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Thursday, Jan 21 by Larry Slings in Christianity and Culture | (0) Comments
Jesus spent most of His ministry around the Sea of Galilee. Why did He choose Galilee?
~Because is was fairly near His home area and these were His people.
~Because the prophets had said this is where He would be (Matthew 4: 13-16).
~Because the major highway of the world (like Interstate 80) ran within yards of His headquarters and gave Him access to the people of the world.
~Because the four distinct people groups that lived around the sea were good representatives of the diverse people of the world He came to save.
The Following Groups of People Were The Focus Of His Ministry:
The Religious Jews who lived in the area of Capernaum, Chorazin, and Bethsaida. The Bible tells us that most of His miracles were done in this area as well as a majority of His teaching. These were the people most like us: they knew the Bible, attended
worship regularly, prayed, sought to serve God. They understood when Jesus quoted the prophets and taught as a Rabbi.
The Pagan People lived across the sea in the 10 cities of the Decapolis”. They were completely pagan. Their towns were built as Greek towns with theaters where suggestive plays were performed, temples where pagan gods were worshipped, and arenas
where contests took place. Jesus went here –it was known as “the other side” or “the far country” in the Gospels.
The Zealots were a politically passionate people who resisted Rome and wanted to restore the Kingdom. At least one of Jesus’ disciples was a Zealot (Matthew 10:4). When Zealots were present Jesus was careful how He spoke about the Kingdom
and “The Messiah” because many of them thought Jesus would be the ideal leader for their movement. They were the ones who tried to make Him king.
The Jewish People of Culture lived in Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus had grown up in the shadow of their great city of the north, Sepphoris and may have worked there with His father, Joseph. They show up in the Gospels as the Herodians. They were
the aristocratic, wealthy, in power group who supported Herod and liked the cultural and material benefits that his rule brought. They bitterly opposed any one who threatened their world and so plotted Jesus’ death.
The contexts of Jesus’ ministry make so much difference. What Jesus says and what He does takes on a different significance and meaning depending on where He is and who is present. Jesus is the ultimate expert at addressing the Gospel to the context in which He found Himself. Also, He always has the whole world in mind. So, He located at the crossroads of the world where people from around the world could hear His message. He also, right by the Sea of Galilee masterfully engages representatives of the people’s of the world. Here God sent His Son to show who He was and to bring the message of salvation for the peoples of the World. This seems like a good time of the year for us to be focusing on that message.