A Light Has Dawned
Introduction: One of my special memories as a child is open air evangelism meetings at Creve Coeur Lake in the late 40’s. My father pastored a little church in Maryland Heights. From time to time in the summer, the church family would gather out at Creve Coeur Lake on a Sunday night and my father would preach out in the open to anyone who would stop to listen. But what I remember most was the singing. Someone in the church had a little portable pump organ, and we would sing Gospel songs like “When the Roll is Called Up Yonder,” “Blessed Assurance,” and one of my favorites, “The Light of the World Is Jesus.” Some of you know that song:
The whole world was lost in the darkness of sin,
The Light of the world is Jesus.
Like sunshine at noonday His glory shone in–
The Light of the world is Jesus.
Come to the Light, ‘tis shining for thee!
Sweetly the Light has dawned upon me.
Once I was blind, but now I can see–
The Light of the world is Jesus.
That particular song was one of my favorites because I was scared of the dark, as most children are. Furthermore, we lived in a part of the city–Vandeventer and Washington–that was very dark in terms of crime and poverty. The thought of Jesus as the Light of the World appealed greatly to me. The author of that hymn had a solid foundation in Scripture for calling Jesus the Light of the world, for dozens of times He is referred to as “Light.” For example, the Apostle John said, “In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it” (John 1:4, 5). He also tells us that John the Baptizer came “as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world” (John 1:8, 9).
Jesus even said of Himself, “I am the Light of the world; whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). And not long before His crucifixion He said, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you…. Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light” (John 12:35). A few verses later He added, “I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness” (John 12:35, 46).
It seems to me that many conservative religious leaders are great at cursing the darkness, but sometimes not so good at turning on the light of God’s truth. We need both. Jesus came, not only to reveal the darkness that sin causes, but also to shine the light that overcomes the darkness. Our Scripture text this morning from Matthew contains three separate vignettes. At first reading you might ask, “What do these paragraphs have to do with one another?” I think the connection is light.
As I read the passage, I want to ask you to think in the following terms:
Jesus personally shines light into a dark corner of a dark world. (4:12-17)
Jesus chooses a strategy to light the whole world. (4:18-22)
Jesus establishes His credentials as the Light of the World. (4:23-25)
Then we will wrap things up by looking at a short paragraph from the next chapter, in which …
Jesus commissions us to be lights in our world. (5:13-16)
Now let’s turn our attention to the reading of God’s Word as found in Matthew 4:12-25:
When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he returned to Galilee. Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali-to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:
“Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the sea, along the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles-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.”
From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”
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. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and followed him.
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, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed, and he healed them. Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him.
Jesus personally shines light into a dark corner of a dark world. (4:12-17)
Matthew opens this passage by connecting the launching of Jesus’ preaching ministry with the conclusion of John’s. If you do a careful study of all four Gospels, you quickly discover that nearly a year has passed between verses 11 and 12 of Matthew 4, between the Temptation of Christ and His decision to make Capernaum His temporary headquarters. During that year a number of key events took place, mostly recorded in the Gospel of John–like Jesus’ first miracle at the wedding feast at Cana, His cleansing of the Temple, His encounter with Nicodemus, and His meeting with the Samaritan woman at the well in Sychar.
Meanwhile John the Baptist continues his ministry of preaching repentance and pointing people to Jesus, but eventually he is thrown into prison after challenging the immorality of King Herod. Verse 12 reads, “When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he returned to Galilee.” The time is right for Jesus to take center stage.
The right time. The Son of God always worked on His Father’s timetable. He had, as it were, a divine clock ticking in His heart and mind that regulated everything He did.1 Several times during His ministry when He was challenged to do a particular thing, He would respond, “My hour has not yet come.” He was satisfied to wait, to remain in the background, and to minister quietly in His hometown, until the time His Father determined He should emerge from the shadows. That contrasts significantly with the style of many political and corporate leaders. It’s almost humorous to watch the various candidates for President in 2004 already jockeying for position, looking for an edge, trying to outfox one another in timing and endorsements. You can observe the same sort of behavior in the corporate world, and sometimes even in the church. Jesus had no such ambition. When the time was right, He was ready to do the Father’s will, and not before.
The right place. Verse 13: “Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum.” The little phrase, “leaving Nazareth,” has more to it than first meets the eye. As a matter of fact, Jesus was actually chased out of Nazareth, His hometown. After His temptation, Luke tells us Jesus returned to where He grew up and “on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was His custom. And He stood up to read” (Luke 4:16). There was nothing very unusual about that, because the men of the synagogue regularly took turns reading Scripture.
