Jesus Is Calling

A pastor asked the congregation, “Who wants to go to heaven?” Everyone raised their hand—except one man. The pastor asked, “Brother, don’t you want to go to heaven?” He replied, “Oh, I thought you meant right now. I am helping with Fellowship Dinner after the service.”

Historical/Cultural Context -

This Gospel is written by Matthew, also known as Levi who was a former tax collector. It was most likely written between AD 50-60. Matthew left everything behind to follow Jesus. Matthew wrote primarily to Jewish believers—people who knew the Old Testament well. Matthew had one goal: to prove that Jesus is the long-awaited Messiah, the King of Kings, and the fulfillment of God’s promises. Connecting the Old Testament prophecies to the life of Christ, proving that every word God spoke was coming true in Jesus. The key themes of the Gospel include Jesus as King, The Kingdom of Heaven, Fulfillment of Prophecy and discipleship.

Biblical Text -

Matthew 4:12–25 NKJV

Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.” From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him. Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him. And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them. Great multitudes followed Him—from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.

-[Prayer]-

Life Principle - Being A True Christian Involves Repentance, Following & Ministering To Others.

Life Point- Repentance Is Necessary

Exegetical -

Matthew 4:12–17 NLT

When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he left Judea and returned to Galilee. He went first to Nazareth, then left there and moved to Capernaum, beside the Sea of Galilee, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. This fulfilled what God said through the prophet Isaiah: “In the land of Zebulun and of Naphtali, beside the sea, beyond the Jordan River, in Galilee where so many Gentiles live, the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light. And for those who lived in the land where death casts its shadow, a light has shined.” From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.”

Homiletical -

So Jesus hears that John has been arrested so he decides to leave Judea with his ultimate goal in mind being Galilee but he doesn’t go straight there.

He does what we would call a circuit. He goes to Nazareth, Capernaum, Zebulun and Nephtali first.

What does he do there? Well he preaches, teaches in the synagogues, heals diseases all while telling them the kingdom of heaven is near.

By the way that phrase about the kingdom of heaven appears 32 times in the book of Matthew. That means it’s important.

The kingdom of heaven is an important phrase it is the thrust of Jesus’s message. But not just that, it is the repentance part that is important.

What is repentance? Well I am glad you asked.

Repent - to change one’s way of life as the result of a complete change of thought and attitude with regard to sin and righteousness—‘to repent, to change one’s way

Sounds easy right? Well if you have truly repented then you have changed your way of thinking and acting. That’s easier said than done.

If it were easy then everyone could do it, without the need of our savior. But you see we have all sinned and fallen short.

We can’t repent without the help of God himself. God the Holy Spirit.

Romans 3:23 NKJV

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Romans 6:23 NKJV

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It is God that empowers us to clean up our lives, you can’t do it. I can’t do it, but only Jesus Christ living in us can do it.

We have a big churchy word for this called Sanctification.

1 Thessalonians 4:3–8 NKJV

For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit.

So what do we do then? We come to God humbly acknowledging Jesus is the son of God and receive salvation. We repent of our old lifestyle and under the empowerment of the Holy Spirit we walk in a way that is worthy of a Christian. You may not do it perfectly and when you first start you are like a toddler learning to walk. You are going to fall down a lot, but you get right back up and continue to walk.

Illustration -

In the early church, believers faced immense persecution for their faith. They were often given a choice: renounce Christ or suffer dire consequences. Yet, many chose to walk in sanctification, remaining steadfast in their commitment to Christ despite the scars it left on their lives. To walk in Sanctification requires courage and perseverance, reflecting a deep-rooted faith that stands firm against trials and tribulations.

Life Point - Following Is A Must

Exegetical -

Matthew 4:18–22 NLT

One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers—Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew—throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” And they left their nets at once and followed him. A little farther up the shore he saw two other brothers, James and John, sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, repairing their nets. And he called them to come, too. They immediately followed him, leaving the boat and their father behind.

Homiletical -

Now Jesus is in Galilee and He is walking along the sea of Galilee and he sees two guys. Simon and Andrew. These guys are commercially fishing. So he calls out to them and says come follow me and they left their business and followed him.

Notice it says at once. Meaning that within a very short time they went and followed Him.

