My friends Craig and Cathy Tucker are on holidays at the moment around the little islands of Asia. And the other day I got a message from them. Postcard from what they called a classic tropical island. No hot water, no TV… beautiful beaches, glassy sea; great sunsets.

Around where they were staying, which is well off the beaten tourist track, they said there are whole villages of nomadic fishermen; fishing is their LIFE.

So after he finished snorkling for coral and lazing on the beach, Craig says he decided to DO SOME FISHING. Do what the locals do. Let me quote to you at this point from his message… "Fished for 10 minutes with no result and GAVE UP. Had a great time."

Which is pretty much how fishing ALWAYS IS for me. Incredibly frustrating, I reckon. Ten minutes, I reckon that's more than enough.

In fact, from my experience of it I don't know why they call it FISHING at all. Because generally, there are NO FISH INVOLVED. Should call it LINE DANGLING. I'm going LINE DANGLING tonight. Which is only slightly more fun than LINE DANCING. But the chance of catching a fish is about the same for me either way.

Well, if you look at the guys here in the passage we read, they know the feeling. A whole night. And not a thing.

We’re in Luke 5; Jesus is standing by the Lake; it’s morning, the fishermen are just in from the night shift. Empty handed. And there's Jesus by the shore as they're pulling in, surrounded by people who are hanging off every word; Luke says there in verse 1 that as Jesus speaks, they’re crowding round, listening to the WORD OF GOD. When Jesus speaks, GOD SPEAKS. And the crowd’s getting so big Jesus needs a better place to talk from so they can all hear: so there's a couple of empty fishing boats pulled up to the shore, and the fishermen are on the pebbly beach washing their nets. Complaining after their long night. That they haven’t caught a thing. House payments to meet, kids school fees… and a whole night with NOTHING TO SHOW FOR IT.

And so Jesus says to Simon, he says, "Can I use your boat?". And he gets in Simon’s boat, and he says push off a little. And I guess you can imagine the picture - people standing around the waters edge with the little waves lapping up to their sandals, listening to Jesus as he teaches. Hanging off his words. Disappointed when he finally stops. And it’s time to head home.

Now it’s at that point Jesus says to Simon, it’s TIME TO GO FISHING. He’s finished speaking, they’re a little bit off-shore; and verse 4, Jesus says to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and LET DOWN THE NETS FOR A CATCH."

Now it’s one thing for Jesus to be a TEACHER. Which he’s obviously GOOD AT. But what Simon Peter wants to do is, he wants to go home to bed. He’s been out all night. He just wants to CUT HIS LOSSES. And so you can see in verse 5, he’s not keen. It's been one of those nights that you could hardly call fishing at all. Because there have been NO FISH INVOLVED. And he says in verse 5, "Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught a THING. But because you say so, I s’pose we’ll give it a go. Because YOU SAY SO, I’ll let down the nets."

And he does. And Luke says in verse 6, they catch such a huge number of fish that the NETS can’t handle the weight, and start breaking. So they wave back to the shore to their mates the Zebedee brothers to come out and help them, and they pile both boats so full of fish that they’re on the verge of sinking under the weight. Piles and piles and piles of beautiful big fish. The catch of a lifetime. The sort of catch fishermen dream of.

Fishing with Jesus is sensational. Better than one of those sonar detectors you can get these days. See, the thing is, if you want to catch fish, you’ve got to go where the fish are. And somehow Jesus knows. And Simon Peter and James and John, they’re just dumbfounded. Absolutely astonished at what’s happened. Simon Peter falls on his knees; he says, keep away from me, Lord, I’m a sinner. He says, there’s something SO BIG going on here that I’m not worthy to be part of it.

But then Jesus says this. The end of verse 10. He says to Simon, "Don’t be afraid; this is just a GLIMMER of what’s coming up. And SINNERS are just the sort of people I’m here for. Simon Peter’s starting off on exactly the right footing. Admitting his sin. And Jesus this to him. He says, catching fish is small time. He says, Don't be afraid. From NOW ON, YOU WILL CATCH MEN." Catching fish is small time. I’m going to make you FISHERS OF MEN.

And you know the most amazing bit of the whole thing, verse 11, here they are with their boats full of the CATCH OF A LIFETIME, fish flapping round everywhere… and they get back to shore, and they just walk away. Leave it. Left everything. And followed him.

Peter, James and John. The first recruits. The first DISCIPLES. Have suddenly seen something way more important than fishing for fish. And they’re learning Lesson Number 1; one that we all need to notice. Following Jesus is all about FISHING FOR MEN. Being a DISCIPLE… is all about MAKING DISCIPLES. He doesn’t say FOLLOW ME and I’ll give you a good spiritual education. He doesn’t say FOLLOW ME and I’ll give you a sense of spiritual fulfillment. He doesn't say FOLLOW ME and I'll make you good presbyterians. He says, follow me, and I’ll make you FISHERS OF MEN. That’s the job. That's their new MISSION IN LIFE. And off they go.