But there was something very unusual about what He did next: “He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, ‘Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing’” (Luke 4:20, 21). The passage He read from Isaiah was clearly understood by everyone to be about the Messiah, and here He is claiming to fulfill this well-known prophecy. At first the people reacted with amazement, but as he continued to talk their amazement turned to anger:
All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff. But he walked right through the crowd (presumably invisible to them, or else they were powerless to stop Him) and went on his way (Luke 4:28-30).
Matthew simply summarizes with these words: “Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum.” He was essentially homeless from this point on, but it would be a mistake to think that Jesus went to Capernaum simply because He had no place else to go. He Himself had generated the conflict in Nazareth, and He deliberately chose Capernaum as His short-term headquarters for good reason.
Capernaum was located on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee (also called the Lake of Genessaret). While today it is little more than a fascinating tourist site, at the time it was a flourishing and prosperous city at the crossroads of several important trade routes. This particular area of Galilee originally had been given by God to two Jewish tribes–Zebulun and Naphtali–but they failed to expel the idolatrous and wicked Canaanites from their territory. As a result, there was the constant problem of mixed marriages and the inevitable pagan influence which resulted. Furthermore, when the Ten Northern Tribes were conquered by the Assyrians, many non-Jews were resettled there. As a result, the area became known as “Galilee of the Gentiles.” No wonder, then, that many Jews reacted to Jesus by saying, “Surely the Messiah is not going to come from Galilee, is He?” (John 7:41). The idea seemed patently ridiculous to them.
Yet Isaiah the prophet had prophesied long before about Galilee of the Gentiles. He said of the area that “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.” Now some eight centuries later, that prophecy is being fulfilled. In God’s providence the despised, rebellious Galileans are the first to see the dawning of God’s light. Why would God choose a place of such deep spiritual darkness (and one populated by Jews and Gentiles) as the place to introduce His Messiah? The reason is that Jesus was never intended to be just a Jewish Messiah; He came to be the Light of the World. In fact, those most likely to respond to Him were almost never the learned, proud, and pure Jews from Jerusalem; more often it was the unlearned, the downcast, and the neediest who recognized their spiritual need and followed Him.
The right message. Verse 17: “From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” The term “preach” means “to proclaim” or to “declare the truth.” It doesn’t mean to suggest or speculate or share or entertain. There is a place for opinions and speculations, but not in preaching. That’s why when Jesus preached, He spoke with authority. And His message was fundamentally the same as that of the Baptizer–“Repent.” Repentance means to turn around and go in a whole new direction–do a 180. Faith in Jesus can’t just be added on to one’s old belief system. He’s not like a fresh shirt you put on. He demands a radical change of heart and will, and then of behavior. Repentance, friends, has always been the first requirement of salvation
And why does Jesus call people to repent? Because the kingdom of heaven is near. The King has arrived, so the kingdom must be near. Had the Jews repented and received Jesus as their King, I believe He would have established His kingdom in a literal sense right then and there. But they did not recognize Him; instead, they rejected Him as their King.
Jesus personally shines light into a dark corner of a dark world. But He is not interested only in that little corner; He loves the whole world, and He wants to reach everyone with the truth of His Gospel.
Jesus chooses a strategy to light the whole world. (4:18-22)
Jesus, of course, was just one man, and His personal mission lasted only about 3 ½ years. He lived at a time when transportation was very limited, mass communication was unknown, and even written materials were relatively rare. Despite these limitations, He accomplished quite a lot during His lifetime. He drew tremendous crowds by His words and His works, and I suppose he personally touched somewhere between 20,000 and 50,000 people. But He was sent by His Father to touch the whole world for time and eternity.
In order to accomplish that tremendous goal Jesus decided on a strategy–He would use fishermen. “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. ‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘and I will make you fishers of men’” (Matthew 4:18, 19). Now just think about that for a moment. If you were going to try to communicate the most important message the world had ever received, to the whole world, in as short a time as possible, and with the highest degree of accuracy, would you turn to fishermen? Of course not. But Jesus does, and He does so for a reason. He is bent on demonstrating that His cause is not dependent upon intellect or college degrees or ministerial credentials or giftedness or financial resources or even experience. He has no interest in racial or gender preferences. He is oblivious to reputation or accomplishment. If the world is going to get turned upside down, it is going to be by the power of God and through no other means!
