What About Jesus?

Jesus Begins to Preach
12 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— 14 to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:
15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles—
16 the people living in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned.”[f]

17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

Moving to a Bigger Town - From IVP New Testament Commentary
John's imprisonment-which foreshadows Jesus' own suffering-becomes the signal for Jesus to begin public ministry (4:12; compare Jn 3:23-30). The forerunner has completed his mission of preparing the way (3:3).

Matthew may address three issues in Jesus' move to Capernaum. First, the move may indicate a concerted missions strategy. Capernaum was a town with more people, with greater notoriety and from which news would spread quickly around the perimeters of the lake of Galilee and perhaps also via the nearby trade route. (Capernaum probably held at least fifteen hundred people-E. Sanders 1993:103.) Capernaum would also prove more responsive than Nazareth (compare 9:1-2; 11:23; 13:54-57). That Capernaum appears in later rabbinic accounts solely in connection with "schismatics," presumably Jesus' followers (Theissen 1991:50), suggests that Jesus' missionary strategy was ultimately successful.

Although God may intend for many of us to serve in places like Nazareth for years, he is undoubtedly calling many of us to larger challenges at some point in our lives. I say "undoubtedly" because the vast majority of full-time Christian workers serve among peoples where the gospel is widely available, while fewer than thirty thousand serve the half of the world's population that has never received an adequate witness of the gospel.
(Inserting my own opinion here - there is hardly anywhere now on Earth that hasn't received an "adequate witness of the gospel" since we now have the technology of the internet. Even the 10/40 window has been penetrated. Even more relevant, especially to American Christians, immigrants still flock here. My mission field is very near to me geographically).
Given both Jesus' mission for us (28:19) and the love we should have for our fellow human beings, should we not be seeking God as to whether he wants us to serve him by staying or going?

(My opinion again - we are so spread out across the world now, that Christians just need to start by reaching out to those nearby. As we do, our spheres of influence will begin to intersect, spreading the kingdom more rapidly and fractally. This is not to say that the Lord won't, hasn't already lead some to relocate.)

But besides Jesus' own mission strategy, Matthew stresses Jesus' Galilean ministry base for two other reasons more directly relevant to his audience. The second issue is that Matthew's opponents undoubtedly criticized the Jesus movement's Galilean origins. The Pharisees and their successors, centered in Judea, retained considerable prejudice against Galilee, which they also used against Jesus' followers. Matthew thus cites Scripture about a messianic role in Galilee to counter regional prejudice against the gospel.

Third, and probably most important, what Isaiah says about Galilee foreshadows the Gentile mission that Matthew keeps urging on his readers (4:14). Jesus again acts in obedience to Scripture (4:14-15), and this passage (Is 9:1-2; compare Lk 1:79)-which in context addresses the work of the Davidic Messiah (Is 9:6-7)-indicates that he will work in Galilee of the Gentiles. This is not to say that Jesus directed much of his own ministry to Gentiles; but the text allows Matthew to foreshadow Jesus' command to proclaim the kingdom to the nations (Mt 24:14; 28:19). Capernaum was actually in Naphtali's territory, not directly Zebulon's (Meier 1980:32); yet Zebulon, sometimes associated with the fishing industry (Gen 49:13; Test. Zeb. 5:5), was not far away. At any rate, this Isaiah text would refute the claims of scribes who insisted that a Messiah must hail directly only from Bethlehem (Mt 2:5-6; Jn 7:42). End of commentary.

When we see that Jesus left after hearing of John's imprisonment, it's easy to think that he was avoiding the same fate. When we understand the significance of Galilee "of the Gentiles", we realize that He had a proactive plan. The ways of the Pharisees, Sadducees and others were a dead-end for them; but He had come to show and to BE the HIGH-way.

OMdearGOD! How many "friends" do some of us have in cyberspace?! Capernaum had about 1,500. After seeing this math, I hope you're getting as excited as I am about the possibilities!

Isaiah 8:3 You have enlarged the nation
and increased their joy;
they rejoice before you
as people rejoice at the harvest,
as warriors rejoice
when dividing the plunder.!!!

If you want to see more connections and get even MORE excited, read all of Isaiah 8 and 9. You'll probably recognize some of it, and I pray that you see LOTS more!

What About Jesus?

My friend Cindy Rhudy http://shilohhomeofhope.org/ asked a question. "Followers of Christ are warned in scripture that we will often be hated by the world, as Jesus himself was. But our modern culture has been given a false impression of what Christlikeness truly is. How can we begin to turn the tide in 2011 and show the world the real Jesus?"

My answer to her was to find out more about Jesus in order to become more like Him...more questions! So I decided to record what I and others were discovering over on the "big" networking site. We got started with Matthew Chapter 1 of the New Testament. As of yesterday, we were on to Chapter 4:

Matthew 4

Jesus Is Tested in the Wilderness

Matthew 4: 1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted[a] by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’[b]”

5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

“‘He will command his angels concerning you,

and they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’[c]”

7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’[d]”

8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’[e]”

11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Deb Darby - EXPECT temptation! RECOGNIZE it! REFUSE it!
Oh, the precious angels!

Matthew M. - exactly...I was thinking the same thing this morning. When we're expecting temptation we're more apt to respond according to God's will.

