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He
said, “Son of man, have you had a good look? ”Then he took me back to the
riverbank. While sitting on the bank, I noticed a lot of trees on both sides of
the river.
He
told me, “This water flows east, descends to the Arabah and then into the sea,
the sea of stagnant waters. When it empties into those waters, the sea will
become fresh. Wherever the river flows, life will flourish—great schools of fish—because
the river is turning the salt sea into fresh water. Where the river flows, life
abounds. Fishermen will stand shoulder to shoulder along the shore
from En-gedi all the way north to En-eglaim, casting their nets. The
sea will teem with fish of all kinds, like the fish of the Great Mediterranean.
Ezekiel 47:6-10 (TLB)
He told me to keep in mind what I had seen,
then led me back along the bank. And now, to my surprise, many trees were
growing on both sides of the river! He
told me: “This river flows east through the desert and the Jordan Valley to the
Dead Sea, where it will heal the salty waters and make them fresh and pure. Everything
touching the water of this river shall live. Fish will abound in the Dead Sea,
for its waters will be healed. Wherever this water flows, everything will
live. Fishermen will stand along the shores of the
Dead Sea, fishing all the way from En-gedi to En-eglaim. The shores
will be filled with nets drying in the sun. Fish of every kind will fill the
Dead Sea just as they do the Mediterranean!
Ezekiel 47:6-10 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
Then
the man said to me, “Son of man, did you pay close attention to the things you
saw?” Then the man led me back along the side of the river. As I walked back
along the side of the river, I saw many trees on both sides of the water. He
said to me, “This water flows east, down to the Arabah Valley. This water flows
into the Dead Sea so that the water in that sea becomes fresh and clean. There
are many fish in this water, and all kinds of animals live where this
river goes. You can see fishermen standing by the river all the way from En Gedi to
En Eglaim. You can see them throwing their fishing nets and catching many kinds
of fish. There are as many kinds of fish in the Dead Sea as there are
in the Mediterranean Sea.
- The gospel of Jesus Christ is the gospel of life and its effects will bring healing to people of every tongue and tribe.
- The effects of the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ may start as a trickle but the prophets Isaiah and Habakkuk prophesied that, “the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea”. (Isaiah 11:9, Habakkuk 2:14). The end time revival that will come as a result of the preaching of the cross-centred gospel of Jesus Christ will soon become a river that cannot be crossed, manipulated nor controlled by men.
- Then everywhere that this river goes, ‘the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live’. (John 5:25)
- Where this river goes, there will be abundance of ‘fish’ to catch – fish of all sorts and varieties. There are people of every tongue and tribe- young and old, rich and poor, black and white, male and female, educated and un-educated who are waiting to be brought into the fold and be discipled. They are waiting for the fisher men. Jesus said, “lift up your eyes and look at the field, for they are already white for harvest!” (John 4:35)
- Where are the fishermen of God? Where are those who are supposed to be positioned along this river casting their nets ready to catch all kinds of men for God? Fishermen standing shoulder to shoulder to make sure no one escapes the net.
- We are fishers of men! This is what the Lord’s hand wants to make out of us. This is the essence of all that the Lord is doing to us now.
- This is what the early church understood. “Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word.” Even as they fled from persecution, they were fishers of men!
- We know that the mystery of the gospel of Jesus will have great impact in our day but where are the fishermen strategically positioned along the river to catch men?
- Jesus said to the men He chose and still says to us today-
- “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19)
- …”From now on you will catch men” (Luke 5:10)
- “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” (Mark 1:17)
- Our responsibility is to follow Jesus in concerted discipleship so that He can make us fishers of men.
Then the Lord said to him: “Go, return on your way to the Wilderness of
Damascus; and when you arrive, anoint Hazael as king over Syria. Also you shall anoint Jehu the son of
Nimshi as king over Israel. And Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel Meholah you
shall anoint as prophet in your place. It
shall be that whoever escapes the sword of Hazael, Jehu will kill; and whoever
escapes the sword of Jehu, Elisha will kill.
Prayers
- Thank You Lord, for calling me into Your labour and for working in me to will and do of Your good pleasure
- Lord, help me to understand Your calling upon my life. Help me to see that no matter .what You have called me to do, it is ultimately to be a fisher of men for You.
- Lord, help me to follow closely enough for You to work on my life and make me a fisher of men.
- As the gospel of Christ is bringing life where there has been death, help me to be strategically positioned as Your fisher of men, catching men for You
- Lord, whatever You did in the lives of men and women in the early church, do it to me too. Let the mystery of the gospel affect me so thoroughly and deeply that I cannot but be fisher of men.
For
souls in satan’s train
With
hook or net use me still
Make
me fisher of men
- Lord, do not let me be blind or indifferent to the harvest of men that is white and ready around me.
- Lord, position Your fishermen strategically along Your river who will stand shoulder to shoulder, no shoving or pushing but working with one purpose in mind, ensuring that no soul escapes.
- Lord, position Your fishermen in churches, families, hospitals, schools & colleges, universities, prisons, market places. Position Your fishermen ALL the way along Your river, let there be no gaps so that those who escape the gospel in their families can be caught in church and so on. (1 Kings 19:17)
