The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light

Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:

"The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,

By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan,

Galilee of the Gentiles:

The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light,

And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death

Light has dawned."

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

- Matthew 4:12-17

In yesterday's reading, we read of Jesus' temptation in the wilderness. He was led there by the Spirit, and there He was tempted by Satan. Three times He was challenged to forsake His faith, His place with the Father, His Sonship: to abuse the divine power with which He's entrusted, to tempt God for protection, and to worship Satan in order to receive all the power and wealth of the world. Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.' " Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. We note how Jesus waits for all things, and how His ministry unfolds. Time and again we will note that He is not in a hurry, He doesn't rush things, but allows things to unfold in God's time. Here He awaits the fulfillment of the times of John's ministry, before He begins His own. Jesus began His ministry in Galilee, says my study bible, "for the common people on the edge of Jewish territory are more receptive to his teaching than the Jewish leadership in Jerusalem."

And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali . . . We know that His boyhood home is Nazareth, and so His mission to Galilee is not simply "returning home" for Him. Instead, His headquarters will be in Capernaum, where He will find His first disciples.

. . . that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles . . . " The quotation in this passage is from Isaiah 9:1-2. My study bible explains that "the term Galilee of the Gentiles indicates that many non-Jews lived in this region, which became an Assyrian province in 734 B.C. By Jesus' time it had a mixed population and was not considered a genuinely Jewish land, even though many non-Jewish residents had converted to Judaism in the Maccabean period. Even the Jews who inhabited this area were influenced by Greek culture and were considered second-class by the Jews of Judea." So, Christ goes where no one would expect Him to be, although the prophets (in this case, Isaiah) understood and had foreseen this event. The Christ will be for all the world, Gentiles included. And He begins His ministry among the humble.

" . . . The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned." Darkness is ignorance, spiritual blindness, unknowing -- according to my study bible, darkness means "ungodliness." It notes, "To sit in darkness means to be overcome by spiritual ignorance and death. The great light shines on these people, anticipating the gospel being preached to all after the Resurrection." Christ goes where the people need Him most, to all those who need the healing of His presence, His message, His Spirit -- and the relationship to God in which is all our healing and reconciliation. In this sense, He is the promise of Israel, the people of God, returning the world to God and God to the world. This is the light He brings.

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Jesus continues John's message, and I find that very poignant, as John is imprisoned. There is a continuity of the message. Repentance is the act of "changing one's mind" or turning away from the old things. Jesus presents the world with a new way of life, a new way of thinking, and people must be prepared to accept this. "Repentance," says my study bible, "is man's turning from himself to God. The kingdom of heaven is synonymous with the kingdom of God." We note His use of the phrase "the kingdom of heaven is at hand." He emphasizes its imminence. He will teach His apostles when sent out on their first mission, to preach "the kingdom of God has come near to you." Others (such as the scribe who understood His teaching about the Greatest Commandments) He will teach, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."

So, in some sense, Jesus picks up where John the Baptist has left off. John, the Forerunner, has been preparing the people for Christ. Jesus, in beginning His public ministry, continues with the message of repentance in preparation for this ministry, for the gospel message He is to preach. So let us consider repentance, which is the foundation of the understanding of our faith. Repentance (metanoia) in the Greek (as I often post here) means "change of mind." In a sense, the Spirit working in us will give us a constant sense of repentance. That is, throughout a life of faith we will meet challenges to that faith, and in choosing to go forward in faith we grow and change, we make the hard decisions. This is especially so during times of challenge and temptations in whatever form they may take, such as the temptations faced by Christ in yesterday's reading. Once again we remember that God's strength is made perfect in our weakness, as was told to St. Paul. That is, God has chosen His imperfect creatures to receive His grace, so that in our struggle His strength becomes perfected. For some reason, there is a divine plan at work that can only be fulfilled through us, through our repentance or "change of mind" in our struggles to embrace more deeply our faith, to receive more deeply within our own hearts the gospel message Jesus brings, and to grow in a deepening relationship and reconciliation to Our Father. This is the light that penetrates as we practice our own "change of mind." This process continues and goes on and on, as St. Paul taught us. So let us take Christ's message to heart, as He continued it from John the Baptist. This is not a "one time only" occurrence, but rather a foundation of the understanding of our faith. How do you go forward in that motion of repentance, that renewal, and the deepening of our faith? How do you "change your mind" in order to receive the grace He has in mind for you today, the light He brings to us, to all the people of the world?