January 26 Sermon – “The Invitation”
Isaiah 9:1-4
Our Old Testament reading
from Isaiah 9:1-4 refers to the land of Zebulun and Naphtali. These are the
same places that are mentioned in our Gospel reading for this same Sunday when Jesus calls and invites some fishermen to come and follow him.
Zebulun & Naphtali -
These regions were annexed by Assyria in 733 BC. The people of Israel had
been taken captive.
V. 4 – yoke, bar, and rod were symbols of being enslaved by
another power.
Matthew 4:12-23
In our Gospel reading, Jesus begins his public
ministry by calling some fishermen to follow him. When people respond to Jesus,
they move from darkness into God's light.
This scripture comes immediately after Jesus
is tempted in the wilderness for 40 days. He is now ready to launch his public
ministry and he calls some fishermen to follow him.
V. 13 – Zebulun & Naphtali point us to the
Isaiah passage which is one of our readings on this Sunday. Jesus is fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy that God’s
light will be extended to God’s people.
V. 17 – Matthew uses the phrase, “Kingdom of
Heaven.” This is often a misunderstood phrase. Since it says, “heaven” people
immediately assume that it is referring to a kingdom that is beyond our earthly
time and space. In truth, Matthew only uses the word “heaven” because he doesn’t
want to be disrespectful and use God’s name in this phrase. By “kingdom of
heaven” Matthew is referring to the biblical belief that a time is coming when
heaven and earth will become one and everything will be made new again. Jesus’
resurrection was the launching of this kingdom, although we still await it’s
final consummation.
VV. 18-22 – Jesus’ calls some fishermen to
come and follow him and they do! The sermon this Sunday will explore why these
fishermen were willing to leave everything behind in order to follow Jesus. The
more important question is if we are willing to leave everything to follow
Jesus and be part of God’s in-breaking kingdom in the world and in our day to
day living.
No comments:
Post a Comment