A. Jesus’ Ministry: Going Forth with Purpose, Matthew 4:12–17
A. Jesus’ Ministry: Going Forth with Purpose, Matthew 4:12–17
(Matthew 4:12–17) Introduction: the time had now come—the time when Jesus was to go forth to His great purpose. There is much in this passage for every believer, layman and minister alike. Every believer is called of God, actually sent into the world for a specific purpose. The sad fact is that too many believers are not aware of their purpose. They do not know why God sent them into the world. They have not sought God to discover His purpose for their lives; therefore, they are just walking through life doing the same tasks and activities which occupied their time before they were saved. But for the believer who knows God’s purpose for his life, the day comes when he is to go forth to His purpose. He is to go forth as Christ went forth, to carry on the great task which God has given him to do.
1. There was the sign to begin His ministry: John’s imprisonment (v. 12).
2. There was the chosen headquarters: Galilee (vv. 12–13).
3. There was the deliberate decision to fulfill Scripture (v. 14).
4. There was the mission (vv. 15–16).
5. There was the message (v. 17).
1. (Matthew 4:12) Jesus Christ, Ministry—Guidance: there was the sign to begin—John’s imprisonment. God showed Christ when to begin His ministry. The imprisonment of John was His sign to launch out in full force. He had been ministering in Judea (John 4:1) but not as publicly or as extensively as He was now to do. He could now go forth and tackle His task to the fullest. Why now? Why not earlier?
Jesus could not give the appearance of competing with John. If He had begun His ministry in full force before John’s ministry had been completed, the loyalty of the people would have been divided. John was sent to prepare the way, and the way was not fully prepared until John was removed from the scene.
Thought 1. The believer who lives and walks in Christ will be directed by God.
(1) He will know God’s purpose for his life (Mt. 4:12–17).
(2) He will know when to go forth to his task, when to carry out God’s purpose for his life—just as Christ knew. God will guide and direct His servant. (John 16:13; Ps. 25:9; Ps. 48:14; Ps. 73:24; Is. 30:21; Is. 42:16; Is. 48:17).
Thought 2. The eclipse of John by Jesus holds a significant lesson for believers of every generation. The believer is to be serving the Lord from day one of his conversion, and when the day comes for him to launch out in full force to carry out God’s purpose for his life, he must go forth. Within every generation, God raises up witnesses to follow other witnesses in order to carry on the work of the ministry (Ep. 4:11–12). Believers are not rivals. They are joint servants of the Lord who work together in their respective ministries. They are not to compete against each other. And when the time comes, when a servant’s ministry is completed, he is to willingly step aside. In fact, a believer should prepare to have his ministry eclipsed, to move aside while God raises up others to carry on after he is gone. God cannot wait until a generation is gone to raise up others. There would not be time for the new generation to take over and affect a smooth transition. God has to raise up new servants and thrust them into the forefront as the older generation fades into the background. Such eclipsing should be accepted willingly and graciously. (Rom. 12:3–6; 1 Cor. 12:4–7; Ep. 4:11–12; Phil. 2:3–4).