Two Simple Words

Third Sunday After Epiphany, Year A | Matthew 4:18-22

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

How many of the decisions you’ve made in your life come with a little consideration first? Most of the decisions we make in life come down to cost. Before we do anything, we ask, Can we afford it? Will it stretch the budget too far? Is it worth the price? We think this way all the time. We count the cost before we buy a car, choose a house, take a job, or make a serious commitment. And most of the time, that’s just being responsible.

And we should think the same way about our Christian faith. We know that being a Christian cost something. It costs time.  It costs attention.  It costs money. And sometimes it costs a little comfort too. It might mean getting out of a warm, cozy bed on a cold morning. It might mean missing brunch. It might even mean missing the football game once in a while. And let’s be honest, those are serious sacrifices.

But what does it really cost to follow Jesus? In today’s Gospel, Jesus calls four fishermen by the Sea of Galilee. Two simple words: “Follow me.” And Matthew tells us that they leave their nets. They even leave their father in the boat. No delay. No negotiation. They leave everything to follow Jesus. Why would anyone do that? Or, closer to home, have I done that? What does it cost me to follow Jesus? These questions are answered in our Gospel reading this morning.

I. When Jesus Calls (vv. 18–19, 21)

John has been arrested. The prophet’s voice has been silenced, locked away in Herod’s dungeon. And so Jesus moves. He leaves Nazareth and settles in Capernaum, by the Sea of Galilee, to pick up where John left off. Preaching repentance and the coming of the kingdom. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

The kingdom was at hand because Jesus was God’s anointed King. The reign of God had come down to earth in the coming of Jesus, and that meant things could not remain the same. This was not just an announcement. It was a summons. A call to repentance.

Repentance is one of those church words we use often, but rarely slow down to define. Repentance starts with being honest about our sin and being sorry that we have sinned against God. Without that sorrow, there is no repentance.

But repentance also means turning away from sin and back to God. Because it turns us back to God, it includes faith, a trust in His mercy. It means going in a new direction. The old way will no longer do. What’s needed is a real, ongoing change; a conversion. That is what Jesus is calling for when He says, “Repent.” A reorientation of life. A return to God with the whole heart.

And it is in the middle of this preaching that Jesus walks along the Sea of Galilee. What He finds there is not a religious scene. This is not a group of spiritual seekers waiting for instruction. He finds working men. Ordinary, average guys. Fishermen doing what they had done every day of their adult lives.

Peter and Andrew are casting their nets. James and John are in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending theirs. These men were not hobbyists. They were professionals. Commercial fishermen. Partners in a family business that was, by all indications, doing reasonably well. Boats. Nets. Hired men. A livelihood. A future.

And it is right there, in the middle of ordinary life, that Jesus speaks. “Follow me.” In Jesus’ day, students chose their rabbis. Disciples sought out teachers they admired. But here the pattern is reversed. Jesus does the choosing. Jesus does the calling. The initiative belongs entirely to Him. He does not wait for interest. He does not ask for readiness. He simply speaks.

And this is where we need to be careful, because we can misunderstand what is happening here. We hear this story and we are tempted to turn it into a lesson about decisive faith. Making a decision for Jesus. As if Peter and Andrew, James and John simply decided to leave it all behind and follow Jesus. But that is not what Matthew shows us.

This is not a story about human decision. It is a story about Jesus calling. “Follow me.” Jesus does not stand by the sea asking for volunteers. It is not an invitation to consider. It is a command. And His Word carries authority. And when Jesus speaks, His Word does not merely inform. It summons. And His Word creates what it calls. The fishermen do not first choose Jesus; Jesus chooses them.

That is why we always confessed it this way:  “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel…”

That matters because it tells us where this call comes from. Not from our insight. Not from our sincerity. Not from our decision. The call comes from God.  We did not reason our way into faith. We did not decide to follow Jesus Christ. We were called. Called by the Gospel. Called through the Word. Called in Holy Baptism. Called again and again as Christ’s voice continues to sound.

Which means this text is not first asking us, “Would you be willing to follow Jesus?”
 It is declaring, “Jesus has called you.” Not because you were searching. Not because you decided. But because He spoke. And when Jesus calls, He does not ask for part of your life.

II. Why They Followed Him (vv. 20, 22)

Now Matthew tells us what the call of Jesus costs. For these men, the cost is immediate and concrete. Peter and Andrew leave their nets. James and John leave the boat. And they leave their father behind. Being a disciple of Jesus is more than attending His school or admiring His teaching. Notice carefully what Jesus calls them to. Follow me. To follow Jesus means more than walking behind Him. It claims the heart. The will. The loyalties. The whole life. Everything is now ordered around a new center. This is repentance and conversion.

When these fishermen heard the words “Follow me” from the lips of Jesus, they left everything. They abandoned their nets, their boats, their father, their business, and the life they had known. The things they left behind were not small things. Nets were not just tools. They were livelihood. The boat was not just transportation. It was the family business. And Zebedee was not just an employer. He was their father. To follow Jesus meant exchanging what was familiar and secure for uncertainty.

And that presses the question back onto us. What is first in your life? Career? Income? Family? Security? Identity? When Jesus says to you, “Follow me,” He is not asking for a portion of your life. He is laying claim to all of it. And suddenly discipleship does not sound safe or manageable. It is costly.

So why would anyone do that? Why did these men leave what was familiar, stable, and good to follow a man they had just met? The answer is not that they were unusually brave. It is not that they were spiritually superior. They followed because they were not losing everything. They were gaining Someone. Jesus did not say, “Follow this path.” He said, “Follow me.”

They did not know where He would lead them. They only knew who was calling them. And the same is true for us, beloved. We may not know all the details of where Christ is leading, but we do know who we are following.

And Jesus does not call them away from their lives in order to empty them. He calls them to Himself. And in doing so, He gives them something greater than what they leave behind.

To follow Jesus is to receive Jesus. With His Word He heals the sick, cleanses the unclean, and casts out demons. With His Word He calls sinners to Himself. He is not merely a teacher. He is the Savior. He is the King. God in the flesh. And He is yours. Jesus is worth more than nets, more than boats, more than family businesses, more than anything this world can offer. Everything else can be taken from us. Everything else can fail us. Everything else will, sooner or later, pass away.

But Jesus does not. And He proves that by what He gives. This same Jesus who calls fishermen by the sea will give Himself completely. He will give Himself into death. He will be handed over, mocked, tortured, and crucified, not because He was forced, but because He chose to go that way. For them. For you. He gives Himself into death so that He might give us life. Follow Christ, and everything He has is yours. His perfect life is your life. His innocent suffering and death are your death. His resurrection, ascension, and glory are yours. His kingdom, the reign of His forgiveness over all that condemns you, is yours. 

And that is why the disciples followed. Not because the cost was small, but because the gift was great. Not because leaving was easy, but because Jesus is worth it.

So, we return to the question we asked at the beginning: What does it cost me to follow Jesus? The honest answer is that it may cost more than you expect. But the better question is this: What do you gain? You gain Christ. And when you have Him, you lack nothing that truly matters. Two simple words: “Follow me.” And in those words, Jesus gives Himself. That far exceeds any cost you will pay.

May the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.