Leaving Nets
Christopher B. Harbin
Matthew 4:12-23
Sometimes it is hard to distinguish the spiritual from the physical. More often, we are at a loss to understand that what we perceive as physical or material expresses the spiritual. We fall into the trap of living as though the things of heaven will only come into play at the conclusion of our earthly lives. This was not the expectation of the first disciples. When they left behind their nets to follow Jesus, they were acting spiritually. They were following God as they left behind their former lives to engage the Reign of the Heavens Jesus was heralding. What have we left behind to follow Jesus? If Jesus has not taken us anywhere new, can we really claim to be following him?
The reported time frame for today's passage again coincides with the passage we read last week in John. In this instance, the time stamp would seem to differ greatly regarding when these events occurred. We are at the beginning of Jesus' ministry, but we don't have a daily log of events. What matters to the gospel writers is what they are trying to present about Jesus. Perhaps Jesus had met Andrew, Peter, James, and John on an earlier occasion closer to the Baptist's description and before his arrest. Perhaps there was a time lag in John's report between the Baptist pointing out Jesus and his disciples' encounter with Jesus. Such concerns are irrelevant. They neither add to nor subtract from the evangelists' presentations of Jesus.
Matthew intends to mark off a beginning point for Jesus' ministry. He places it on the heels of Jesus' temptation in the wilderness and the arrest of John the Baptist. With the Baptist out of the public sphere, Jesus begins to make himself known near Capernaum. John places Jesus' first miracle here, transforming water for ritual hand-washing into quality wine for a wedding celebration. The Baptist had ministered in the wilds of Judea, reminiscent of where the Hebrews had fir ...
Christopher B. Harbin
Matthew 4:12-23
Sometimes it is hard to distinguish the spiritual from the physical. More often, we are at a loss to understand that what we perceive as physical or material expresses the spiritual. We fall into the trap of living as though the things of heaven will only come into play at the conclusion of our earthly lives. This was not the expectation of the first disciples. When they left behind their nets to follow Jesus, they were acting spiritually. They were following God as they left behind their former lives to engage the Reign of the Heavens Jesus was heralding. What have we left behind to follow Jesus? If Jesus has not taken us anywhere new, can we really claim to be following him?
The reported time frame for today's passage again coincides with the passage we read last week in John. In this instance, the time stamp would seem to differ greatly regarding when these events occurred. We are at the beginning of Jesus' ministry, but we don't have a daily log of events. What matters to the gospel writers is what they are trying to present about Jesus. Perhaps Jesus had met Andrew, Peter, James, and John on an earlier occasion closer to the Baptist's description and before his arrest. Perhaps there was a time lag in John's report between the Baptist pointing out Jesus and his disciples' encounter with Jesus. Such concerns are irrelevant. They neither add to nor subtract from the evangelists' presentations of Jesus.
Matthew intends to mark off a beginning point for Jesus' ministry. He places it on the heels of Jesus' temptation in the wilderness and the arrest of John the Baptist. With the Baptist out of the public sphere, Jesus begins to make himself known near Capernaum. John places Jesus' first miracle here, transforming water for ritual hand-washing into quality wine for a wedding celebration. The Baptist had ministered in the wilds of Judea, reminiscent of where the Hebrews had fir ...
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