Chapter Twenty-three

The week of June 24


Jesus Ministry Begins

From the time Jesus was 12 till 'about 30' the timeline of His life is silent. He likely led a small town existence in Nazareth of Galilee, northern Israel. He was nurtured by His parents, played with His siblings and learned the carpentry trade from His father (it is unknown whether Joseph was still alive during Jesus' ministry).

Meanwhile Jesus' relative John, only a few months older, grew in the hill country of Judah, southern Israel. He later was in the desert wilderness and then the area surrounding the Jordan River, eastern Israel. John's message from God came with boldness, more in line with the Old Testament prophets: Repent.

Pp 321-4  John's message was motivated by 'the Kingdom of God coming near'. He was not stylish nor was his diet something to emulate, but droves of people from southern Israel, including Jerusalem, came out. Many did confess their sins and were baptized in the Jordan. This was a controversial practice, because gentiles were to be baptized in coming to the Jewish religion, but Jews had never needed to be baptized. You can bet that the Jerusalem authorities wanted to know the authority under which John acted.
We can understand why God wanted the Jews to repent, by why be baptized?

Jesus appeared at the Jordan to be baptized by John. After John told Jesus that he, in fact, should be baptized by Jesus, Jesus told that it was proper for John to baptize Him. When Jesus was baptized, God’s Spirit came down on Him and the Father spoke of His love and pleasure in His Son (notice that though the word Trinity is not in the scripture but the concept is).
If Jesus identified with humanity by being baptized, even though He did not sin, why is it hard for believers to be baptized to identify with Jesus?

Jesus was led into the wilderness by the Spirit and was tempted by Satan to trust in himself and not in His Father in Heaven. Jesus passed this testing and piloted dependence in God through the proper use of scripture and by trusting, not tempting God.
If God trusted His Son to be tested, but not beyond his ability, what does this mean about God testing us (1 Corinthians 10:13)? Why do we think God is against us when we are tested (James 1:12-18)?

John the baptizer continued to baptize and point people to God through Jesus. John would decrease in recognition while Jesus would increase. Jesus was 'the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world'. John was pointing to the One that all prophets had awaited, the Anointed One, Messiah. Even some of John’s disciples left him to follow Jesus.
Can you see why John may have felt a little disconsolate over this?

Pp 324-6  Jesus' followers would tell a friend or relative; Andrew brought his brother Peter. Jesus would challenge men to follow Him. This was a big thing to leave home because the men were needed to provide financially for their families.

While at a wedding, Jesus intervened in an awkward situation when the wine ran out. He turned several large jars, a total of over 120 gallons, into wine. Initially, only the banquet director knew this, but the news likely spread quickly when people tasted the quality of the wine.
Why was Jesus' first public miracle in this particular manner?

Pp 326-7  Jesus held private meetings to utilize people's needs as a means of describing Himself. Nicodemus was a strict member of the ruling council. Jesus told him that people need to be 'born again' and 'born of the Spirit' to enter God's kingdom. Jesus' word pictures did not translate into Nicodemus' experience. God wanted people to know He loved them so much that He 'gave' His Only Son, so that they may experience eternal life. Nicodemus would have three years to ponder this.

Pp 327-9  While many Galileans would bypass around Samaria to not be contaminated by religious half-breeds, Jesus directly went to Sychar for a divine appointment. In being asked for a cup of water, a woman saw a discrepancy; she was a woman and a Samaritan, the opposite of Jesus. Jesus used the word picture of water as an analogy to living water that He could offer. He ended the conversation by disclosing His identity to her. He understood her identity by telling her she had many husbands (and presumably was unfulfilled, needing this spiritual water). We are not told if she brought her man-friend, but she did bring the rest of the town, who then believed in Jesus for themselves. Conceptualize the townspeople, adorned in white, coming to the well. The fields were white for harvest.

Pp 329-31  Jesus had a profound healing ministry. There is nothing like meeting people in great physical need that would start a people movement. People with psychotic behavior had spirits removed from them. Peter's mother had a fever broken. This, and much of Jesus' ministry centered around Capernaum, Peter's hometown. People with skin diseases were healed, making them socially acceptable. A paralyzed man was healed in front of his friends and other pairs of eyes, who were impressed. Jesus tied this power to His power to forgiving sins. How could this be; only God could forgive sins. Jesus would heal common people and call regular sinners to follow Him, such as the disciple Matthew, a tax collector. Jesus was not looking for 'self-righteous' but God-convinced sinners, people who knew they needed God.

Pp 331-2  Jesus put human needs first. The Law was for humans, not humans for the Law. When a man was not allowed to be healed because it was the Sabbath day, Jesus had unalloyed anger. The Sabbath was made for mankind; so Jesus healed his lifelong shriveled hand. Healing was many times the springboard to His teaching.

Pp 332-3  Wherever Jesus stepped a crowd appeared. Sometimes these turned into extended times to tell about the kingdom, how to relate to others under the authority of the King. Jesus called twelve men to move from the follower-disciple status into the sent ones-apostle status. They were still learners, but now would be emissaries of Jesus, preaching and healing. Women were called to follow as well. They had been recipients of Jesus' ministry and helped to support the endeavors of the traveling ministry.

Pp 333-4  John the Baptist spoke the truth no matter what. He was arrested by Herod Antipas for publicly criticizing Herod after he murdered the husband of his future wife. Later John wondered if Jesus really was the true One sent by God. Instead of critiquing him, Jesus lauded John as the greatest man ever born and spoke that John was the forerunner prophet, the Elijah who was to come.