St. Matthew 4:12-25 Dearly beloved,
The God of heaven and earth descends into our world in order to give us His truth and love. He is concerned with us. We live in time and space. We are concerned with location--where we are;where we live; where we are going. We are also concerned with time. In America, we are consumed by time, which is the main factor in schedules, calendars and the like. The Bible shows us people who live in time and specific locales. Some people are blessed by these variables, while others are met with obstacles and challenges. The difficulty for humans lies in the realization that God works on a different timetable than we do. What we want fixed, we want fixed either now or in the near future. But the Gospel shows us just how the Lord’s promises come to pass in a different time frame. It all is centered on Galilee and the Lord’s promise from Isaiah. St. Matthew records for the church: “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; The people which sat in darkness have seen a great light; and to them which sat in the region and the shadow of death light is sprung up.” Isaiah prophesies of this centuries before Jesus walks into Galilee to find fishermen. A little history will help us in understanding why things unfold the way they do. The people of Israel in the Old Testament were constantly finding themselves in a position either to take land or protect their own land. In the Old Testament times, the Syrians and Assyrians would come in from the North in an effort to defeat Israel. When the powerful military of the Syrians and Assyrians would sweep through, they would first go through the northlands of Zebulun and Naphtali. It was always these two unfortunate countries that would bear the brunt of the Syrians. Since they were first in line between the powerful armies and Israel, they would take a pounding as the Syrians would move South. Their location was unfortunate. The circumstances were even more unfortunate. It was as if the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali were forsaken. The people were lost, looked down upon, not considered, and left alone. They were living in darkness with no help. So, when the prophet Isaiah tells of a time when these two countries will see a great light in their midst, we are being told that God does redeem and show mercy to even the Gentiles. It is significant, then, that Jesus goes first in Galilee after his baptism and subsequent temptation in the desert. In the New Testament times these two areas were known as Galilee. The people of Galilee had an accent. These areas were Roman provinces ruled by the Roman government. The people in Israel did not think too highly of these regions. They were inhabited by a large number of Gentiles. Many had Jewish roots, but were also, according to the Jews, tainted with the unclean blood of the Gentiles. This is prescriptive for the ministry of Jesus. Jesus comes walking to the sea and grabs men who live in these regions or close by. Peter, Andrew, James and John, sons of Zebedee. These men are the only ones mentioned in chapter four and there is a reason. God takes from the forsaken lands the people who struggled, the people who were in darkness who have seen a great light. The people who, throughout history, have been beaten and tattered suddenly are the first to be blessed by the Messiah. These men shall be the first apostles and they will have the blessed opportunity to see things they would never have imagined. This is in stark contrast to the people of Israel who are just South of these lands. While the people in Galilee quickly follow this Savior, the response in Jerusalem, the place known as the holy city, shall be much different. While Jesus walks and teaches up by the sea in Galilee, it wouldn’t be long that Christ’s miracles will create such a stir in Jerusalem that He will have to remain outside the city and do His teaching from without. This puts every Christian into a pivotal position. When Jesus comes to you, what do you do? When Jesus is preached, do you take to heart His words? When the sacrament is offered, do you partake in faith and repentance? Is it your intention to repent and amend your sinful life? The Bible has a running theme that strikes at every human being and is recorded by St. Luke in “the blessings and woes” of chapter six. “Blessed are you that hunger now: for you shall be filled.” But, “woe to you that are full, for you shall hunger!” This is spiritual hunger that Jesus speaks of. The point that Jesus speaks to is salvation. Woe to you that think so little of salvation, that you don’t think you need it, but blessed are you who are saddened by sin and greatly desire to be saved. Zebulun and Naphtali represent several things concerning Jesus ministry. First, Jesus comes to the Gentiles first to show that He comes for the salvation of the whole world. Second, Jesus shows us that those who are despised shall be blessed. St. Paul picks up on this with his words about the cross to the Corinthians. St. Paul even goes on to say, “For you see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty”(1 Corinthians 1:25-27). This is partially fulfilled when Jesus approaches Galileans to be His first disciples. Our Lord means to save all mankind through the cross of His Son. He wants us to look upon our sins and to be saddened by them, because the Lord wants us to cry out to Him. Our Lord’s eternal paradise in heaven shall be filled with the weak and despised of this world. Heaven shall be inhabited by those who thirst for righteousness, those who see their sins, despair over them and confess them, resting in the cross of Jesus Christ. You are children of the light. The light has shined in your midst. You are like Zebulun and Naphtali who face the enemy who attempts to slay you, but suddenly Jesus the light of the world shines in your midst through the gospel which has been handed down to us by those fishermen of Galilee to whom Jesus came and made His. As we hunger and thirst for righteousness, we are then fed with His body and blood, the testimony of His love for you. Just as the day of redemption had come to Zebulun, Naphtali, and a group of Galilean fishermen, in the same way the day of redemption comes to the weary soul bringing refreshment, hope, and salvation. Amen. -- Rev. Chad Kendall Trinity Lutheran Church Lowell, Indiana www.trinitylowell.org
