Of potential and possibilities.
On Sundays this year we will be reading through the gospel of Matthew.
It was written to encourage the small and fragile community of converted Jews who lived in the region of Galilee and Syria. They suffered persecution and threats from their Jewish brothers because they had accepted Jesus as the Messiah and also for having received the pagans. In order to strengthen them in their faith, the Gospel of Matthew insists on saying that Jesus really is the Messiah and the salvation which Jesus comes to bring is not only for the Jews but for all of humanity.
We glimpsed this earlier this month when Matthew introduced us to the three magi who bring mysterious Christmass presents to Mary and Joseph. Remember they come from the east and so are foreigners and outsiders. Only Matthew has this little story.
So this year, look out for the places where Matthew will underscore Jesus’ Messiahship and his claim that salvation is for absolutely everyone.
Right at the end of Matthews gospel, the universality of salvation is underscored again in emphatic style with
Jesus command to
“Go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”
Two other things to watch out for in Matthew
“The Kingdom of Heaven.” The phrase appears no less than thirty-two times ...and Matthew's prolific use of parables; no less than 23 of them.
Today's gospel can easily be divided up into three chunks.
Chunk one. Jesus Begins His Ministry in Galilee
“Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the lake, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali. From that time Jesus began to proclaim, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’”
Notice that Jesus goes into foreign territory. He makes his home in Capernaum in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali. Jesus is the Messiah for all people.
Chunk 2 Jesus Calls the First Disciples
He calls two lots of two brothers. Simon Peter and his brother Andrew. Then he headhunts James and John from their Dads fishing company. I always wondered how Zebedee felt about this when his workforce is suddenly and severely diminished.
Chunk 3 Jesus Ministers to Crowds of People
Jesus cures ‘every disease and every sickness among the people’.
‘They brought to him all the sick, those who were afflicted with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics.’
But then we get another geography lesson that underscores Matthew's teaching of how Jesus is for every people of every land.
‘So his fame spread throughout all of Syria. And great crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.’
These three chunks show us the continuous flow of discipleship. There is a calling followed by an active and visible ministry. Matthews’ Jesus is extremely public. He speaks often to great crowds but he also understands the importance of making some quiet time. “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen”.
But it is the second chunk, the call of the disciples, that I kept being drawn back to today.
For your reflection this week you may like to chomp on these things.
We think that we have taken the initiative with God but in fact, he took the initiative with us a long time ago. He knew us when we were being formed in the womb. Sometimes it just takes us a little while to catch on and catch up and then we can begin to see the true order of things.
On the Sea of Galilee when Jesus calls those first 4 disciples Peter, Andrew, James and John he understood that there would be times when they would disappoint, frustrate and sadden him.
Sometimes they just wouldn’t get it.
“Do you still not understand? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? How is it you don’t understand that I was not talking to you about bread? But be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
They snore their way through much of the garden of Gethsemane when Our Lord is praying and only John makes it to the foot of the cross.
But knowing all this, understanding their flaws and their foibles, seeing how fractured and hapless they are, he still calls them.
Question …Why? Surely it would have been easier to look at a few other resumes and make a different shortlist of candidates.
Answer; He calls them because they are worth it. He calls them because He loves them and He calls them because He can see their potential and their possibilities.
And this my brothers and sisters is very good news. The Master also looks deeply into our lives, our hearts and our souls and He well understands how glitched up and haywire, how imperfect and inaccurate we are and yet… and yet… He calls us because He sees our potential and our possibilities.
And if He can see our possibilities and see our potential… then why can’t we?