September 27, 2024 

Today's Reading: Matthew 4:12-25

Daily Lectionary: Malachi 3:6-4:6; Matthew 4:12-25

“From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.””

(Matthew 4:17)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The beginning of Jesus’ public ministry probably went unnoticed by most. In the wake of John the Baptist’s arrest, Jesus withdraws from Judea, heads to Galilee, and talks a few local fishermen into leaving their jobs to follow him instead. To those who knew Simon and Andrew and to Zebedee, the father of James and John, it may have seemed like a bad career move. Certainly, their families were all inconvenienced by their sudden vocational change. In the big picture, however, these events would have been insignificant to the rest of Capernaum and unknown to those in Jerusalem. What is happening here, though, is a game changer as long-prophesied events begin to unfold just as Isaiah had said they would.

Jesus beginning His public ministry in Galilee is part of the fulfillment of God’s plan to save His people. The area where Jesus calls His first disciples and begins to preach about the kingdom of heaven being at hand is the first area of the old Northern Kingdom of Israel that had fallen to the Assyrian Empire. Now, the first area to fall is the first area to hear the preaching of the gospel. The first area to go into darkness is now the first area where the light begins to dawn. 

The light that began to dawn in Galilee continues to shine in our own time. The first followers Jesus called to Himself heard His preaching of the kingdom of heaven and, in time, began to preach the same kingdom to others. Over the centuries, that preaching has continued, and you hear it in every sermon at your own congregation. What began in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali has spread throughout the world, and the kingdom of God continues to be at hand wherever you may live. The message of repentance that was for them is for you. The kingdom that was promised to them has been promised to you. The Jesus that called them is the Jesus that has called you. What began in Galilee did not stay in Galilee, and what God has begun in you will go beyond you as the light continues to dawn in the darkness. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

O Christ, who taught the Twelve The truth for ages sealed, Whose words and works awakened faith, The ways of God revealed: Instruct us how we pray, By Your empowering Word. True teacher be for all who seek Their light, their life, their Lord. (LSB 856:2)

-Rev. Grant Knepper, pastor of Grace Lutheran Church Modesto, California.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.