Note 1 at Mt. 13:47: This parable is talking about the growth of the universal church or kingdom of heaven. The sea is symbolic of the world wherein dwells every kind of person, both good (receptive to the gospel) and bad (non-receptive to the gospel). The net is all of the different ways that God is reaching out to the lost through His Church. Just as in the other parables that Jesus taught on this day, true believers (good fish) and false believers (bad fish) are attracted to the gospel message of salvation. But just as a fisherman separates the good fish from the bad fish in his catch, the Lord will separate all of those who have not had a born-again experience (see note 2 at Jn. 3:3, p. 48) from those who have (Mt. 13:40-43; 22:11-14; 25:31-46; Rev. 14:18- 20). No one is going to "slip" into heaven. "Ye must be born again" (Jn. 3:7).