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~ THE PARABLE OF THE FISHLESS FISHERS FOLLY! ~
(Author is Unknown by most professors with spots!)
There is a group called "The Fisher’s Fellowship." They were surrounded by streams, lakes, and oceans full of hungry fish.
They met regularly to discuss the "bait" for catching an abundance of fish, and also maybe someday the thrill of catching just one fish.
They tried pizza parties, pastor appreciation months, open houses, skating parties, street parties, and party parties, They tried fishy music and fishy clothing, and foul fishy conversations, until the fish could not tell the fishers from the fish, and VISE-versa!
Most of the fishers really pretended to be excited about fishing!
Some suggested that they needed a "Philosophy of Fishing," so they carefully defined and redefined fishing, and the "purpose of fishing."
They developed fishing strategies and tactics and tracts. But none of those things brought anyone into the kingdom. because no one from the "Friendly Fishless Fisher's Fellowship" ever went OUT to fish,
Then they assumed that they had been going at it backwards.
They had approached fishing from the point of view of the fishers, and not from the point of view of the fish.
How do fish view the world? How does the fisher appear to the fish? What do fish eat and when?
The “fishless fishers” decided that these are all good things to know. So they began research studies and attended conferences, retreats seminars and organized great “fishless fishers” schools, and 'bible' colleges on "their" fishing fish-ology.
Some traveled to far away places to study form others who said they knew about different kinds of fish with different "fishy habits." They learned many "fishy" religions so they could some day lure all kinds of fish with their own "fishy" religions of their "Fishless fellowships."
Some got PHDs in fishol-ogy to hang on their walls of the offices of the fine "Fishers Fellowship Halls" . . . for the rest of the “fishless” fishers to admire and look up to as some kind of goal.
But no one had yet "GONE FISHING!"
So a committee was formed to send out fishers.
Since the prospective fishing places out-numbered the fishers, a committee was needed to determine 'priority' places, and which fish were the easiest to catch.
A priority list of fishing places was posted on bulletin boards in all of the someday very friendly fishless Fishers Fellowship Halls.
But still, no one went fishing.
SO a survey was launched to find out why.
Most fishless fishers did not bother to answer the survey, but from those that did, it was discovered that some felt led [lead?] just study fish,
A few, to FELT led [lead?] to furnish fishing equipment, lures etc, but most just wanted to go around encouraging the other fishers, with seminars, and "how to fish" crusades.
But most just felt led [lead?] to stay "in house," and pray for a good catch of fish, or mostly for the lord of the fishing harvest to send OTHERS to "GO FISHING."
What with all the meetings, conferences, and seminars, retreats ETC, they just simply did not have any time left over to really "GO FISHING."
Than along came Jake!
Now Jake was a spotless newcomer to the "Fisher’s Fellowship."
He was not "schooled" in their "Fishless Fellowship" bible school of the friendly "fishless fishers fish-ology!"
After one stirring meeting at the Fellowship, he went fishing and caught a large fish.
At the next meeting, he told his story, and he was honored for his catch.
He was told that he had a special anointed "gift for fishing."
He was then scheduled to speak at all the FISHLESS Fellowship chapters and tell how he did it.
With all the speaking invitations and his election to the head of the board of directors of the fishless "Fisher's Fellowship," Jake no longer had time to 'GO FISHING.'
But very soon Jake began to feel restless and empty.
He longed to feel the tug on the fishing line once again.
So he CUT all the speaking entanglements at all the friendly fishless Fishers Fellowships!
He resigned from the “board,” and he said to a friend, "Let us Go Fishing,” as they themselves did not even get caught in the fishless "Fishers Fellowship's" net, either!
They went OUT fishing, just the two of them, and they caught grand multitude of fish.
And still. . .
The members of the friendly "Fishless Fisher's Fellowshipers" were many, the fish were plentiful, but the fishers were few!
And they reminded themselves about that saying continually.
They also prayed this MISS-translated verse a every meeting. . .
“Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest send out laborers into HIS harvest." – Mt.9: 38
BUT NOW LET US PRAY . . . the REAL PRAYER. . . That it will be ALL of US who are SENT be the laborers of the harvest of sanctification!
~~~~~~~ oooOOOOooo ~~~~~~~~
The “friendly fishless fishers” are the "chocolate sweeties" who usually repeat a doctrine form a couple of MISS-Translated verses that go something like this . . . 'Jesus loves you and has a plan for your life, and all you have to do is say a sinners prayer, invite him into your heart and find a "church" for "fellow-shipping" with others still sinning-going-to-be-consecrated-some-dayers!
SO truly, which part of that "Fishless Fishers Report" sounded like "your” huggy huddle group," of your "pew glued crew," or "bless ME lord," group you belong to?
Oh yes, you all did have an "Outreach," once per month, (or a few times per year,) but it got cold, and rainy (or too hot and uncomfortable,) and besides would you have had to postpone the "Out Reach" because it would have interfered "pastor's" appreciation month! Right?
Or worst yet . . . Someone else who did have the real Love of the WORD, in them, and really wanted souls to enter into eternity, "Without TORMENT," had to leave “your” huddle club for "missions" somewhere else! And of course you threw a few dollars in the collections plates, so you did not have the SPIRIT of CONVICTION try to convince you to “GO YE” into those other places, where the "fair weather professors of religion" would NEVER think of going! . . . You know . . . . Like "OUTSIDE" the 'thermostatically" controlled luke-warmers, of the pretend-a-FOLLOWERS of Christ, four walled hangouts of the "fishless fishers fellow-shippers," halls of the "NO-GO YEers United FISHLESS Fellowship” CHURCH!
