Violence and Vulnerability



Matthew 4:12-17
12Now when he heard that John had been [handed over] 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.” 

I have to confess I’ve always been a sucker for the happy ending. It works for me after I’ve invested a few hours in a story to have the hero / heroine walk off into the sunset with all the issue resolved and a bright future ahead. While there is indeed a bright future ahead for those who walk with Jesus as their Savior we have to admit that along the way the stories of God’s people are often rather tragic. Thus we find Jesus emerge as John is “handed over” into the hands of the authorities for the things he had to say. (His story is later expounded upon, so we won’t get into the details here.) For now, we know that John is facing violence for the message of repentance that he shared without apology.

Jesus later speaks about the sacrifice that John makes as he discusses his ministry with the disciples. “This is he of whom it is written, ‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. Matthew 11:10-12

As Jesus enters Capernaum, He is completely aware of the fact that this is not going to be an easy journey. We also see that He is completely and totally in control of the events of His ministry and His passion. Just as the Father moved Joseph to secure the safety of his little family by moving them into Egypt, so Jesus now moves away from those who would prematurely try to take His life. While Jesus is in full control violence follows His ministry years until the end and He surrenders Himself to those who would end His life.

If Jesus Himself faces violence for the Gospel, why should we expect anything less? While we do not face violence for the faith in the United States (yet) there are millions of Christians around the world who daily walk in the knowledge that their faith could result in attack, deprivation, or even death. Tens of thousands die every year because they name the Name of Christ as their Savior. (Actual numbers vary according to who is counting and their standards for definition of the word martyr.) In the face of these statistics we must always keep our eyes on the fact that we will experience that “happy ending” (and I apologize for the triteness of that phrase.) Because of Jesus salvation work we will be with God for eternity no matter what happens to us here.

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