Message Text: Matthew 4: 12-23
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.”
17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Jesus Calls His First Disciples
18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.
19 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”
20 At once they left their nets and followed him.
21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them,
22 and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Jesus Heals the Sick
23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.
Morning Message:
The stages of our Christian lives in so many ways should mirror that of the life of Jesus. We all find our way to Jesus in different ways and at different times of our lives. If you are hearing this message today either here or viewing it online, I am going to assume that you have found salvation in Jesus. If not, or if you are not sure, then we need to talk. Nothing else that I say today matters if you have not accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior.
I might say some things today that may be controversial, but I assure you they are biblically based and meant to move you forward in your Christian walk. I believe that sometimes we get stuck. We accept Jesus and then, for what ever reason, we seem to stop right there. The seed has been planted, rebirth has taken place, but we need the next step. Personally, I have come to believe that our system, our denominations, and the way that we go about things in our practices as a church can leave us stuck. Now don’t get me wrong; don’t leave here and think that I am a heretic. I believe that all baptism is good and right. God blesses us when we step forward on our own, and He also blesses us and our children when we bring them and make commitments to raise them in a Christian way. I do believe that those of us who were baptized as infants can get stuck after our conversion to Jesus. The first stage of our Christian walk after conversion is to follow Jesus into baptism. If you have never been baptized, we should talk about that. If you were baptized as an infant, as most of us were, then you might, as redeemed followers, need some direction. If you are reading this at home, you will need to talk to me.
Once we move past accepting Jesus and being baptized, we can expect a time of testing. No one likes to be tested, but let me assure you, God allows this for our growth and maturity. It helps to prepare us for ministry. God will never allow you to be tested beyond what you can withstand, and He will give you all the strength you need to come through the testing. These are the stages that Jesus went through and then scripture says Jesus began to preach. I am not trying to prepare you to preach, but I am trying to show you the way that you can use the spiritual gifts that God has given you for the furtherance of His kingdom. I truly believe that we sometimes get stuck before we even get started. So, my hope is to jump-start anyone who needs it and will accept it.
Let me make you aware of a pitfall along the way. If you have accepted Jesus, you have gifts, but they can be used for self or for God. Galatians chapter 6 verse 8 says this: “For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” Think about all the gifts and abilities found in the human race: creativity, industriousness, entrepreneurship, managerial ability, leadership, generosity, and many more. All of this knowledge, every gift and talent bestowed upon us by God. Mankind is silly enough to think that somehow, we have obtained this on our own. Some are wise enough to invest their gifts in the kingdom of God, while others invest in the kingdom of this world. The difference in using one’s gifts for oneself rather than for God is what the New Testament refers to as sowing to the flesh versus sowing to the Spirit. Flesh doesn’t necessarily mean evil; it basically refers to the priority of self above all—whether for good or evil. Choosing self over God is called sowing to the flesh. Come on people, we make choices every day, are they for self or God?
The New Testament is also clear about the outcomes of sowing to the flesh versus sowing to the Spirit. The former leads to corruption – meaning eternal separation from God—while the latter leads to eternal life with God. If you need further biblical proof of that then listen to Romans 8:13: “For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” Jesus begins to preach. We all should be preaching in our own way according to the gifts that God has given to us. I love how the New Testament affirms the Old Testament. Isaiah prophesied it and Jesus brings it to fruition. The people living in darkness are seeing the light and light has dawned over the shadow of death. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said when preaching this scripture from Isaiah, “Darkness cannot overcome darkness, only light can overcome darkness.” We should think about that simple but profound statement and apply it to what we see in our world today. We see people, groups of people, mobs of people, in the streets proclaiming that they are standing against what they believe to be evil. But let me ask you, what is being accomplished by claiming to oppose darkness with more darkness? No matter what side of this issue you come down on, to do wrong to combat what you say is wrong, is darkness fighting darkness when the only thing that will ever make a difference is if the light of Jesus is displayed on all of it. I saw something that I have never seen in my lifetime in this nation in a church, and I don’t care what your politics are, as Christians we should be appalled. To take a protest into a worship service and disrupt the worship of God. Is nothing sacred in this nation?
Jesus starts his ministry, calls others to follow him and be disciples. Have we entered that stage yet? Who are we calling to follow Jesus with us? He heals people and ministers to everyone. We can’t heal like Jesus, but we can pray and care for others and be willing to touch those around us. We are called to make disciples, and the best way we can do that is by opening our arms to them. I have a statement and a question that I want to leave you with today. John Calvin said: “The wisdom of the flesh is always exclaiming against the mysteries of God.” Think about that for a moment. We can’t understand God’s mysteries. All we can do is follow His Word. Our flesh is always going to go against God’s will. The question is simple, but I think it is profound. Ask yourself daily: Am I living today for myself or for Christ?
In Christ’s Love and Peace,
Pastor Bob
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