Deb Darby - Thanks, Matthew for contributing. For me this morning, it was tears of joy at the fact that I, WE are why Jesus died. If the angels ministered to HIM, how much more will they do so for us?! Can you "hear" this in writing?... I just LOVE and WORSHIP Him!

A Little Mustard Seed Goes a Long Way

There's a saying..."Coincidence is when God chooses to remain anonymous". It's a good one. I agree with it to an extent. Faith says, "There are no coincidences." Faith is not unique to a Christian,it's Who I put my faith in.

When someone has had a relatively easy life, it's hard to understand the concept of "My strength is made perfect in weakness". I think that's part of why Jesus said that it's hard for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. They've never had to struggle, I should say had the advantage of struggling, at least financially...yes, I said advantage. Without a struggle, without putting our faith in God Who says that all things work together for good to them that love Him and are called according to His purpose, we will not learn all we can about what He's like. He also says in His word that He will supply all of our needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. So, if I feel love for Him and know that I desire to fulfill His purpose, what?...I need to be estranged from my precious youngest daughter?! Oh, of course my first though is what I need. But the scripture says He will supply our needs. OK, so Aly, who was saved and baptized 10 years ago this Easter needs to be confronted with God's standard. IMHO, she needs this more than I need to miss her with all of my being. thanks anyway, Lord. He's big enough to take my sarcasm. Seriously, He has me distracted from this one with a few other struggles right now. He's a genius that way.

THIS is what she needs...Romans 11:30-32 from The Message - "There was a time not so long ago when you were on the outs with God. But then the Jews slammed the door on Him and things opened up for you. Now they are on the outs. But with the door held wide open for you, they have a way back in. In one way or another, God makes sure that we all experience what it means to be outside so that he can personally open the door and welcome us back in." The Door is wide open! All she needs to do is come on back in!

There are so many bad things happening to so many people right now. I think it's a set-up! Yes! God is trying to tell us how strong the walls of His Kingdom are for our weakness and our struggles...how full of every good gift, every perfect gift for us it is. When it comes to our emotional needs, when we're feeling alone, rejected, when we've put our faith in a person instead of in Him, He can and will be our very best friend and first love. He's constantly trying to tell us until we believe it more and more...faith grows because we discover that He is so worthy of our trust!

So many people fear for the future for so many reasons. People say, "it's the not knowing that's hard". I disagree. We all know it's not a matter of if but when something we see as bad is going to happen to us, even that rich person Jesus talked about. So it happens, or we're disappointed. Then what? If we begin preparing today focusing on the fact that God wants to be our first, best love and that He will supply all of our needs, then no matter what happens, we know that it's something we need! Sometimes it's something some else He loves needs for eternal life; and what is the most important thing we all need? Him.

Power and Peace

This story is about power and peace. People want power and we want peace. These are universal desires for Americans as well as those in third world countries. Just look at the popularity of Harry Potter and Transformers. We only have to turn on the news to see some of what's been going on in the Middle East for centuries, and then there's health care and the economy.

We all felt pretty powerless as children, I think. Children all over the world look up in the night sky at the moon and stars and wonder. We watch and learn and begin to think that someday, when we reach our goals, we will finally have power and peace. We count on our education, a corner on the market, legal or otherwise, a spouse, our singleness so we don't have to fight like our parents did, plenty of money, or just a roof over our heads, a job or the freedom to pursue our art. The power we want, we believe will give us control, and then something happens...or doesn't...that makes us realize that we have very little. We're stopped dead in our tracks, sometimes literally paralyzed.

Jesus said and taught us to pray, that power is God's; but before He left Earth, He promised those who had given their whole lives, heart, soul, mind and strength to Him that we would receive power - His power to do what He wants. Who wouldn't want that?! The power of the Most High God, the Creator of the Universe, the Father of Lights?! Through Ezra, He tells us that "the hand of our God is upon all them that seek Him, for good". Through Paul He says, "...we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good." Every detail. Every loss, every gain, every emotion...everything.

In one of her videos about the life of Queen Esther, my friend Laurie Zieber asks, "What if you KNEW?" www.lauriezieber.com. He says that we can know. So love Him and look for Him. He tells us, again through Paul, "Do not worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks". When we do, He promises that "God's peace, which is so great we cannot understand it, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."

I desire to be wise

I desire to be wise, godly wise. This is why I have many questions. I am not yet wise like God. He is ever out of reach, yet right here with me, in fact inside of me because I invited Him in. I asked. Still, I stretch and stretch inside, reaching for more of Him and I'm able to pinch off a little bit, exactly enough of the Bread of Life for today.

About wisdom, questions and answers:

"There are years that ask questions, and years that answer." Zora Neale Hurston
http://www.zoranealehurston.com/index.html

Wisdom: n. The quality of being discerning, sound in judgment, and farsighted;
1. knowledge of what is true or right coupled with just judgment as to action; sagacity, discernment, or insight.
2. scholarly knowledge or learning: the wisdom of the schools.
1. a commandment or direction given as a rule of action or conduct.
2. an injunction as to moral conduct;

"Wisdom is the ability to devise perfect ends and to achieve these ends by the most perfect means. In other words, God makes no mistakes. He is the Father who truly knows best, as Paul explains in Romans 11:33 Oh, how great are God's riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand His decisions and His ways!"

and yet Jesus said...

"Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you."