revile the gospel because of the inconsistent lives of false professors. Even Christians would be caused to stumble as they saw that many who bore Christ’s name were not controlled by His Spirit. Because these sinners were in the church, men would be in danger of thinking that God excused their sins. Therefore Christ lifts the veil from the future and bids all to behold that it is character, not position, which decides man’s destiny." (Christ’s Object Lessons, p.p. 122-123, E. G. White)

"O Lord, how manifold are thy works! In wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches. So is this great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beast." (Psalm 104:24-25) Now, what do these two verses teach us? The earth is filled with the wonderful works of God and the earth is filled with God’s riches. The sea is filled with things creeping, innumerable, both great and small.

The details of the "Fish and Net" are few and the explanation is very simple. First of all, there is the "net". Secondly, there is the "sea" into which the "net" is cast. Thirdly, there are the fishermen themselves who cast the "net". Fourthly, there are the "fish" that are enclosed, caught in the "net". And again, the "net" is a good symbol of the gospel, proclaiming and presenting the gospel to the world.

The "sea" into which the net is cast has the same meaning that it has in the fist two verses of this chapter: it stands for the people of all nations and tongues. Throwing the net out would catch all kinds of fish. The same is true with the gospel net; the casting of the gospel net catches all kinds of people. Multitudes are caught.

"The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the seaside. And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore." ( Matthew 13:1-2)

Now, let us notice a number of things in the parable of the "Fish and Net".

1. It is the casting of the net that takes the spotlight. While it is true, the fishermen cast the net, it is the net that catches the fish. So it is with the gospel. The pastor, evangelist, the Bible worker, the teacher, etc. may cast the net, but it is the gospel that catches people.
2. The object before the fishermen in casting the net is to catch fish. The same is true with the gospel minister. His object is to catch people. Peter was a professional fisherman by trade and when Jesus called him into the ministry, the Lord said to him, "And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." (Matthew 4:19)
3. The net gathered in fish of every kind. "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind." (Matthew 13:47)
4. The fact that this net gathered in bad fishes as well as good ones had no unfavorable reflection upon the fisherman.
5. The good fish in verse 48 represent true believers, those born again having fellowship and association together. The bad fish mentioned in the same verse will in the end of time be thrown away, cast into destruction.
6. Three times in this series of parables in Matthew 13, Jesus uses the words, "the end of the world". "...the harvest is the end of the world…" (verse 39) "…so shall it be in the end of this world." (verse 40) "So shall it be at the end of the world." (verse 49)

The Disciples Understood: "Jesus saith unto them, (the disciples – see verse 10) Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, yea Lord." (Verse 51)

Now, at the conclusion of the "Fish and Net Parable", the Lord returns to His own country and continues His teaching. Here is the verse and here is where we find our three point outline.

"And when He was come into His own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works." (Matthew 13:54)

1. The Magnificent Word

"…he taught them in their synagogue…" (Matthew 13:54)

1. Jesus’ teachings ASTONISHED His own countrymen. "…insomuch that they were astonished…" (verse 54) His countrymen were not astonished because they were believing His teachings. They were looking at Him and saying, "How can this man teach us?" They were standing in awe of His words. They were amazed at His knowledge. His want of higher learning and more education caused them to wonder. How can this man know so much?
2. His countrymen upbraided (rebuked) Him over the relationship with His adopted father, Joseph. "Is not this the carpenter’s son?" was their concern. It wasn’t that Jesus did not have wisdom, but rather His father’s position. They took no time to hear and understand that Joseph was from the lineage of David. (Luke 1:27 and Matthew 1:20)
3. His countrymen upbraided (rebuked) the Lord because of His mother. The people knew Mary as a common woman. Just Mary, not Queen Mary, nor Lady Mary, just plain, simple Mary.
4. His countrymen rebuked Him because of His brethren. They knew His brothers. They were the children of Joseph and his former wife. They were good men, but poor, common, and everyday people.

But the words of Jesus were magnificent. They surprised and shocked the Scribes. His language carried with it wisdom and they did recognize that the message Jesus taught was attracting the crowds.

