First Reading: Isaiah 9:1-4
1But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations. 2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone. 3You have multiplied the nation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil. 4For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian.
Psalm 27:1-14
1The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom then shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom then shall I be afraid? 2When evildoers came upon me to eat up my flesh, it was they, my foes and my adversaries, who stumbled and fell. 3Though an army should encamp against me, yet my heart shall not be afraid; 4And though war should rise up against me, yet will I put my trust in him. 5One thing have I asked of the Lord; one thing I seek; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; 6To behold the fair beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. 7For in the day of trouble he shall keep me safe in his shelter; he shall hide me in the secrecy of his dwelling and set me high upon a rock.
8Even now he lifts up my head above my enemies round about me. 9Therefore I will offer in his dwelling an oblation with sounds of great gladness; I will sing and make music to the Lord. 10Hearken to my voice, O Lord, when I call; have mercy on me and answer me. 11You speak in my heart and say, “Seek my face.” Your face, Lord, will I seek. 12Hide not your face from me, nor turn away your servant in displeasure. 13You have been my helper; cast me not away; do not forsake me, O God of my salvation. 14Though my father and my mother forsake me, the Lord will sustain me.
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:10-18
10I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. 11For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. 12What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” 13Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. 16(I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) 17For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 18For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
Gospel: Matthew 4:12-25
12When {Jesus} heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. 13And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: 15“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles — 16the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.” 17From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” 18While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. 22Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. 23And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. 24So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, those having seizures, and paralytics, and he healed them. 25And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.
Capernaum by the Sea
In today’s world, when we think of a “social hub,” a multi-cultural epicenter, a district of the arts, (performing and otherwise), business, finance, and excitement, a location filled with diversity and change, multiple voices, and traditions with a window to the world, we might think of places like New York, Miami, Los Angeles or possibly even Charlotte. These are the locations that government and business leaders want you to believe are swirling with cultural richness and divergence; they want to paint these cities as the “place to be.” These places tout their diverse business prospects, the cultural opportunities, and their lively social settings, including a vibrant nightlife. In Jesus’ time, that was Capernaum.
Capernaum lay on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, along the bustling Via Maris (the Way of the Sea) trade route. The Way of the Sea was an important trade route dating back to the Bronze age, and was traveled daily by merchants, traders, officials, and visitors, which connected the northern and eastern countries with Egypt, passing directly through Israel. It was a kind of toll road; the Romans, who had improved and patrolled the road, collected taxes in the region for highway passage, as well as on the docks for the fishing industry.
Capernaum itself was a manufacturing and processing center for olives, olive oil, and other foods. You could hear a multitude of languages on the streets and on the docks, and news of all kinds traveled quickly throughout the region as traders and others passed through from Galilee to Judea, to Egypt, or to places like Turkey, Syria, Africa, Anatolia, Asia, and Mesopotamia. The road provided passage from southern Tyre all the way to northern Damascus.
The area also held historical significance, which is why Matthew mentions it in our scripture for today. Whereas once the 12 tribes of Israel ruled the region, in 722 BC the northern kingdom was toppled by Assyria and the area repopulated by foreigners. Soldiers had come through to the north by way of the Via Maris and had destroyed the northern strongholds. The tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali, both bordering the western side of the Sea of Galilee at that time, essentially disappeared. Displaced, they became integrated into their foreign cultures, forcefully swallowed up by foreign ways, languages, and religions. These were among the 10 tribes that the Bible refers to as the “lost sheep of Israel.”
Over and over again, throughout Jewish history, irresponsible shepherds, according to Ezekiel, had led Israel’s sheep astray and weakened their kingdom. But God promised to someday send a redeemer, a Good Shepherd, God’s own self, who would search for the lost sheep and restore them to God. And God chose to make this happen at the place where it all began, in Galilee, Galilee of the Gentiles, near Capernaum by the Sea.
