Fish

FISH - Symbol of Christianity for abundance and faith as observed in the Biblical story of fishes and loaves.

Matthew 14:13-21 (NKJC) - (13) When Jesus heard it, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself. But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities.  (14) And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.  (15) When it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is already late. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves food.” (16) But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”  (17) And they said to Him, “We have here only five loaves and two fish.” (18) He said, “Bring them here to Me.”  (19) Then He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass. And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes.  (20) So they all ate and were filled, and they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments that remained.  (21) Now those who had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

The fish as a symbol in Christianity is nearly as old as the Christian faith itself. The sign is seen in the past on things like art and architecture and today it endures on things like bumper stickers and business cards as a sign of Christian faith. The fish is thought to have been chosen by the early Christians for several reasons:

• The Greek word for fish (ICHTUS), works as an acrostic for I = Jesus, C = Christ, TH = God's, U = Son, S = Savior (Also see Christian beliefs about Jesus Christ)
• The fish would not be an obvious Christian symbol to persecutors; It is said that during the persecution of the early church, a Christian meeting someone new would draw a single arc in the sand. If the other person was a Christian, he or she would complete the drawing of a fish with a second arc. If the second person was not a Christian, the ambiguity of the half-symbol would not reveal the first person as a Christian.
• Jesus' ministry is associated with fish: he chose several fishermen to be his disciples and declared he would make them "fishers of men." 

Matthew 4:18-19 (KJV) -  (18) 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.  (19) And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.