Great multitudes followed Him -- from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan

 And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.  Then He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men."  They immediately left their nets and followed Him.  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.  He called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.

And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.  Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them.  Great multitudes followed Him -- from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan. 

- Matthew 4:18-25

Yesterday we read that 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."

 And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.  Then He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men."  They immediately left their nets and followed Him.  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.  He called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.  These first disciples have already heard the preaching of John the Baptist, and so they are prepared to accept Christ immediately.  Although they are illiterate and they are unlearned in religion, these "people of the land" called by Jesus will be revealed at Pentecost to be the wisest of all.

And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.  Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them.  Great multitudes followed Him -- from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.  My study bible calls our attention to the fact that the crowds do not swarm Jesus when He commands repentance (see yesterday's reading, above, verse 17).  It is only when He begins to heal and work miracles that great multitudes followed Him.  This shows that people don't really understand the true nature of His Kingdom.  It also shows that Christ has given concession, according to commentary by Theophylact, "to give credibility to what He teaches" among the fickle multitudes. 

"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."  This is the message with which Jesus began His ministry (yesterday's reading), and it's also the message that John the Baptist was preaching.  As noted in yesterday's commentary, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand" will also be the instructed message to preach when Jesus sends out the disciples on their first apostolic mission (10:7).  As my study bible notes, the crucial question here isn't necessarily that the Kingdom is at hand, but rather just what that Kingdom is or what it is like.  For those who expect an immediate material manifestation of heavenly life, it's not to be.  The healing of diseases and the torments of people are signs of the presence of that Kingdom, that it is present with Jesus.  The miracles that Jesus will produce are also signs of the presence of the Kingdom.  But these things do not constitute the full reality of that Kingdom.  That Kingdom is dependent on our own capacity to be temples of God, to carry it within us (Luke 17:20-21).  As discussed in yesterday's commentary, to repent means to change one's mind, to turn around -- and this is still required for the acceptance of the presence of the Kingdom of God and our participation in it.  We find different ways of relating to one another in that Kingdom, we find ways of learning love, of participating in and sharing the love of God with others.  It is a full reorientation of our spiritual life, and it feeds the soul; it gives meaning to life and it will repair things within us that are damaged by the ills of the world, all the forms of selfishness we may encounter and suffer from.  All of this requires a great change of mind, a way of looking at things which doesn't simply judge by immediate tangible results we can measure.  But the healing and relief from affliction that accompanies Jesus is powerful, and draws people to this Kingdom.  He gives an orientation to disease that isn't about punishment but rather about what it is to be really healthy, to live within the reality of the presence of God in our lives.  By the time He sends out the disciples on their first mission (and so they become apostles), however, we can read that He will teach them that they are sent "out as sheep in the midst of wolves," and that they must therefore "be wise as serpents and harmless as doves" (10:16).  The reaction of the world to this Kingdom is a hostile one, also a sign of the need for repentance in order to truly accept it.  How do we approach the love of God?  What characterizes, for you, the presence of this Kingdom that is within you?  Have you had experience with healing?  In Twelve Step programs, there is the need for recognition of and dependence upon a Higher Power to help heal.  For some, this is controversial and it is rejected.  But if we study the Twelve Steps, we see a program that is geared for repentance, for change of mind.  One can apply these steps to any problem in life, regardless of whether or not it involves nominally addictive behavior.  The first step is an admission of powerlessness over certain problems or situations.  Nowhere is this more true than over conditions of childhood that may have done harm, or abusive relationships of any type.  To admit that we are not in full control over every aspect of our lives (or other people's choices) is to admit that we have a need for guidance and for love to teach us how to negotiate our lives and find the necessary values for life.  Jesus' teachings begin and end with the fullness of such teachings:  we are taught that we need an ongoing openness to change of mind, and that the presence of the Kingdom of God is what is truly necessary -- the real good news.   It is within that presence that we find the transcendence we need, the healing we need, the love of the One who knows all hearts, and the wise advice we need for our lives.  To live "as wise as serpents and harmless and doves" is good guidance; to understand and seek His wisdom is prudent and wise.  It is our true Shepherd we need; let us be grateful for the gift of His Kingdom, even in the midst of an imperfect world.  These men in today's reading whom Jesus first calls are not the most wise and learned, but they are those who can accept the Kingdom and respond to His call immediately.  To become fishers of men, they will go through their own forms of repentance and change; the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost will again create transformation.  It is the basic love of God that begins our response to the call, that cushions our orientation to the Kingdom in the knowledge of God's love for us.