So lets watch Jesus go fishing for men. Verse 27, Jesus went out and saw a TAX COLLECTOR named Levi sitting at his tax booth. "FOLLOW ME," says Jesus. And Levi GOT UP, LEFT EVERYTHING and FOLLOWED HIM. Exactly like Peter and James and John did. Don’t worry about tallying up the day’s tax returns. Don’t bother grabbing all the loose change. Up. And out.

And that night Levi holds a great banquet at his house, invites Jesus as the guest of honour, and brings all his TAX COLLECTOR MATES. A large crowd of them, and all the other outcast types as well. Will you notice, here’s Jesus at a cocktail party with a bunch of people who decent people just don’t mix with. Here’s Jesus… FISHING FOR MEN. Going where the fish are.

And the PHARISEES, of course, they don’t like it. And they complain. What’s he doing THAT FOR? They don’t complain direct to him. They complain to his disciples. Because Peter and James and John are there as well. Verse 30. The Pharisees and the teachers of the law say, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and SINNERS."

Because to them, the most important things is YOU DON'T GET YOUR HANDS DIRTY. By which they mean, never mix with anyone who isn’t pure and righteous and virtuous just like they are. They wouldn’t DREAM OF IT. And there’s Jesus – there with his disciples – sleeves rolled up, right in the middle of it.

And Jesus says to the Pharisees who are complaining, he says, "But this is exactly what I CAME FOR." He says, you go down to the doctors waiting room, it’s not full of healthy people, is it? You go up to visit the hospital, it’s not like the health club gymnasium.

He says, call me Doctor Jesus. Because that’s what I am. And I’m not here for the healthy. I’m here for the sick. By which he means I’m not here for the GOOD SELF RIGHTEOUS TYPES LIKE YOU. I’m here for the SINNERS. He spells it out in verse 32. "I haven’t come to call the righteous, but SINNERS to repentance."

That’s who he’s fishing for. So that’s who he’s spending time with. Not to be in the social pages with the rich and famous and impressive. But fishing for the sort of people who have turned their backs on God's kingdom. Who need to know their saviour.

Now the thing I really want to ask you this morning is, have YOU ever been accused of the same thing? Has anyone ever said to you, how come you’re hanging around with SINNERS all the time?

Could we PRESBYTERIANS… ever be accused of that? Hanging round with sinners too much. People outside of the kingdom.

Because maybe we haven’t realised the thing Jesus calls his disciples to do is be FISHERS OF MEN like he was. Fishing for sinners. They’re still around. Plenty of them. And the job is still exactly the same. Keep it in focus. Calling them to REPENT.

The number one MISSION for disciples of Jesus is to be FISHERS OF MEN. Not just LINE WETTERS. Not just giving it a go for ten minutes and saying it doesn't work. But keeping at it.

And for us, that means being a group of Christians who are always looking OUTWARDS. Rather than always looking INWARDS. Because FISHING FOR MEN is our mission. And has to be our FOCUS.

A story… that my mate Luke Tattersall guarantees to me is true. In 1905 at Bondi Beach a crowd of people were swept out to sea and drowned. And there was nobody who could do the slightest thing to save them. And people said, we can't let something like this happen again. We've got to do something. To save lives. So a group of young men got together and formed a society. A society with a very clear purpose. They wanted to be able to SAVE THE LIVES of those at risk of DROWNING in the surf. The worlds first SURF LIFESAVING CLUB was born.

But after a while, these young guys found they enjoyed each others COMPANY so much they decided they should run some SOCIAL EVENTS on FRIDAY and SATURDAY NIGHTS. Good for fund raising. Great fun. A few drinks.

Trouble was, it wasn’t too long before they were enjoying themselves so much on a FRIDAY and SATURDAY NIGHT that they couldn't drag themselves out of bed on SATURDAY and SUNDAY MORNINGS to get to the beach and patrol it. They didn't have time for TRAINING. So that in the end, they weren’t able to get out there to SAVE LIVES In 1906 a BREAKAWAY GROUP was formed. They moved SOUTH along the beach and formed what is NOW called the BONDI SURF LIFE SAVING CLUB. They drew up a CHARTER which had 7 OBJECTIVES and in EVERY OBJECTIVE they put the words: "WE ARE HERE TO SAVE LIVES IN THE SURF"

They were DETERMINED not to get SIDETRACKED from their MAIN PURPOSE. Which sometimes is more than you can say for us.

Folks, I want to say a few words about what we're setting before you this morning as what we've called our VISION…and our VALUES. The session's been working on it for a few months; we've passed it round the home group leaders. And it's sort of like the charter drawn up by the Bondi Surf lifesaving club. Something that can help us… to make sure we never get diverted from the main game. Fishing for men.

