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“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”
— Matthew 4:19
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations… and behold, I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
— Matthew 28:19–20
Here we have the beginning and the continuation of the same call. Matthew 4:19 is the call to follow. Matthew 28:19–20 is the call to go. Between these two stands all of Jesus’ earthly ministry, His death, His resurrection, and His exaltation. But the voice is the same. The authority is the same. The purpose is the same.
The lyrics of this song weave these two passages together. They confront us with one central truth:
> You are called to follow Jesus, and in following Him you are appointed to reach people.
There is no such thing in the New Testament as a disciple who only follows and never fishes. The same Lord who said, “Follow Me,” also said, “I will make you fishers of men,” and later, “Go and make disciples of all nations.”
The pattern is simple, but radical:
1. Follow Me
2. I will make you
3. Fishers of men / Make disciples
4. I am with you always
The call, the transformation, the mission, and the presence. That is the foundation of this teaching.
Let us look at what the Word of God says.
---
### The Call by the Sea – Matthew 4:18–22
Matthew 4 places us at the very beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. He has just:
Now, walking by the Sea of Galilee, Jesus confronts ordinary working men: Simon (Peter) and Andrew, then James and John.
They are not in a synagogue. They are not in a Bible school. They are at their place of work, casting and mending their nets. Into that very ordinary scene comes an extraordinary command:
> “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”
> At once they left their nets and followed him. (Matthew 4:19–20)
Then, in the very next verses, James and John receive the same call, and they too leave their boat and their father and follow Him (Matthew 4:21–22).
Contextually, this is:
### The Commission on the Mountain – Matthew 28:16–20
Now we move from the shore of Galilee to a mountain in Galilee, at the very end of Matthew’s Gospel. Jesus has been:
To these same disciples—some of whom had once been fishermen—He now gives what we call the Great Commission:
> “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them… teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
> (Matthew 28:19–20)
Here, the setting is different, but the voice is the same Lord:
Yet His focus has not changed:
What began as a local call by the lake becomes a global mandate on the mountain. What began with Israel now extends to all nations. But the origin is the same: the call of Jesus to follow and to reach others.
---
To understand the depth of this call, we will look at two key Greek terms: follow and make.
### 1) “Follow Me” – ἀκολούθει (akolouthei)
The verb translated “follow” is from akoloutheō (ἀκολουθέω).
When Jesus says, “Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19), He is not inviting them to an occasional religious meeting. He is summoning them to attach their lives to His life, to walk where He walks, to learn what He teaches, to submit to His authority.
In the lyrics, the repeated “Follow me…” captures this central command. It is not an optional extra. It is the starting point of everything.
### 2) “I Will Make You” – ποιήσω (poiēsō)
The phrase “I will make you fishers of men” uses the verb poieō (ποιέω), here in the future: “I will make” (poiēsō).
He says, “I will make you fishers of men.”
This reveals two crucial truths:
1. The transformation is His work, not ours.
2. The change is not superficial. He forms, shapes, re-creates them into something they were not before.
This connects directly to the Great Commission. The same One who said, “I will make you fishers of men,” later says, “All authority… has been given to Me. Go therefore…” (Matthew 28:18–19). The one who makes them is now the one who sends them.
### How This Deepens the Lyrics
When the lyrics say:
> Follow me, and I will make you
> fishers of men.
> Leave your nets, come after me—
> I’ll send you out to bring them in.
The emphasis is correct and biblical:
Evangelism is not primarily a human technique. It is the result of a divine work in those who truly follow.
---
We will move through the key themes of the lyrics and bring them under the light of Scripture.
### A. “Come, follow me” – The Primacy of the Call
> “Come, follow me,” Jesus said,
> “and I will send you out
> to fish for people.”
The initiative is entirely with Jesus. He does not negotiate. He calls. The call is:
This is consistent with Jesus’ pattern:
The first battle many believers face is here. They want the benefits of Jesus without the absolute call of Jesus. But He does not offer that option. The Lordship of Christ is expressed in these two words: “Follow Me.”
### B. “Fish for people” – The Shift of Purpose
Jesus is speaking to fishermen. He takes their profession and transforms it into a metaphor for their new calling.
Fishing in that context:
When Jesus says, “I will make you fishers of men,” He is:
Later, Jesus reinforces this fishing image after the resurrection:
So the call to fish for people is essentially a call to:
The lyrics rightly summarize this:
> I’ll send you out to bring them in.
This is the heart of God: to bring people in—from darkness to light, from Satan’s dominion to God (Acts 26:18).
### C. “At once they left their nets” – The Cost of Obedience
> At once they left their nets
> and followed him.
There is no real discipleship without leaving something behind.
They did not follow in theory while clinging to their old way of life. They left in practice.
Jesus later states this as a principle:
> “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
> (Luke 9:62)
> “Those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be My disciples.”
> (Luke 14:33)
This is where spiritual warfare enters. The enemy fights hardest at the point of surrender. He whispers:
But partial obedience is disobedience. The fishermen by Galilee understood this. “At once they left their nets.”