So they go a little further up and there is James and John sitting in a boat mending their nets with their father and he calls them to come as well and they immediately left their father with the business and followed Jesus.

Notice how quickly they left. They didn’t go home and put their affairs in order, nor did they continue to ask if it was truly Jesus calling them. They knew it was a powerful individual who called them and the dropped everything and Followed him.

To follow someone meant to follow in perpetuity. A continuance of following for an undisclosed amount of time.

During this time there were rabbi's, which means teachers, that would gather students to follow them and to be like them in their teaching and their ways. So this wouldn’t have been a strange thing for someone to follow an individual teacher. What was a bit different was the speed in which they followed the teacher. They following Jesus within a short amount of time after being called.

Folks when you are sure that Jesus is calling you to do something and you don’t do it in the timeframe that He has called you to do it then you are hurting yourself and others around you.

If God has called you to do something and you keep putting it off then you are robbing yourself of a blessing and robbing others of their blessing too.

Someone needs you to minister to them and you need to be in the position that Christ has called you to minister to them.

In a situation that needs to be done quickly, to wait can be catastrophic to yours or someone else’s life.

Also note, that this was Jesus calling the inner core of disciples. He didn’t just have twelve guys following Him. He had others. But the twelve were the ones that He chose to spend the most time with because they would have to pickup where He left off.

Our first duty is to follow Jesus, and you can’t follow Jesus if you don’t know Him. He calls each and every one of us to Follow Him in our thought life and actions.

You can’t really know Him if you don’t study The Word Of God. I believe the reason people don’t go to The Word is because we don’t like the feeling of conviction. Well I am about to share with you some really important doctrinal stuff right now. Listen closely. Are you ready? You are just going to have to get over it and do it anyway. When you feel conviction, go ahead and repent of whatever it is your are feeling convicted about.

Hebrews 4:12–13 NKJV

For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

2 Timothy 2:15 NKJV

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Illustration -

Picture the twelve apostles, now these guys could be pretty clueless, just like us! They misunderstood Jesus, and yet, he loved them every day. Following Jesus isn’t about perfection; it's about relationship. Just like those disciples, we can expect to misstep, to laugh, and to learn along the way. Indeed, the daily commitment to follow Jesus keeps us grounded in love and surrounded by grace.

Life Point - Ministering To Others Is Required

Exegetical -

Matthew 4:23–25 NKJV

And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them. Great multitudes followed Him—from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.

Homiletical -

Jesus went about doing the work of ministry. He healed the sick, taught the people, cast out demons and got rid of long-term illnesses.

This brings out a question. Do miracles still happen today?

Sure they can, and they do. Are they usually flashy. In my experience, no. Usually healings and things happen in a church setting where the elders of the church, the deacons and pastor, anoint the person with oil and pray over them for healing. I have seen it happen and have been apart of praying for those that needed it.

James 5:14–15 NKJV

Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.

Does everyone who gets prayed for get healed? No.

Our job is to just simply pray and let God make the final decision.

Why do some get healed and others don’t?

To answer that question I would have to be God. Only God knows. He sees the big picture we don’t. He sees what will happen and He is sovereign over all things.

Notice something else in this set of verses. It casually mentions that a great multitude followed Him.

Why did they follow Him? Were they true followers?

I would say they weren’t really following Him for his teaching and preaching. Most were following Him to see what they could get out of Him.

Remember miracles were happening and they wanted a miracle.

You know there are people who will go to a ministry or a church just seeking miracles, not really wanting to follow Jesus.

Let me tell you something I know. Whether God chooses to heal you of something now or not, you will not escape the reality of death. The only people who will escape that reality are those who go up in the rapture that are alive and saved at His returning. Everyone else gets to experience death. It is more important to be a repentant follower of Jesus Christ than it is to be physically healed.

Also note that if you are a follower of Jesus you get to do the work of the ministry. His disciples just didn’t sit there but they were apart of all of this.

Illustration -

In the early church, believers faced immense persecution yet they prioritized ministry to others, caring for the poor and sharing their resources. This spirit of generosity not only strengthened their community but also attracted many to the faith. Ministry to others isn't optional but a fundamental aspect of living out our faith.

Life Principle– Being A True Christian Involves Repentance, Following & Ministering To Others.

Call to Action – altar call….