MATTHEW LESSON 9

     We will pick up today at Matthew 4:12 "Now when Jesus had heard
that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee;"

     We will see, here, that the end of John's work (proclaiming the
coming of the Christ) would be the beginning of Jesus' ministry.  Just
as Jesus came not for those who already knew God, He began His
ministry in a very spiritually dark place.  Without Jesus Christ,
there is no hope, nothing to look forward to.  God's purpose in His
beginning in the dark place was to show that His power and might were
not drawn from Jewish law.  This was a new day.  Jew and Gentile alike
would have to receive Him not through law, but through grace.

     Matthew 4:13 "And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in
Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and
Nephthalim:"  Matthew 4:14 "That it might be fulfilled which was
spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,"  Matthew 4:15 "The land of
Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, [by] the way of the sea, beyond
Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles;"  Matthew 4:16  "The people which sat
in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and
shadow of death light is sprung up."

     Later on, we will hear Jesus say that He came not for those who
need not a physician, but for the lost. It is very interesting, to me,
that God would have Jesus come from Nazareth where it would be spoken
(that "no good thing could come out of Nazareth".)

     The "sea", mentioned here, was the Sea of Galilee, a large rough sea
where much fishing was going on.  This sea had several towns scattered
along the banks.  Capernaum was where Peter's home was.  Later on,
because of so widespread unbelief here, this city would be totally
destroyed.  Today it is a tourist sight.  Walls are thrown down and
rubble is everywhere.  Many of the activities of Jesus took place near
this sea.  The demonic man was freed of the legion of demons near
here, the feeding of the multitude took place here, the draft of the
fishes was here; I could go on and on, but you get the idea.  Even all
the fantastic miracles that Jesus did here, was not enough to convince
these people of who He was.  A prophet is not accepted in his or her
own area.  Many of the Gentiles believed, but their Jewish friends
already had the law, and felt they were not in need of a Saviour.

     Matthew 4:17  "From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say,
Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

     This is the same message John the Baptist was preaching.

     Matthew 4:18 "And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two
brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net
into the sea: for they were fishers."  Matthew 4:19 "And he saith unto
them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."  Matthew 4:20
"And they straightway left [their] nets, and followed him."

     This Sea of Galilee, as we said, was a popular place for the men
in this area who made their living fishing.  This sea is about six
miles wide and seventeen miles long.  When the wind would get up, it
would be really rough; so rough that you could easily lose a ship and
all aboard.

     These 3 verses tell us a lot about our Lord Jesus Christ while He
walked on the earth.  He spoke and these two men obeyed. These men, by
vocation, were fishermen.  When the call came for the ministry, they
did not hesitate.  We could take a real lesson from these men.  So
many times, when the call comes to the ministry, we hesitate and try to
finish the job at hand before we answer.  These men dropped everything
and followed Jesus.  This call, that Jesus made to these two men, was
not for salvation, but to work with Him.  They had to give up the
comforts of home, and even the living they had, for an uncertain
future of winning souls.  This call brought them out of the worldly
into the spiritual.  These men were strong.  It takes a lot of muscle
to pull in fish nets full of fish.  The name "Andrew" means manly, and
"Peter" means rock.  You can see by their names, that these men were
powerful physically.  Jesus was about to make strong spiritual men of
them.  They would face more hardships as ministers of the Word than
they ever did as fishermen.  These men were just ordinary men.  They
had no degrees in ministry, only the call of God upon their lives.
These two were to become part of the elite l2 that would, through
Jesus, make a giant impact upon the world.  We will look at them,
again and again, as we go through this study.  For now, it is enough
to know that they would no longer fish for food, but for the souls of
men.

     Matthew 4:21 "And going on from thence, he saw other two
brethren, James [the son] of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship
with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them."
Matthew 4:22  "And they immediately left the ship and their father,
and followed him."

     You see, again, James and John did not hesitate when Jesus called.
They left their father, their means of support, their home, and all
worldly possessions, and followed Jesus.  These two were, also, known as
"sons of thunder".  John, as we would see in later lessons, was very
close to Jesus.  He was known as John the beloved.  The mother of
James and John would ask Jesus to let her two sons sit on the right and
left of Jesus in His kingdom.  He did not grant her wish.  He said it
was not His to give.

     Matthew 4:23 "And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their
synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all
manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people."

     Jesus was about the Father's business.  He taught, preached, and
healed in their churches and wherever people had needs.  There were a
number of little towns in Galilee.  Many miracles were done in these
cities.  Jesus stated that if the miracles that were done in Capernaum
had been done in Sodom, they would have repented and been saved.  In
Capernaum, they believed that Jesus was the carpenter's son, not the
Son of God.

     Matthew 4:24 "And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they
brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases
and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those
which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed
them."

     The Bible says that if all the miracles that Jesus did were
written in a book, there would not be enough books in the entire world
to hold them.  You can easily see how this fame would spread.
Literally thousands were healed, freed from demon spirits, restored to
sanity, and stopped shaking from the palsy.  All these people had to
do was to believe, and just one touch from Jesus' hand restored them.
You can easily see that His powers were not limited.  As we will see
in verse 25, people from all areas, that were in traveling distance,
brought their sick to Jesus and then carried the message back of His
great powers.  He not only healed the body, but the spirit, as well.

     Matthew 4:25 "And there followed him great multitudes of people
from Galilee, and [from] Decapolis, and [from] Jerusalem, and [from]
Judaea, and [from] beyond Jordan."

     We know of several occasions of over 5,000 people following Him.
This was a great company of people.  Where did they all disappear to
when He was crucified?

     Next lesson, we begin chapter 5 (The Sermon on the Mount).  Read
chapter 5, five times.



























                          Matthew 9 Questions


1.  What did Jesus hear had happened to John before He went into
    Galilee?
2.  When John's ministry ended, what happened to Jesus' ministry?
3.  Jesus' ministry beginning in a spiritually dark place, showed
    what?
4.  Jew and Gentile alike would have to receive Jesus, not through the
    law, but through what?
5.  Galilee was an area similar to what, here in America?
6.  Capernaum was near what body of water?
7.  The people, which sat in darkness, saw what?
8.  What negative thing was spoken about Nazareth?
9.  What was the main occupation of people around the Sea of Galilee?
10. Where was Peter's home?
11. Why was this city destroyed later?
12. Name 3 special things that occurred near the Sea of Galilee.
13. Where is a prophet not accepted?
14. Why did the Jews believe they did not need a Saviour?
15. What message did Jesus preach similar to John the Baptist's
    message?
16. What two brothers did Jesus call to the ministry in verses l8-l9?
17. How big was the Sea of Galilee?
18. What occupation did Peter have?
19. What does the word "Andrew" mean?
20. What did Jesus call them to do?
21. Who were the two sons of Zebedee that Jesus called?
22. They were, also, called sons of what?
23. What special name was John called by?
24. What wish of James' and John's mother did Jesus not do?
25. Jesus went about Galilee doing what?
26. What four kinds of people were brought to Jesus for help?
27. How many books would it take to hold a list of Jesus' miracles?
28. Name five places the multitudes came from?
29. What will we study in chapter five?