And in different words and phrases, you'll see that's a key idea that runs through our vision and our values.

We've talked about our values already. So I want to spend a few minutes on our VISION. Our view of the path up ahead. Our GOALS AND AIMS. Our target.

And can I say right from the outset, what we're looking at here isn't a GLAMOUR VISION. It's a bread and butter vision. It isn't about new buildings and thousands of people and becoming a megachurch. It's about getting a handle on the basics. That what Jesus called his disciples to do was MAKE DISCIPLES. And it's trying to work out how WE AS A CHURCH play our part in that. Focus on that. Week by week here. And wider. Like ripples in a pond.

Let me take you through it as it's printed on your sheets…

I guess that first phrase is what any church is meant to BE. Gathered around GOD'S WORD; a loving community. But a community with a job to do. A community with a mission. Which is to CALL PEOPLE TO BE RECONCILED WITH GOD through his Son Jesus Christ. That's what it means to be FISHERS OF MEN. Our message is, GOD HAS TAKEN THE INCREDIBLE STEP of sending his Son into our world to TAKE THE PENALTY FOR SIN. There's a broken relationship. There's a price to be paid to mend it. And Jesus himself… has paid the price. Fishing for men is calling people to be RECONCILED WITH GOD, to become FRIENDS WITH GOD AGAIN… by turning to Jesus. Someone once said, the church is the ONE ORGANISATION IN THE WORLD that exists for those who AREN'T A PART OF IT. Rather than those who are.

Can I ask you, how do you reckon we're going at that? Yes, I know we live in difficult times. I know people aren't interested anymore. Or so people want to keep saying. But my question is, HOW MANY CHURCHES ARE DOING IT? In a way that makes any sort of SENSE TO PEOPLE?

How many churches are UNINTELLIGIBLE. Stuck in the 19th century. Full of a HOLIER THAN THOU sort of attitude? Seen to be in it for WHAT THEY CAN GET rather than what they can GIVE? Seen to be somewhere where you can only go when you've got your life together and you dress well.

Folks, the statement of our vision we're putting forward today is nothing fancy. Other than to say, let's make it a key goal that nobody can ever say stuff like that about US. And that's what the next sentence is saying…

It's been my experience that the SINGLE BIGGEST REASON we're not effective in fishing for men anymore, is that people have got NO IDEA WHAT WE'RE ON ABOUT. That… and that if they ever have turned up to a church, they've felt kind of unwelcome; shut out.

A mate of mine who's a minister did an exercise with his parish council. He's an Anglican in Sydney. He said, come on, I'm taking you somewhere. He put them in the car, and took them down to the local TAB. And he said, Okay, you're on your own. Put a bet on a horse. Work it out. See how it feels to be part of an UNFAMILIAR ENVIRONMENT. Where nobody tells you what to do and how to do it. Very uncomfortable. Which is how a whole lot of people feel about turning up at church.

Imagine if it wasn't like that. If you could invite your non-Christian friends along ANY SUNDAY, and know they'd be welcomed by everyone else… that they'd UNDERSTAND what the bloke up the front was talking about. That they wouldn't feel like they've stepped into some sort of nineteenth century timewarp.

Worth aiming for, isn't it. To be a church that's always weighing up what we're doing to make sure we're calling people to be RECONCILED WITH GOD through his Son Jesus Christ. That's FISHING FOR MEN. All sorts of ways we'll need to work on doing it. But like the Bondi Lifesavers, we need to write it in. Keep reminding ourselves. That's what we're here for. Not to be a social club. Not to be a fundraising organisation. But to fish for men. And that means we'll always be bending over backwards… to be welcoming. To be Open. To be FLEXIBLE… so that in 30 years time, we're still watching our culture. Saying, PEOPLE ARE CHANGING. How do we change TO MEET THEM with the GOOD NEWS OF JESUS. So the gospel is made clear THROUGH US. The apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9, I became ALL THINGS TO ALL MEN… so that in ALL POSSIBLE WAYS I might WIN SOME. We should too.

There's more. Because it's clear to me that here at Mitchie we've actually got a lot to offer in a wider circle. Circles radiating outwards. I think we've got to get the other stuff right here first. But then export it with all our might.

Friends, I don't know if you're aware that the denomination we're part of in is dire straits. It's easy to lose sight of that when you're part of a church like this one. Where things are sailing pretty strongly. We're the EXCEPTION rather than the rule.

Our presbytery. The Presbytery of Brisbane - covering the city, Clayfield, Wavell Heights, out to the Gap, over here to Mitchelton. Last meeting two parishes applied to reduce their ministers to part time pay. Because they can't support them anymore. Another church - plenty of money. But 14 people every Sunday. Keeping the wheels turning. But gradually declining. Until in the end there'll be NOBODY THERE. I guess they'll keep going… because they've got money in the bank. Services every Sunday - with nobody at them.