Jesus’ relocation from His family’s home in Nazareth to the multi-cultural, religiously, and ethnically mixed region of northern Galilee was no accident or coincidence. This was ground zero. Here the silent voices of the lost tribes of Zebulun, Naphtali and the others would be sought by God in the person of Messiah. To this end, Jesus chose 12 primary disciples, trained them as apostles, and led them into region after region in the north, searching for those who may still remain faithful and wish for redemption. In what might on the surface appear to be unplanned or spontaneous, was actually a well-planned out mission. But this should come as no surprise to anyone, God never does anything haphazardly or by chance; God’s plans always have rhyme, purpose, and reason. With this information in mind, it’s then up to us to ask the question, what was Jesus’ purpose and plan?
Today, if you want to search for an ancestor, you call Robert! Or, you can put your DNA into ancestry.com, and voila! you find your relatives. Some of you may have seen the recent surprise Julia Roberts received when she found out that her great, great grandfather was in fact not genetically a Roberts at all, but a Mitchell, due to an affair her great, great grandmother had with a neighboring man. I’m sure many have come across similar surprises as family secrets can no longer remain hidden in a technological, scientifically savvy world. Of course, current technological tools didn’t exist in Jesus’ time so finding these “lost sheep of Israel” was a bit more challenging.
Many current relatives of those who had been assimilated 700 years and countless generations earlier, had been thoroughly inducted into non-Jewish customs, religions, and everyday life. I’m certain many didn’t know, or couldn’t remember, their roots, their Jewishness, or their ancestors. Their knowledge of their own history may have been vague at best. Yet there are some who always hold on.
The most faithful were careful to guard their heritage and faith during the Assyrian conquest, the Babylonian takeover, and later, the Persian rule and had passed down their traditions, though undoubtedly corrupted to a degree, throughout the subsequent generations. Some had heard of the messianic prophecy. Some were simply fascinated by their ancestors and genealogy or curious about the Jewish faith. But what is evident is, they were definitely curious about Jesus. His message would provide Him the best opportunity to find these lost sheep, by putting His voice and message out there, and letting them come to Him.
Jesus sought out the lost sheep of Israel by throwing His net wide enough to catch the attention of everyone and anyone in the region, those coming and going, those who had moved to foreign areas, even those who now identified as Roman, Syrian, Phoenician, or otherwise, those who worshipped foreign gods, and those who worshipped in the one or two synagogues erected by the sea. Jesus sought them from the trade routes, the industries, the vineyards, and the hills. He taught in public places, or from His home near the Via Maris, where even those with moderate curiosity could come and see. Jesus taught anywhere a crowd could gather.
Jesus taught from a boat on the sea itself. He taught from the shores and the docks. He taught from the hillsides. He taught from the rooms in his own home. He taught in the synagogues. He taught and healed as He walked along the road. He encountered countless people in whom something stirred when He spoke of good news of salvation, wholeness, peace, reconciliation, and redemption. And as one would expect, word about Jesus’ message, teaching, and miracles spread like wildfire up and down the Way of the Sea –across borders and into regions entirely gentile, as well as into the center of Judaism –Jerusalem. And while He drew the fascination of foreigners, Jews, and Romans alike, the religious leaders from Judea watched Him carefully, and nervously. And while Jesus’ method might seem strange to us, it was a highly recognized method by those in the fishing industry.
The disciples, especially Simon, Andrew, James, and John, who hailed from the successful fishing industries around the Sea of Galilee understood Jesus’ method. Fisherman at that time used heavy, broad nets in order to catch an abundance of fish. They would throw out the nets indiscriminately and pull in the catch. Afterward, they would sort the fish, throw back the crustaceans and other undesirable sea creatures, and keep the remaining fish, searching for their prize catch. The only way they could ensure the largest possible catch of their favored fish, the Tilapia, known today in the region as St. Peter’s Fish, would be to cast a wide net and pull in everything, then sort through the catch. This, in essence, was Jesus’ evangelistic method, his “Shepherd Search Team Method,” if you will. He would pull in every sheep He could.