Nevertheless, I am drawn to the observation one pastor made about the number of qualities of a good fisherman that also help make a good evangelist. There is patience, perseverance, good instinct, and courage (especially commercial fishermen on a temperamental body of water). Furthermore, a good fisherman keeps himself out of sight as much as possible.2 Those are also excellent qualities to have if you want to catch people for the Gospel.
By the way, did these disciples catch men, as Jesus predicted? Well, on the Day of Pentecost some 3 ½ years later Peter preached in the city of Jerusalem and 3,000 people were converted that day. A short time later Peter and John healed a lame man at the temple gate, and another sermon produced 5,000 new believers. But clearly the main point Jesus communicates through His choice of fishermen is that He is more concerned about availability than ability.
Focus on availability more than ability. When Jesus calls Peter and Andrew and promises to make them fishers of men, it says, “At once they left their nets and followed him.” The same thing happens in the next paragraph as He finds two other brothers, James and John, also fishermen. “Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.” Now, this isn’t quite as abrupt as it sounds, for this is not the first time these four men have met Jesus. In the Gospel of John, we learn that Andrew and Peter were followers of John the Baptizer before they become followers of Jesus. The Baptizer pointed them to Jesus, and as a result they came to believe in Him as their Messiah. So they had probably already come to the point of salvation many months before. (Perhaps James and John had as well). But they all went back to their careers, as most people do, after having an encounter with Christ. I suspect they cleaned up their language, started tithing their catch, and perhaps even witnessed to their fishermen buddies. But Jesus has greater plans for them. He wants them to leave their vocations and serve Him only.
God is still employing this pattern today. We are all called to become followers of Jesus, but it’s often not until sometime later that most of us receive a specific call to service. Of course, not everyone is challenged by God to leave his or her vocation, but some are, and when that happens, it’s an enormous privilege and responsibility. Everyone, however, is called to serve somehow, someplace. If you have come to know Christ as your Savior and yet have never found your place of service in His Church, don’t say it’s because you haven’t been called! It may be that you haven’t been listening, but you have been called! There’s no better time than now to let God know of your availability. And if you’re available, we’re available to help you find your spiritual gifts and plug you into an area of service that will be fulfilling and exciting for you.
Jesus’ strategy for lighting the whole world involves more than just finding willing, available servants, however. It also involves …
Multiplication by disciple-making and leadership training. We’re going to learn a lot more about this later in Matthew, but just let me observe for now that Jesus develops a very simple strategy of multiplication through concentric circles of contacts. He starts with an inner circle of disciples, including 3 of these first 4: Peter, James and John. They, of course, also become part of the Twelve Apostles, a group of men who become His constant companions during His ministry and His primary ambassadors after His death and resurrection. Around them is gathered a group of 72, a kind of leadership community made up of key men and women with responsibilities to support the Twelve and take the Gospel into various communities. And, of course, Jesus also preaches to the multitudes on occasion.
Frankly, I don’t think this model of discipleship and leadership development has ever been improved upon. It’s adaptable to nearly every church, Christian organization, or even individual believer. For example, you come to worship in a large group like this, where you may only have a few passing acquaintances. But then you begin to develop meaningful relationships in an Adult Bible Fellowship with 15-75 people. You really connect and become accountable with a Small Group of 8-12. And then if you’re very serious about your personal growth you will probably have a few individuals who are your mentors or whom you are mentoring. There’s no better way to maintain a life of balance and growth than this.
We have all kinds of models for disciple-making and leadership training today, but none has accomplished more in less time than Jesus’ simple model. Of course, the key to making it work is that at every stage the truth is driven home with practical application and, to the extent possible, hands-on experience. Training is different than teaching. A trainer shows his disciple how to do it rather than just telling him. And he allows for failure, because it is through failure that a person often learns the most. Some of you may think I’m beginning to sound like a broken record, but The Journey small group discipleship program we are currently using here at First Free is a clear example of the very method Jesus used with His disciples. If you want to become a real disciple, or if you want to disciple someone else, the Journey is the first place to which I would direct you.
In the third vignette in our text today . . .
Jesus establishes His credentials as “the Light of the World.” (4:23-25)
Verse 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.” There are two aspects to the process of establishing His credentials–His words and His works. First He is validated …
By teaching and preaching. Jesus taught in the synagogues, which were not only houses of worship but also place of study and community. Visiting dignitaries or rabbis would often be given the honor of expounding on the Scriptures, a practice both Jesus and Paul took advantage of on numerous occasions. The Scripture was read and then explained section by section, often verse by verse. Besides teaching in the synagogues, He also preached the Gospel; i.e., He proclaimed the good news that God’s kingdom is available for anyone who puts his trust in the King. Starting next Sunday we’re going to spend several months studying one of His sermons, the Sermon on the Mount.