Heard about another church just up North. Someone who goes there was talking to Maurie the other day. She said their church is rapidly heading for DEATH. Dying. Entrenched in the way they've always done things, because the few older people they've got will stop coming. A minister just waiting to retire. But a fast growing area around them. Lots of young families in the neighbourhood - but a church that won't change a THING… to connect with them.

Friends, I'm very convinced that if we're a church that's outward looking, if we're a church that's GOSPEL CENTRED, if we're a church that's INTENT ON FISHING FOR MEN, that if we're on about GROWING FOLLOWERS OF JESUS instead of being on about MAINTAINING OUR TRADITIONS, instead of being on about DOING IT HOW IT'S ALWAYS BEEN DONE… then we'll be a GROWING CHURCH. And as a GROWING CHURCH, we need to look wider. At how we can HELP TO REBUILD. At how we can help other churches start to GROW FOLLOWERS OF JESUS AGAIN as well. By learning to be welcoming. And opening. And flexible. They're already things Mitchie is doing pretty well. And when we're going it better, we need to look wider. At how we can impact our WIDER CHURCH. How we can keep on impacting our COMMUNITY. How we can impact OUR WORLD. Through the overseas missions we're supporting. And in NEW WAYS. As we move into the 21^st century.

Our vision statement says,

And one step more. I talked about declining churches. Have you heard about our THEOLOGICAL COLLEGE. Two full time lecturers. There to train candidates for ministry. This years graduation - I went to it. ONE STUDENT who they've trained. Lucky guy - he got to be SENIOR STUDENT. Got all the prizes as well. Next years enrollments… NO MINISTRY CANDIDATES AT ALL. Zero.

Friends, if churches like ours aren't the ones raising up and encouraging people for FUTURE MINISTRY, there isn't going to BE any future ministry. All the better if we can encourage and train men for the sort of ministry we're going to model HERE. With a focus on FISHING FOR MEN… and so the last sentence of our vision statement says this…

Now I know this has been a church that's been committed to that in the past. But we need to be doing more than just providing a place for students to come on a Sunday. THERE ARE NO STUDENTS. Largely, because there are so few churches where future leaders are being encouraged. And enthused. To use their gifts for the KINGDOM OF GOD.

Our vision statement isn't setting out in detail how we're going to do that. Just that it needs to be done. And that we want to be a church that plays a role. And we can DO THAT. In lots of ways.

Wouldn't it be terrific if in ten years, say, we could look back - and see that some of the young guys from OUR OWN CHURCH have taken up the challenge… to use their gifts and energy and abilities TO BUILD UP GOD'S KINGDOM… by training for ministry. And that we've SEEN THOSE GIFTS - and fanned them into flame - and got behind them. Helped train them and sharpen them - to reproduce churches with the same goals and aims… of FISHING FOR MEN. Growing followers of Jesus.

And there'll be other ways too… that we can use our RESOURCES. Our energy. To REPRODUCE a GOSPEL FOCUS. Training leaders for the future. Supporting them. Employing them part time maybe as they train.

As I said, a vision statement like this one doesn't say HOW WE'RE GOING TO DO IT… but that we want to give it a go. And training leaders for the future is ALWAYS a key strategic role.

Who knows how we'll be able to do it. Or whether in ten years time we'll be able to look around and see ONE OTHER CHURCH with a leader we've helped train. Or TWO OTHER CHURCHES. Or TEN. Or TWENTY.

A guy called Samuel Smiles said, THE REASON SO LITTLE IS DONE is generally because SO LITTLE IS ATTEMPTED. Let's hope that's not true of us. As we set out to be a loving Bible centred Community … that calls the people around us to become FRIENDS WITH GOD AGAIN… by trusting Jesus who gave up his life for them. As we work hard to be WELCOMING. And open. To everyone. A lot of people say to me, "oh, no, if I went to church the ROOF WOULD CAVE IN." I want to be able to say, we've got RE-INFORCED ROOVES. We're READY FOR YOU. Come and HEAR ABOUT JESUS… in a way you can UNDERSTAND. In a way that's REAL. With a bunch of PEOPLE WHO'LL REALLY CARE.

The reason so little is achieved is that so little is attempted. I hope they won't say that about us… as we go fishing for men. That they won't just say we were LINE DANGLERS. Who gave up after the first ten minutes.

Our vision statement and our core values; they're just tools in the end. Nothing magic. Just a way of keeping on saying to ourselves, we want to be Growing followers of Jesus. Whose mission is to GROW MORE FOLLOWERS OF JESUS. And the next step … as we play our part in raising up… encouraging… supporting… the next generation of Christian leaders. Who'll go out and do it all again.

Let's pray…