The Parable of the Dragnet

By Edna Lister

"The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." – Matthew 13:47-50.

"And he said: Man is like a wise fisherman who cast his net into the sea; he drew it up from the sea full of small fish; among them he found a large good fish, the wise fisherman; he threw all the small fish into the sea, he chose the large fish without difficulty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" – Gospel of Thomas, Saying 8.

Fishing With a Net or With a Hook?

Edna Lister created this sermon outline for October 19, 1947. Scripture: Matthew 13:45-46.

"The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." – Matthew 13:47-50.

Fishing with a net is different from fishing with a hook. A net takes in more area, takes a larger catch, leaving fish caught within it alive. A hook injures, damages or destroys what it catches.

The net symbolizes truth. The hooks represent all negative thinking, emotions and imagination, which may injure or damage those around you. You catch just one small thing on a hook, but a net covers much more territory — you get more for the time you spend. A net collects more kinds of things and may gather many things that you do not like. However, you can always let go of what you do not want, and hold in love what seems good to you.

"So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." – Matthew 13:49-50. Angels symbolize good thoughts of love and compassion. They cut the negative elements of darkness from the positive elements of Light, leaving you free.

The "furnace of fire" is love, which burns up all dross. Nothing can resist love or withstand its power; all is melted and dissolved in its ray. Love burns and consumes the ephemeral forever and ever, and no one can turn it off; love is.

Yet, the negative things in life, such as a poverty in your purse, are always wailing and gnashing their teeth at you until you let love's fire consume them completely. Stop pulling those old holdovers from the fire. Leave them there. Let them go forever.

Release the Indwelling Power

This Edna Lister Bible study transcript is dated January 11, 1933. Scribe: Clarissa A. Watkins. Scriptures: Matthew 13:24-30 and Matthew 13:47-48.

"The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away." – Matthew 13:47-48.

The dragnet cast into the sea typifies your family life, the life of an organization, or a group. You must accept the whole catch, then separate the not good from the good.

Finally, you save the good and cast the waste into a fiery furnace of love. When you wonder why this task has fallen to you, remember that you may be the only person in the whole world who can lift some other soul onto a cloud continent of Light at that moment.

Many Pearls, Many Treasures (a)

Edna Lister created this sermon outline for November 25, 1962. Scripture: Matthew 13:44-50.

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth." – Matthew 13:44-50.

This Scripture contains three succinct parables – a hidden treasure, a pearl and a net. The treasure is the truth. You hide it in the field of heart and soul, and do not talk about it. The treasure of truth is summed in the declaration, "I AM the Way." To find the Way is to give up everything else in joy to own the whole "field." The "field" is the soul, the mind, the heart, the body and its affairs.

To buy the "field," you must walk the way of surrender of self. The treasure is a way of life. The "pearl" is "I AM the truth." Pontius Pilate asked Jesus, "What is truth?" Truth is a state of being, a quality of the soul. The soul is truth. Truth is the action of the soul as honor, loyalty and integrity. Truth is purity.

To gain the field and the pearl, you must sell something, or make an exchange. You cannot give away your assets, or you will have nothing left. To sell implies that you will receive full value.

The "net" is different. It is an act, and this is a choice. Even after surrendering, something else remains for you to do. You must make a just appraisal. A just appraisal is in itself a constant choice. You must constantly choose to give up earth's tinsel for the gold of Spirit.

A "net" is "I AM the life." The "sea" represents life and the world of men. You use a net to catch and to hold. You store your good catch in vessels, but cast away the "bad."

You do this under a "just appraisal." You cast the wicked into fire to be purified. No one can just sit in a corner, for you must cast your net, meaning that you must go into the world.

"I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me." – John 14:6. "I AM" is your point of contact with God. You must accept your soul identity with God because He rules your life. "The way" refers to imagination. "The truth" is your thinking. "The life" is your desire. These are your creative tools, and you must use them as one.

If your desires, thinking and imagination are in conflict, nothing ever comes together, no miracles are "added" to your life. You must sell all self for the way, and all little ideas for the large truth.

Cast your net into the sea to lift all good for nourishment, and cast the bad into fire. Discard opinions and old prejudices and patterns of thinking and emoting. Stop, look and listen to allow divine Mind a chance to act, to express each action with truth. How much truth do you need and want? Will you be satisfied with just a little, just enough to get by on? How much is enough?

Lift all conflicts between self and soul into harmony. Your secret weapons are your creative tools – desires, thinking, and imagination working together as one. Steadfast right thinking invokes limitless power. Vivid imagination builds a strong mold. Burning desire compresses substance into visibility.

Remain vigilant. Every time you add a new law, you start a self-conflict. You must own yourself. No one, nothing out there can own you unless you permit it. To allow any power outside to touch or to rule you is stupid and detrimental.

You must give up the world to own yourself. Sell all you have to learn the way, the truth and the life. If you don't own yourself how can you give yourself up? Become God's Way. Express God's truth. Become invisible life, a triumph of strength and victory.

