By Chris McRae, BCI Discipleship Team Leader,

Christopher McRae

Shortly after Jesus’ birth, and following their return from Egypt, Joseph and Mary settled in the village of Nazareth in the northern hill country of Galilee. All indications were that Jesus grew up there, faithfully honoring his parents. It was said that as he matured; he grew wise in spirit and strong in body. Those who knew him added their approval to the blessing of God that was upon him. It was there in his hometown of Nazareth that Jesus became an adult and assumed the responsibilities that would have been expected of him.

When he was about 30 years old, Jesus came to recognize that his public ministry was about to begin. He had known that his cousin John, the son of Elizabeth and Zechariah, had begun a preaching ministry in the south, around the desert country of Judea. John had become known as “the Baptizer,” and was challenging the people with a simple message: God’s kingdom was breaking into this world and they needed to change their lives.

From the very first, the message was about transformation!

Because of John’s preaching, everyone was talking about the possibility that he might be the long-awaited Messiah. John consistently and clearly corrected them, telling all who would listen that he was not the one for whom they were hoping. In fact, he pointed them to someone else. This Soon-To-Be-Coming-One was greater in every way than John.

At that time, Jesus left the region of Galilee and traveled south to the place at the Jordan River where John was ministering and teaching. He went there expressly to be baptized by John. When he came up out of the water the Spirit of God settled upon him. The Father’s voice was heard from heaven declaring Jesus to be his Son, endowed with his love and the delight of his life.

In tune with the Holy Spirit, Jesus immediately retreated into the wilderness for a time of reflection, prayer, and fasting. While there, he encountered the Adversary who sought to derail his ministry through temptations of body, soul, and spirit. Victorious, Jesus returned from the desert filled with the power of the Holy Spirit.

Let me remind you: John’s message was that people needed to change their lives. Jesus gave his endorsement to John’s message and immediately began teaching the same truths. He began to become well-known in the area. One day John and Jesus ran into each other again. John said to those around him that Jesus was the One he’d been talking about. Here was the One, set apart as God’s Passover Lamb, who would take away the sin of the world. The message of transformation is now revealed as a man of transformation.

The very next day, John was talking with a couple of his followers. As Jesus went by, John again pointed to him as the One who would set things right with God. One of the men was named Andrew. He started following Jesus and began listening to his teaching. The first thing Andrew did was to go and find his brother, Simon. He tried to convince him that this Jesus was the Messiah. The two of them went to meet Jesus. That’s when Simon got his nickname, Peter.

Now, Peter and Andrew were from the small village of Bethsaida in the North. When Jesus decided to return to Galilee, they went with him. As it happened there was a great wedding celebration in another nearby village, Cana. Jesus’s mother was a guest at the feast and Jesus and his disciples were invited to attend as well. Andrew and Peter were with him. It is likely that Nathanael and Philip were along also. It’s fascinating to me that Jesus’ first miracle took place at this wedding when he changed the water into wine. A transformation took place, anticipating the change that takes place when a man or woman encounters and is embraced by Jesus.

The story continues as Jesus’ reputation goes ahead of him. His teaching begins to take hold of the hearts of the people. He rebukes those who sought to turn a profit from the practice of faith. He is sought out as one wise in the words of God. His miracles performed in Jerusalem pointed to his identity as the Messiah. In his travels back and forth between Galilee and Judea, he breaks down barriers and invites those outside the mainstream of religious life to join the movement of God’s saving truth.

John’s continued ministry eventually lands him in trouble when he publicly criticized Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee. John was arrested after he had rebuked Herod for marrying his brother’s wife. His incarceration eventually led to his death.

When Jesus got word that John had been arrested, he returned to Galilee. He moved from his hometown, Nazareth, to the lakeside village of Capernaum, which was nestled at the base of the Zebulun and Naphtali hills.

Jesus picked up right where John had left off. He took the mantle of Prophet and continued calling the nation to repentance while simultaneously declaring the immanence of the kingdom of God.

One day Jesus was walking on the beach along the north coast of Lake Galilee. He ran into the two brothers that he had previously spent time with – Simon, the one he’d called Peter, and Andrew. They were fishing from the shore with nets. As he watched them at work, he hollered to them… This is it! The great transformation begins. This is the point from which everything flows forward! God’s grand strategy of redemption is launched.

Matthew 4:19 ― (NLT)

Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!”

With a commanding voice, Jesus called out for the brothers. He got their attention saying, “Drop what you’re doing. I’ve got something far more important in mind. If you come with me as my disciples, I’ll make a new and different kind of angler out of you. I’ll teach you how to gather men and women for the kingdom instead of fishing for your supper.”

Jesus said, “I’m changing everything…beginning with you!” Thus, he began training those to whom he would entrust the outworking of God’s eternal plan. Jesus offered an invitation: “Come!” He then ordered them to: “Follow Me!” His disciples were expected to accept his invitation and obey his command. Jesus charted their course by bestowing upon them a promise: “I will show you how…” He then gave them an explicit task: “to fish for people.” If you were going to be Jesus’ disciple, you must trust his promise to mature you and cooperate with him in developing the skills required in order to accomplish the job. The result is that people are added to God’s kingdom.

This is discipleship: God’s transforming principle upon which spiritual maturity and productive ministry are built.

We’ll look at this a little more in depth in coming weeks.