In our time, the “nets” may be:
If we will not leave our nets, we will never become fishers of men.
### D. “And he called them too” – The Universality of the Call
> Going on from there,
> he saw two other brothers—
> James son of Zebedee
> and his brother John—
> and he called them too.
The call that came to Peter and Andrew comes also to James and John. It spreads. It multiplies. The Kingdom moves forward by repeated, personal calls.
Later, Jesus clarifies:
> “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last…”
> (John 15:16)
This call is:
This is confirmed and expanded in the Great Commission:
> “Go and make disciples of all nations…”
> (Matthew 28:19)
All nations are the target. All disciples are the instruments.
### E. “Go and make disciples of all nations” – From Following to Going
> Go and make disciples
> of all nations—
> I am with you always,
> to the very end.
The same Lord who said, “Follow Me,” now says, “Go.”
There is a divine sequence:
1. Come – “Come, follow Me” (Matthew 4:19).
2. Go – “Go therefore and make disciples” (Matthew 28:19).
You cannot “go” effectively until you have truly “come.” But if you have truly come, you cannot refuse to go. A static, non-missional Christianity is unknown in the New Testament.
What is the content of this going?
Notice:
The first disciples were commanded to teach new disciples to obey everything Jesus had commanded them. That includes the command to “Go and make disciples.” Therefore, the Great Commission is self-replicating. Every generation of disciples is commissioned to disciple the next.
### F. “I am with you always” – The Presence that Empowers
Jesus does not send them out alone.
> “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
> (Matthew 28:20)
His presence is:
Furthermore, when we read Luke 24 and Acts 1 together with Matthew 28, we see that the presence of Jesus is realized in the presence and power of the Holy Spirit:
> “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be My witnesses…”
> (Acts 1:8)
So the pattern is:
This is why the lyrics can confidently say:
> I am with you always,
> to the very end.
It is not sentiment. It is covenant promise.
---
We must not treat these truths as mere doctrine. They require response. I will outline four clear applications.
### 1) First: We Must Respond Personally to “Follow Me”
Do not take this call as a general religious statement. It is personal. It is addressed to you.
Ask yourself:
A simple but decisive act is needed:
You must say to Him, with understanding: “Lord Jesus, from this day, I choose to follow You unconditionally.”
This is where true discipleship begins.
### 2) Second: We Must Identify and Leave Our “Nets”
It is not enough to say, “I follow,” while clinging to what He has told us to release.
Ask the Holy Spirit:
Then, act. Discipleship is practical:
“At once they left their nets.” Delayed obedience opens the door to spiritual deception. Immediate obedience closes that door.
### 3) Third: We Must Accept Our Call to Fish for People
This is not for a special class called “evangelists” only. All disciples are called to be part of God’s harvest.
Ask:
You may not preach to crowds, but you can:
The key is to accept: “In following Jesus, I am called to people.”
### 4) Fourth: We Must Live as Disciple-Makers, Not Just Church Attenders
The Great Commission is not “Go and attend church services,” but “Go and make disciples.”
Practically:
Remember:
You do not need to be perfect to start. The original disciples were flawed, weak, and often fearful. But Jesus said, “I will make you…” The making happens in the going.
---
### Proclamation
Speak this aloud, carefully and deliberately:
> Lord Jesus Christ, You have called me with the same call You gave by the Sea of Galilee.
>
> You have said, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
> Today, I respond to Your call. I choose to follow You without reservation.
>
> I renounce every “net” in my life that hinders my obedience—
> every false security, every sin, every compromise.
>
> I believe that You Yourself will make me a fisher of men.
> I accept Your Commission to go and make disciples of all nations,
> beginning with the people around me.
>
> Thank You that all authority in heaven and on earth belongs to You.
> Thank You that as I obey, You are with me always,
> by Your Holy Spirit, to the very end of the age.
>
> I am called to the catch;
> I am appointed to the harvest;
> I am a follower of Jesus and a fisher of men.
> Amen.
### Prayer
Lord Jesus, Son of the living God,
You walked by the Sea of Galilee and called ordinary men to follow You. Today, by Your Word and by Your Spirit, walk into the lives of those reading this teaching. Call them afresh. Pierce through apathy, fear, and compromise. Speak again Your simple, sovereign command: “Follow Me.”
By the power of the Holy Spirit, grant grace to obey at once. Expose every “net” that holds them back. Break the chains of fear of man, love of money, and attachment to this age. Release in them a new boldness to leave what must be left and to step into Your purpose.
Lord, make them what You promised: fishers of men. Put Your burden for souls in their hearts. Open their eyes to see the harvest around them. Fill them with wisdom to speak, courage to witness, love to persist, and patience to disciple.
And as they go in obedience to Your Great Commission, fulfill Your word: be with them always. Let them know Your presence, Your guidance, Your power. Confirm Your Word through them by the working of the Holy Spirit.
I declare over them:
You are called. You are chosen. You are appointed to bear fruit that remains.
In the name of Jesus Christ, the risen Lord,
Amen.
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