Ascend in consciousness, into your higher octave on your proper chord of life. Stop crowding someone else. Stop straddling the abyss between self and soul.

Many Pearls, Many Treasures (b)

This Edna Lister sermon transcript is dated November 25, 1962. Scribes: Ruth Johnson and Irene White. Scripture: Matthew 13:44-50.

In these parables, Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like a treasure; in the second parable, like a pearl; and in the third parable, like a drag net.

When I chose to give these three parables after twenty years, I knew that a new era had begun. After every passage that says, "it shall come to pass," it later says, "and it came to pass." As a prophet gives a prophecy, so the Bible later records its verification.

In analyzing what treasure is, I saw, "I am the way. I am the truth. I am the life." Jesus gave us the interpretation of each law, and life verifies that the connection is there. The "treasure hidden in a field" is related to "I AM the Way," as Jesus said. When you've found your way of life, you follow that path of soul undeviatingly.

The man who found the treasure buried in a field hid it deeper. Advertising the treasure hampers you, and it's focused on the materialism that ails the world. You must hold a new truth within yourself, live it, and become an ensample of it. It becomes the way of life that you choose.

Some people cry about their nerves, anxiety, stress or tension, but God made all nerves to struggle and react the same way. What are you doing with your nervous energy? You have an equal right to use your God-given substance, but need the intestinal fortitude to do something about it. Those who suffer for years with nervous tension enjoy it. Those who devote themselves to truth admit no failures, only victories. Some are slower or lazier.

A prayer for a miracle sends a line to Source, the returning Light touches you, and you have your victory. What you believe when you have found new way of life, a new truth, is up to you. Hide it in your field, which is your mind. Don't talk about it — become it.

In the second parable, a man sold all his small pearls to buy a "pearl of great price." This relates to Jesus saying, "I AM the truth." The one great Truth of God has many facets, which are degrees, all of which are perfect. Have you sold all the conscious and subconscious ideas you have gleaned from the world in exchange for the one great truth? You must cast away any less-than-perfect ideas for the truth of soul.

You cast your dragnet into the sea of life every day. Eventually, you learn to keep the good, and cast evil into the refiner's fires for purging. This parable relates to "I AM the life." Being on earth forces you to be in the world of men with its continual cross-vibrations. This includes conquering of emotions, achieving Christed "I AM" consciousness, and being able to make just appraisals in life.

The first two parables deal with the soul and its inner workings, the third deals with the way you cast your net into the sea of life. You must live your life in contact with people. Keep the good you gain through experience and cast the bad into eternal fire, which means to give the darkness to the Father to be purged of evil in His fire of love and truth.

This is the secret of life, your secret weapon for protection. Be aware and alert. Make a just appraisal. You must know what things in the world are evil and consciously cast them into fire of truth. Do this instead of criticizing, judging, or condemning.

If you "have treasure" means you have found the creators' way of life. You have a pearl of great price, truth. Christed "I AM" consciousness is your point of contact between these three creative tools — desires, thinking, and imagination, the way for "I AM" to rule you through desire mated with will.

"I AM" must rule the emotions before you can make a just appraisal. You can have a steadfast twenty-four-hour shift, controlled by the "I AM," and you need a burning desire to use your creative tools.

The Bible says there will be wars and rumors and wars, but God would not destroy us. Where is the faith of those who fear God's plan?

You see, experience, make a just appraisal, cast out all that is superfluous, but keep the one pearl, the Truth of God. Stop, look, listen and let God turn on the Light switch of "the way" to see the kingdom of protection. This is the principle of protection.

Thinking invokes the high Power, direct from God, the Source of all Power. You each have a direct communication line to God. Use it. Imagination turned up is vision, which creates molds stronger than steel. They even hold when you turn to look at darkness. Fathers hold Light around molds to protect them for a time, while you are faithful to Light.

Your emotional life is subject to one great law. Can you sell something you do not own? It is time to begin to own yourself. You do not own yourself if you blame people, the government, nor if you give yourself to negativity, hurts, doubts, hatreds.

God makes His enemies footstools to those who declare it good. There is one Power, the power of your own good, the power of your own soul. Declare, "Thank You, Father, because You cleanse this darkness, and please return Substance to him, to fill him with all good." Let your Light so shine in dark places that they become Light. Yet the Light in your eyes is a rebuke, so others may resent you. It is only natural.

You can see the offertory ram in the bushes if you watch for it. Own yourself first so nothing on the outer can disturb you. Have compassion for the foolish ones. Move into a higher octave on your chord of life. Get back on your own chord and tone, and you'll know that the glory of the Father possesses you.

To be fully filled with Love of God is a creative thing. Love your fellow man, and praise God. As you express God's likeness, you become as perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect.

Your imagination turns upward to soul vision. Your thinking climbs up to wisdom. Your emotions ascend to a burning desire to become, to walk in the way, to express the truth, to live the life.