Fishers Of Men by Apostle Joshua Selman

Lift your hands to heaven and thank God for His power that is at work in our lives. Thank Him for His ability, thank Him for Koinonia.

It is important for us to know that every time we come to God’s presence, He is making something out of us.
Pray: Father, I am here again, give me an encounter tonight.

The Assignment Of Fatherhood According To the Scriptures:
1. The ability to provide, first for your household and as many under your care.
2. The ability to protect.
3. The ability to mentor and create growth.
4. The ability to create structure for continuity and succession.

Prayer for Fathers:
Father, we thank You for every father.
Cause us to be noble men. We obtain grace to provide, protect, grow and mentor those within our sphere.
Cause us to be secure enough to raise other people who will become extensions of our legacy in Jesus name.

”And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.“
”And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.“
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭4‬:‭18-19‬ ‭(KJV‬‬)

“And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
Luke‬ ‭19:9‭-‬10‬ ‭(KJV‬‬)

The primary purpose of the coming of Jesus Christ was for the salvation of man’s soul.
Without soul winning, many aspects of God’s program will not happen.

Revival is as powerful as the vessels that can be found and are ready to be used.

Most people will usually wait to understand their call before they begin to implement the discipline of their call, and this can be counterproductive.

You don’t have to wait to understand your call before you invest in skill, invest in discipline and all things that make people efficient.

Things To Note From Matthew 4: 18 -19

1. Jesus told the men He was recruiting, in advance, what they will become. He didn’t leave them in the dark as to His intentions for them. Jesus did not take away from them the ability to fish. They remained fishers but He redirected their mission.
– Jesus still retained the word “fishers” because the skill, zeal and discipline that He found in them were still important for the new mission.
2. The first instruction for them was for them to follow.
– Every Believer who desires to answer the mandate of being a fisher of men, is not to go to the field but to follow. The first requirement for becoming fishers of men is your training, not the fishing (evangelism).

Without understanding the world of men, your witnessing will be very ineffective.

Any Believer who wants to be an effective soul winner must commit to studying the cosmos.

We blame everything on the mission of soul winning that God gave us, not knowing that there’s a training for fishers of men.

The Training Of A Fisherman:

There are fishing principles that can help the Believer become an effective fisher of men (soul winner).
1. A soul winner needs to understand the sea, which is where fish is found.
– The sea represents the entire globe, which is where people can be found.
2. Understand the various kinds of fish in the sea.
– All fishes are not the same, therefore the fisher of men must understand that the strategy for catching the different fishes will not be the same.
3. There are various techniques for catching fish. This implies that not everyone will be saved on a crusade ground. There are various demographics that various fishers of men are sent to.

Not everybody will be saved on a crusade ground. Not everybody will be saved by a preacher. Yet, everybody should be saved through specific strategies.

Every God-ordained ministry in the body of Christ is sent by God, to fish a particular group and demographics of humanity.

Figuratively, there are tiny fishes that need to be caught and a fisher of men who possesses a big net cannot catch them

The major reason why our witnessing for the purpose of soul-winning has become ineffective, is because of the religiosity of men.

Breathe Upon by Apostle Joshua Selman

According to scriptures, no soul-winning should be done outside a ready and waiting structure to follow up on fish caught. So it’s either the community of soul-winners already has their own follow up structure or work in partnership with a pre-existing ministry in the locality.

4. You must have a functional boat to gather the fish (people) you have caught in soul-winning. (Luke 5: 4-6).
– There are many people that God will not give a certain anointing, because their boat (capacity) cannot manage the fish the anointing in that degree, can catch.
5. You cannot effectively fish in isolation; respect and engage with other fishermen (Luke 5: 6-7).

We must be careful not to destroy the hands that are available for soul-winning. If the available hands are weak, what they need are strengthening, not destroying.

Pray: Lord, send labourers; Labourers as preachers, Kingdom businessmen, Apostles, Prophets and Missionaries on spiritual fire.

There are many fishermen, just as there are many fishes. The problem is not the zeal but their fishing strategy.
There are many fishermen whose fishing will be ineffective because of their net.

Many fishers of men may need to take a break and mend their nets. Mending their nets implies many things, including correcting their character.

Just because God called you does not mean He’s releasing you to fish. Mend your nets.

Experience in ministry does not prevent your nets from wear and tear. When it comes to mending your nets, both the father and the son must be involved in this activity.
Mending your nets may involve learning, administration, praying, studying the Word, going on retreats, and fixing your character.

Pray: Father, mend our nets.
We pray for Apostles, Teachers, Captains of Industries, Businessmen, Prophets, Evangelists, Preachers; let nets be mended.
Deliver us from the inefficiencies in ministry, and from our weaknesses in Jesus name.

Matthew 9:37 KJV, Matthew 4:21-22

6. Fishing (soul-winning), requires great patience, persistence and discipline, wrapped up in genuine compassion and mercy. (Ephesians 2: 1-6)

Anytime you begin to communicate a sense of self-righteousness, you lose the ability to win sinners.

Word of Caution:
If you have been a victim of sin or guilty of a sin before your salvation, be careful how you speak about it now that you are saved.
Remember that it was mercy that saved you. Be careful how you speak to those who are currently living in that sin. You must correct people with compassion and remain an advocate of compassion.

As Believers, we are not given the mandate to endorse or condone sin. We are to speak against sin from the standpoint of compassion not perfection.

The first assignment of witnessing is not to be a preacher or an excellent communicator of The Word, rather, it is to be an effective fisher of men.

Pray: Father, I obtain grace to be a fisher of men.

Your love for Jesus alongside your desire to please Him, must be greater than your desire for ministry, fame, money, power and evangelism.

Pray: Father, help me to be efficient, let many souls come through my life and my witness.

Pray: Father, I intercede for anyone who is unsaved around me: may they not die until they come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

 Luke 19:1-9