Oh yes,. . . . you did have “your” church crew, specially make up some "flyers" to invite the lost into the kingdom of the "FISHLES Fishers," for an “in house pizza party," but that had to be stopped to be able to afford the new carpet for the "FISHLES fishers" bible study on the weekdays!
Besides last year a "group" did go and spent 2 whole weeks in that "Out Reach," in that third world country, and that was a major cost out of the this years NEWER model BMW love offerings fund for the pastor's wife!
You know that the plane tickets, luxury rooms, daily “lattes” and three meals per day, in that "starving" third world country, alone, for the two weeks, could have been spent on new golf clubs, and a new golf cart for the "youth" pastor!
Beside they only had a few sinners say a "sinners prayer," and the $8000.00 price tag just for the those few sinners, who “backslid” before the plane left the ground to return home, could have been spent on a new "Fishless Fellowship" HALL or a major set of speakers for the "in house" music ministry!
You would have went with them, but . . . you had. . .
1. Payoffs to watch?
2. "FISHLESS" schooling started soon?
3. A family that needed you to stay "HOME" more than GOD need you to "GO?"
4. Everyone in YOUR family was "saved" so why bother?
5. An "in house" ministry of carrying the pastor's bible to the podium was more important?
6. To be the "greeter" just in case a lost soul got more lost and accidentally wandered into your "FISHLESS" fishers fellowship church?
7. You did have a play "to the choir,". . . . in that " in-house music ministry" that had to "Practice" at "praising the Lord?
Or most ALL of the above?
That is basically the UN-Fortunate Folly of the "FISHLESS FISHERS" FINAL END!
Worthless servants, Everyone of them!
~~~~~~~~~ oooOOooo ~~~~~~~~~
NOW for the REST of the TRUTH
erald and preach the Word! Keep your sense of urgency, [Whether it is convenient or inconvenient, whether it is welcome or unwelcome, you as preacher of the Word are to show people in what way their lives are wrong.] And convince them, rebuking and correcting, warning and urging and encouraging them, being unstoppable and inexhaustible in patience and teaching.” (2 Tim 4: 2) TAB [the TRUTH always sounds stranger than "fiction" to the friendly “fishless” fishers.]
NOW did you really “SEE” those WORDS of CREATION?
And did you SEE enough to live these WORDS, “Whether it is convenient or inconvenient, whether it is welcome or unwelcome, you as preacher of the Word are to show people in what way their lives are wrong.”
Are you "doers of these WORDS or Hearers only? "
SO can you obey . . . .
erald and preach the Word! "
Easy enough to follow, as a FOLLOWER of these WORDS, and as a natural course of obedience! The Living WORD even give to ALL OF US, the actual WORDS to “FOLLOW,” and to PREACH! Now how easy is that, for a REAL “FOLLOWER” of the WORD?
2. "Keep your sense of urgency!"
,Do any of you even have any sense of "URGENCY?" OR did the "things and cares of this world” ROB you of the LOVE of these WORDS of CREATION, and the Eternal souls of everyone else?
3. "whether the opportunity seems to be favorable or unfavorable!"
Now there is a demand that will shake the pretenders of Christianity to the souls of their feet! They will obey if it is accompanied with "tithes and offerings" (handouts of the fishless fishers) or they NOT GO to PREACH, especially if some abdominal sinner is offended, or some lawless badge holder gets annoyed by the WORDS being PREACHED! OH forbid, they get arrested or “persecuted” for doing the WILL of the WORD!
4. "Whether it is convenient or inconvenient!"
No excuses, like. . . “bad weather,” nor a long drive, nor a great re-run is rerunning, nor the play-offs finals are on, or the kids have practice time for (everything except for the WORDS of CREATION!)
Those WORDS mean "convenient or inconvenient" to the "sinners," not to the saints, as ONLY the NOT winning souls is "inconvenient" to the real saints.
5. “you are to show people in what way their lives are wrong.”
WHY? SO THEY WILL BECOME HOLY, and so the REAL WORDS of CREATION will not cast them into ETERNAL TORMENT!
The REASON, is because WE "KNOWING THE TERROR OF THE WORD WE PERSUADE EVERYONE! Now that is the WORDS of CREATION, which are far beyond the stumbling disobedient minds of the "fallen humans" understanding!
convince them,”
WHY? If you really love their souls into the kingdom, rather than into HELL (by your silence,) you WILL LOVE TO “CONVINCE THEM” TO TURN!
7. “ rebuking and correcting,”
The only way to convince most of the "hardheaded," heartless into the things of DIVINE OBEDIENCE, is to "REBUKE and CORRECT!"
8, “warning and urging”
It can not get any easier to obey than that! And if the "LOST do not SEE the TEARS in your eyes, let them HEAR the “tears” in your voice! (Catherine Booth)
9. “encouraging them,”
THAN . . . AFTER ALL of the above, than you are start “encouraging them,”
~~~~~~~ ooo0ooo ~~~~~~
"WORK or MINISTER?"
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