Come Follow Me

Jesus’ first message in today’s Gospel is simple and demanding: “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Repentance is often misunderstood as mere sorrow for sin, but it is more than that. To repent means to change direction, to turn away from whatever keeps us in darkness and to orient our lives toward God. The Kingdom of heaven is not just a future reward; it is God’s active presence among us now. To repent, then, is to open our lives to that presence.

Immediately after proclaiming the Kingdom, Jesus calls disciples. He meets ordinary men in the middle of their daily work—fishermen casting their nets. He does not begin with long explanations or conditions. He simply says, “Come after me.” The response is striking in its simplicity and courage: they leave their nets and follow Him. Those nets represent security, routine, identity, and control. Following Jesus always involves leaving something behind—not necessarily our jobs or families, but our false securities, our selfishness, our fear of change.

This Gospel reminds us that Christianity is not first a set of rules or ideas; it is a relationship and a journey. To be Christian is to follow Christ, to allow Him to reshape our priorities and give our lives a new purpose. Jesus promises to make His disciples “fishers of men.” He transforms ordinary lives into instruments of grace. He does the same today. He calls us not because we are perfect, but because He wants to work through us.