Once “caught”, Jesus would teach and minister to them all. Those who remained would become part of His flock. Those whom He couldn’t reach, He would simply wait for a more opportune time. Jesus started in Capernaum, His new home base for operations. He would then proceed to teach, heal, and proclaim in every town along the Way of the Sea. And the people responded for a variety of reasons.
Some came for the novelty of who He was. Some came for healing and wholeness. Some came for the food. Some were simply curious. But many found His message different, encouraging and excitingly hopeful. They would once again find acceptance into the faith of their ancestors, but with a different twist. In searching for the lost sheep of Israel, He would also, as Isaiah prophesied, become a Light to shine on “those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness.” He would draw them all, accept them all as His sheep, and re-define what it meant to be Jewish, what it meant to be a member of God’s chosen people, what it meant to be followers, what it meant to be Israel. This was the Way of the Sea. It would become the beginning of the “Way” of Jesus (Acts 9:2).
Jesus started a movement, which would later be called “The Way”, that would sweep through every country in the entire known world, a movement that was inclusive, revolutionary, inspiring, and from the religious powers that be, dangerous. He would call fishermen, common people, tax collectors working for Rome, Syro-Phoenicians, soldiers, radicals, and trained students of the synagogue. He would teach Samaritans, foreigners from Tyre and Sidon, women, and children.
Jesus would pronounce the Year of Jubilee and set God’s people free to become part of God’s diversified kingdom, no matter who they were, their history, their ancestry, or their nation. And in doing so, He would set the world on its head and set the minds of the Jewish elite in Jerusalem toward worried surveillance. Nothing like this had happened before. As far as the religious leaders were concerned, they would need to watch Him, very, very carefully.
As we learn about Jesus’ ministry in the three years leading up to the time of His passion and death, we need to understand deeply and earnestly the radical and unusual nature of Jesus’ ministry and mission. His choice of ground zero at Capernaum by the Sea was not lost on anyone. He had a mission to do. It was God’s mission. Jesus had been sent to seek the lost and shine the light of God on every nation of the world. And He didn’t stop until He completed that mission. One would think that Jesus’ message of love, wholeness, and salvation would be widely accepted by most and simply be ignored by those who felt it was in error, but this wasn’t the case. Because Jesus’ message was, in many ways, counter-cultural, Jesus faced many difficulties and even dangers.
Jesus’ message was, “this is your heritage.” “I Am”, your savior. Not the milquetoast, sugary sweet, calm guy we often depict in Christian art, but the fiercely determined, street savvy, multi-lingual, disruptive leader of a movement that would change the world as people knew it. Jesus never turned His back on anyone. He would never stop looking for every single one of God’s lost. Jesus’ message of God’s coming kingdom was abrasive for those people who were scared of change, for those who didn’t like disruption. If the status quo was what you were looking for, then don’t follow Jesus. The same is still true today.
For those who are willing to accept His message, then we must be ready for our world and our assumptions to change. Jesus is all about finding the lost sheep. And we’re either with Him, or we’re not. Today, just as long ago, all we have to do is look around us to know that the “lost,” are those who long for meaning in their lives and have no source to find it; they make up more than 60% of our country alone, and that number is growing! Jesus’ call to be fishers of men is ever before us. Jesus’ message is the same now as it was when He first began His ministry more than 2000 years ago. The question before us today is, are we ready to do some fishing?
Are we ready to go searching for the lost sheep? The search may be in our back yard, in the normal places we visit, or it might mean that we need to head to the biggest multi-cultural center we can find. Jesus can be found in the big cities and in the byways and He’s waiting for you and I to join Him. Are you ready to cast a wide net? Are you ready to search for the lost sheep? Jesus never stops looking, and neither should we. “And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest” (Luke 10:2).
Amen