Jesus Begins to Preach
12 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he returned 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 to the sea, along 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 is near.”
The Calling of the 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 make you fishers of men.” 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, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.
Dear Friends in Christ,
This past week the two groups, AA, that is, Alcoholics Anonymous, and Alynon used our fellowship room and one of our classrooms for the first time. All went well. No problems. The people involved were very thankful to our congregation opening up our doors to them and respectful of me, the pastor. No problems, I said, but as I told some of you already this week, things will never be the same again, here at Our Savior. They’ll never be the same again.
Things were never the same again was the way to describe what it was like when the tribes, Zebulon and Naphtili, left the relative safety of the camp of Israel and went to settle the areas alotted to their clans by Joshua after the conquest of the holy land. There was a big surprise in store for these people in the outlying districts of the land of Israel. Joshua and his armies had not obeyed God’s command to destroy and drive the Gentile unbelievers completely out of the land. When the tribes of Zebulon and Naphitili came to their new homes they found themselves next to these unbelieving, idolatrous people.
And things didn’t improve. As the centuries passed, unbelieving Gentiles people infiltrated their lands more and more, some even marrying the children of Israel. The heathen influence became an increasingly bigger problem as the years passed by. In the last days of the Northern Tribes of Israel these areas were indeed “a land of darkness” where unbelief and idolatry were rampant. It wasn’t just natural that these people would have to endure the murderous hoards of Assyrian soldiers because they were the most northern areas of the nation, it was necessary. God judged his people who betrayed him to protect his remnant in Judah.
In Jesus’ day also, this area of Galilee, formerly the areas of Zebulon and Naphtili, was still the land of Gentiles, peoples living in darkness. When you disobey God’s command, things will never be the same again!
That is always true, isn’t it? Adam and Eve found that out, didn’t they. They looked at the forbidden fruit, “saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, … took some and ate it.” (Genesis 3:6) And from that time on things were never the same again. They lost their purity and holiness. Now they had to deal with guilt for the first time. They feared God’s judgment. Then when confronted with their disobedience they tried to shift the blame away from themselves to others. Things were never the same again because they were driven from the garden and had to endure God’s punishment for their sins all the days of their lives.
Things were never the same again for them, and for us. Instead of being born in the image of God, you and I, Adam and Eve’s offspring, came into this world with their image a corrupted image. We are conceived and born in sin! (Psalm 51) And that sin leads to eternal death. Paul tells us, “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man (Adam), and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned–” (Romans 5:12).
That is what the young person in his forties was describing as he poured out his emotional story about his addiction to alcohol. He told of his first time getting drunk as a teenager saying that that was when things changed and were never the same again after that. He knows that now, but it took more than twenty years to realize it. The truth is that things changed when Adam and Eve sinned. From that time on things changed and were never the same again. The darkness we live in now was a result of their disobedience. The sinful nature we received from them delights in darkness. It considers God’s Word foolishness. It’s an enemy of God, hating everything God says and does. And things will never be the same again until God destroys this sinful world or takes us to heaven before the Last Day. It will always be a world at enmity with God, a world that hates what belongs to God and persecutes those who follow God. It will always be a land of darkness.
What aspect of sin’s darkness are you enduring right now. Are you sick? Are you dying or enduring the sadness of someone else’s death? Are you lonely? Are you caught in a bad marriage or relationship? Are you having trouble raising your children, dealing with rebellious, disrespectful little people? What aspect of the darkness of this sinful world are you enduring right now? Do you feel like things will never be the same again as you think back to simpler, less stressful times in your life? Even if you feel this way, please don’t give up! For God is merciful. God has found a way to drive out the darkness! That way is Jesus!
Our text says, “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 is near.” That light was Jesus, God’s perfect Son. When Jesus walked into the land of Galilee, formerly Zebulon and Naphtili, everything changed and was never the same again. Whether you believed in Him or not, you had to deal with his words, “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is near!” That the Kingdom of heaven was near, was becoming clearer and clearer with each miracle performed. The blind were receiving sight. The sick were being healed. Dead were being raised! Nature was being controlled. Each miracle proving that Jesus was God gave more pressure to repent, to change their attitude about sin from something they loved to do to something that they hated and feared because it would bring the judgment of God down upon them. Repent, change your attitude about whether you need a Savior from sin. Stop thinking that you can earn your way into God’s grace. He demands perfection. You don’t have it. Jesus is the light of the world, lighting the path to heaven. Believe in him and you will be saved. The miracles together with the preaching of this Gospel had/have the effect, the power, to drive the darkness away. More and more people began to see the light! Isaiah’s prophecy was being fulfilled. “Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the Gentiles, by the way of the sea, along the Jordan— 2 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned. 3 You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when dividing the plunder. 4 For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor.” (Isaiah 9:1-4)
You heard it last week, didn’t you? The Mexican woman who came to our mission in Leon to study English. But she found something else, Jesus, and it has changed her life forever. She now comes to the mission every week to worship Christ. She was living in darkness, but a light, Jesus Christ, dawned through the preaching and teaching of the missionaries there. The yoke of sin that burdened her, the rod of Satan that tortured her with the guilt of her sins, the bar across her shoulders that tied her to Adam and Eve and every other human being, death, has been removed by Christ. Jesus freed us from sin’s results because Jesus became our substitute living the perfect life God demanded of us in our place and dying the death we deserved in our place. Faith in Jesus saves us from the righteous wrath and judgment of God and gives us peace and reconciliation with God so that we can now live with Him eternally in heaven. This is the light that drives the darkness of hopelessness and despair away. This light, Jesus and the Gospel message he preaches, fills our life with joy, a joy that is difficult to describe and imagine because it is so great.
And because of what Jesus has done nothing will ever be the same again! Jesus’ invitation is the reason for that. Not only do we have the salvation we do not deserve, Jesus invites us to give that salvation to others. 19 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” This invitation changed Peter and Andrew’s lives forever. They gave up their every day job of fishing on the Sea of Galilee and became “fishers of men.” Countless men and women have followed them into the public ministry at Jesus’ call. Lives have been changed forever because of the Light, Jesus.
What about yours? You may not be a pastor or a teacher in the ministry, but Jesus has driven out the darkness of your sinful heart and enlightened you with his forgiveness. God tells us through his servant Peter, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” He tells you that you are a light too when he says, “You are the light of the world…let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:13,16) What good deed can you do to change someones’s life forever? Will it be a gift that eliminates the debt our congregation has on this building so that we can continue to share the Light of the world, Jesus? Will it be using your talents in a way that helps some friend see Christ’s love? Will it be by giving your time to the work of the church or by giving your life to the Lord by serving him as a minister? How will you let your light shine? Don’t put it under a basket and therefore hide it from the darkness. That wouldn’t do anyone any good! And eventually the light in your own heart would also go out. Let your light shine. Drive away the darkness around you with the message of Jesus.
I said earlier that with the beginning of AA and Alynon meetings this past week things will never be the same again, for us, and for them. After what I just preached this morning do you know why things will never be the same again? For you, me and the members of these groups? Maybe that is something we as a congregation can meditate on from now on. May God bless us and work mightily through the light that we send out to all around us. Amen.