Besides through teaching and preaching, Jesus is also validated …
By healing every disease and sickness. This is the first reference in Matthew to the miracle-working power of Jesus, but certainly not the last. Have you ever thought, “Why did Jesus do miracles?” I actually think there are a number of reasons. He loved people and wanted to help them. He hated unbelief and wanted to dispel it. But most of all He did miracles to establish His credentials. No one was allowed to have any legitimate doubt that He was the Son of God, the Savior of mankind, and the Light of the World.3 His amazing words were backed up by His amazing works.
No one today can emulate Jesus in his miracle working. He healed a broad range of crippling handicaps. Matthew speaks of at least three different categories–spiritual, mental/emotional, and physical. Jesus stands out from among all those who claim to be miracle workers today. He healed directly, with word or a touch, generally without prayer, and sometimes without even being in the vicinity of the one he healed. He healed instantaneously. He healed completely. He healed permanently (not meaning that the person never got sick again or never died, but that particular malady was gone for good). He healed without discrimination as to person or illness. He healed organic and congenital problems no matter how severe or longstanding. And, He even brought people back to life. He was indeed the Light for a dark and disease-ridden world.
Now before I close, I want you to look very briefly at one more passage, in which…
Jesus commissions us to be lights in our world. (5:13-16)
Turn over one page in your Bible and look at a short paragraph from the Sermon on the Mount which we will begin studying in earnest next Lord’s Day:
“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
We do not have time to do justice to this short passage today, but we can at least note that just as Jesus is the Light of the World, so also He expects us to be the light of our world. Since He ascended to heaven, we have become His chief strategy to dispel the spiritual darkness that is around us. James Boice suggests that the best way to think of it is that when Christ was in the world, He was a bit like the sun which is here by day and gone at night. But when the sun goes down the moon comes up, and the moon is a picture of the Church–of Christians. It shines, but it does not shine by its own light. It shines only because it reflects the light of the sun. At times the Church is a full moon, as when revival is taking place, but at other times it is like a new moon, barely visible.4
A city on a hill, Jesus says, cannot be hidden. At night the many lights which shine out of its windows make it impossible to miss. Likewise, a person who lights a lamp puts it on a stand, not under a bowl, for the purpose is to give as much light as possible. So also, God wants us to be visible lights in a dark world. One thing that means is that our presence will expose the evil and the darkness of the world. We may illuminate dishonest practices in business, gossip in the secretarial pool, loose talk and still looser morals at parties, corruption in local politics, racial prejudice, greed, and selfishness.
In addition, if we are being light in our world, we will be revealing God’s truth to those who are weak in faith–we will be teaching and discipling our children and young Christians around us. But there is a third way God expects us to be lights in our dark world, and that is through our witness. A secret Christian is a contradiction in terms. God did not give the Gospel of His Son to be the secret, hidden treasure of a few, but to enlighten every person. Many will reject the light (and reject those who shine it), but just as God offers His light to the whole world, so must His church. It is not our Gospel but God’s, and He gives it to us not only for our own sakes but for the entire world’s sake.
I started my sermon with a song today. I might as well end it with one as well. It’s another song about light from my childhood, and one many of you remember as well. Will you sing with me, “This Little Light of Mine”?
Tags:
Light
Disciple-making
Healing
Miracles
1. John MacArthur, Matthew 1-7, 103, 104.
3. I believe that the reason why we have not seen any great period of miracles since the time of Jesus and the Apostles is found in the fact that their primary purpose–establishing the credentials of Christ–is no longer applicable. There were at least three great periods of miracles in the Scriptures–during the time of Moses, at the time of the major prophets, and in the days of Jesus and the Apostles. There’s been nothing like it since. I’m not suggesting there have been no miracles since–certainly there have been–but there has been nothing comparable to what was seen in those three periods of biblical history. Why? I think it has everything to do with credentials. Those three periods coincide with the three major times when God was giving His revelation to us. Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. The prophets wrote most of the rest of the OT, and the Apostles gave us the NT. In order to get man’s attention and validate those speaking for Him, God performed incredible miracles through them. Since Jesus was the living Word of God, one would expect the same sort of validation that God gave to His written Word. His amazing words were backed up by His amazing works.
4. James Boice, The Sermon on the Mount, 80.