These Scribes were so tied to the past that they could not understand the present. Now, instead of learning and accepting Jesus’ teaching, they were holding onto the traditions of their fathers. The magnificent words of Jesus were falling on deaf ears in His own country. And that holds true to the Scriptures.

"And they were offened in him. But Jesus said unto them, a prophet is not without honor, save in his own country and his own house." (Matthew 13:57)

Let us look now at our second thought.

2. The Manifestation of Wisdom

When Jesus had finished giving the parable of the "Fish Net", he asked, "Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea Lord. Then said he unto them, therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old." (Matthew 13:51-52)

There were two things that amazed the people of Nazareth. First, the words Jesus spoke, whether He spoke in parables or open words of plain language. Secondly, the people were astonished at His mighty works.

"And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works?" (Matthew 13:54)

The Word of God in the parable calls our attention to four things:

1. There is the "net" to throw into the waters of the sea. The net is used to catch fish. It was a tool, an instrument used by fishermen. Here it is used to symbolize, portray, and describe the spiritual meaning of throwing out the gospel as a net to catch people for God’s Kingdom.
2. There is the "sea" where the fish are and the net is cast into the sea. The sea symbolizes, portrays, and describes the world (the whole world, all the earth) where people are.
3. There are the "fishermen", themselves. They gather in the fish. The fishermen in the parable of the dragnet symbolizes, portrays, and is a perfect type of the gospel preacher, the pastor, the evangelist, the teacher, or the Bible Instructor.
4. There are the fish that are caught in the net and pulled ashore. The fish are a perfect type, symbolizing and describing people who are spiritually caught in the gospel net as it is thrown to the multitudes of all nations, kindred, and tongues. Neither the fishermen, nor the net are responsible for the kind of fish caught in the net.

This brings us to three more thoughts in the dragnet parable:

1. First, the thing that should impress the Bible student is the fact that we see the inconspicuousness of the fishermen. In verse 47, the fishermen are not even mentioned. And in verse 48, the Lord refers to the fishermen as "they". Notice, "which when it was full, they drew to shore." That is all that is said of the fishermen. Friend, take notice of this Spiritual truth, this is a rebuke and it condemns the preacher worship of our day! The glorification of and making of a celebrity out of a Pastor/Evangelist has been the downfall of many good men. We must ever keep in mind that God does use people to throw out the gospel dragnet, but it is not the person throwing the net, but rather the net itself that catches the fish. So it is with the gospel. It is the gospel that catches the attention of people and with the drawing power of the Holy Spirit; it is the gospel that brings people to Christ. The instrument is nothing. The gospel is everything.
2. Secondly, the object before the fishermen in the dragnet parable is to cast the net in the waters and draw it forth again and again. This was done to gather in the good fish. That was their one aim and design. But notice in the drawing in of the net that there were good fish and bad fish in the net. Just like the sheep and goats parable and the same as the wheat and tares parable. The bad fish are thrown away, the tares are up rooted, and the goats are cast out.
3. Thirdly, the fact that this net gathered in bad fish as well as good fish was no reflection on the fishermen. While it is true that while the fish were under the water, the fishermen could not see the bad fish. The separation of the bad fish from the good fish is a type of God separating the sheep from the goats, the wheat from the tares, the good fish from the bad, the wise virgins from the foolish virgins, the children of God from the children of the world. All these parables teach us that God is going to separate, eternally save His people, give them everlasting, eternal life. And the lost in that day are cast out into outer darkness to be eternally destroyed, never to live again.

Let us learn from this parable that our salvation must be settled prior to the end of this world and the return of our Savior. We must never be satisfied with mere outward Church-membership. Are we really converted? Are we among the good fish? This is an all-important question. It is the grand question. The net will soon be "drawn to shore". The true character of every person’s religion will at length be exposed. Let us be ready to meet that last challenge. The King (the Lord Jesus Christ) is coming.

Our study of the seven parables in Matthew 13 will continue next month.