Matthew 13:47

“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net.”

Another story. Another exercise in spiritual discernment.

A fisherman pulls his net from the water and discovers that his net now contains fish of all kinds – desirable, undesirable, valuable, and not valuable. All kinds.  I suppose my first question for the fisherman would be, “Why did you not fish where there were only good fish?”  I suppose the answer would come back, “Because the good fish and the bad fish are found together in the lake.”  An experienced fisherman knows that very well.  You can not stop fishing just because your net will catch all kinds of fish.  That is simply how life is.

But that is not the end of the story. A wise fisherman, having pulled in the mixed load, selects out the good fish, puts them in the the “good” basket and casts the others away.

So, Jesus said, “That is how it will be at the end of the age.”  On that day the good and the bad will not only be separated but the good ones will be sold for a profit and the bad ones thrown away. Jesus often reminds his hearers that the hidden will be revealed – some time at “the end of the age.”

I like the way Jesus asks, “Have you understood all these things?”  They thought they had. They may have thought, “Yes, good teacher, Jesus, and we like the way you get spiritual lessons from ordinary events that make up our lives.  We love your stories.”