Back to work

I have found peace in the thought that I will succeed John when God indicates the time. Not like John, because I am not John. Through his words, people who are sensitive to the threat of God's wrath have been converted. I would like to seek out people who are sensitive to the lure of his love.

Only on the day of rest, in the Assembly, do I proclaim the message of the kingdom. My mother and brothers are happy that I am back and that normal life has resumed. Fortunately, there are no more healings. 

From Capernaum, dozens of fishing boats fish the lake. My mother's sister, Salome, is also married to a fisherman, Zebedee. They have their own boat. Normally, he fishes with his sons John and James, but in winter, when there is a lot of fish to be caught, he also hires day laborers. The port of Capernaum has only a few triangular piers jutting out into the water to the south. These provide sufficient shelter because the strong winds on the lake always blow from the east or west.

There is a garrison stationed on the outskirts of the city, because Capernaum is the border town of Galilee on the important Sea Road to the north and east. Tax officials are busy registering fish catches and the import and export of goods across the border. Taxes are levied on everything. My cousin Levi is one of the many tax collectors.

Taking up the torch     

It is already winter when John's disciples arrive with disturbing news. Herod has arrested the Baptist.

It was not a good year for Herod. It began with a mad love affair between him and his niece Herodias. He asked her to marry him while she was still married to his half-brother. Perhaps he, the son of a Samaritan, hoped that her descent from the high priestly family would help him in his political ambitions. Herod wants to become king of all Israel. His party, the Herodians, support him because they believe that this is the only realistic possibility for the reunification of our country within the Roman Empire.

Herodias agreed, on condition that he divorce his wife, the daughter of King Aretas of Arabia. She fled to her father via Machaerus before Herod could file for divorce. But he persisted and even deprived her father of control over the desert palace of Machaerus, located almost on the border between Perea and Arabia. The people of Perea and Batanea are afraid that Aretas will take revenge and start a war in their territory.

Meanwhile, his brother Philip, who had just married Herodias' daughter Salome, died. It was his thirty-seventh year of reign, the twentieth under Emperor Tiberius. He had always been a moderate ruler, not concerned with high politics. He was content to travel through his country with his bench and to administer justice to the people. He was buried in Julias, the city he had built near Bethsaida. We will miss him.

Herod believed that he would inherit his brother's territories and immediately guaranteed the payment of wages to Philip's soldiers, including the Jewish horsemen from Batanea. But Tiberius has now annexed the territories to Syria and decreed that the tax revenue must be spent in the country itself. The Syrian governor Flaccus therefore simply leaves the administration to the cities in the area. Herod now has the costs of his brother's army, but he has not received his tax money or power.

The Baptist then publicly criticized Herod. The separation was a sin in the eyes of God and a major political blunder. Demanding Machaerus back was also a direct insult to his father-in-law. Marrying his half-brother's wife was completely illegal. Herod must have been afraid that the Baptist's criticism would lead to unrest, just when he was embroiled in a political crisis. He arrested John and imprisoned him in Machaerus.

"What are you going to do now?" I asked his disciples who brought me the news. "What are you going to do? You are his successor." I know.

Fishers of men  

I am not yet twenty-nine when I lay down my tools and set out on the road. I stand by the main road, near the Seven Springs of Capernaum, not much more than a mile west along the coast. "The time has come, God is restoring his kingdom. Return to him and believe the good news!"

There are Peter and Andrew, casting a net, searching for schools of fish attracted by the warm spring water. "Come with me, do it for the Baptist," I say, and they come with me. A little further on, James and John, sons of my uncle Zebedee, are busy preparing the mirror nets to be placed back in the lake. I call them too. They leave my astonished uncle and his servants behind in the boat and come with us.

A little later, they seem to have been shaken by their initial enthusiastic reaction. All well and good, but it is the high season for perch fishing, which only gather in large schools in the warm waters of the Seven Springs in winter. Fish must be put on the table. They agree to set the mirror nets together and work through the night.

The next morning, when I am back at the road, they are gloomy. "There is no blessing on it, Yeshua." They have been fishing all night and caught nothing. At first, I just tell the people the news. But the crowd grows so large that it becomes almost impossible. I ask Peter to take me out in the boat so that the people can stand in a semicircle around the inlet and I can address them from the boat. He agrees, and they go to rinse the nets. From the boat, I suddenly see a huge school of fish. "Quick, get into the water and cast the nets." They look at me, the landlubber from Nazareth, with pity. "If you can fish, I can preach," says Peter. But I insist, and they do it anyway.

There turns out to be an incredible amount of fish in the nets, more than they have caught in days. They are afraid that the nets will tear, so they lift them into the boat with all the fish. But the boat threatens to sink, and John and James fetch the other boat, which is also filled to the brim.

Peter comes ashore and falls at my knees. "I am a sinful man, Lord, without faith in God. You have no use for me." "Don't worry," I reply, "from now on we will be fishers of men." - And you are my first catch.

*

We proclaim the message in the towns around Capernaum, Bethsaida, Chorazin, and Magdala, the town where sardines are salted and packed for export. More and more people seek us out at the Seven Springs. And again, people ask me to pray for them. A leper sees me standing on the main road. The people move away, afraid of being infected. He throws himself at my feet. "Lord, if you want me to be cleansed, pray for me." I put my arms around him and pray. God, how I want this man to be healed. I feel my father blessing him. "Be careful, don't tell anyone yet, but go to the priests. Let them examine your skin, as Moses wrote in the law." In his eyes I see hope and strength, and I give him one last word of encouragement: "I feel that you can go and offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving for your healing."

A woman from Magdala comes to me. She has every problem imaginable. She is wealthy but lonely and neglected. Numerous illnesses have gone untreated. Her heart is broken and her spirit is sick. But she too is healed when we pray for her and help her on her way. Her name is Mary, just like my mother.

More and more people are coming to us. The leper has been declared healed and is telling his story to everyone who wants to hear it. I feel that God is using these healings to confirm my calling. I will proclaim his love to broken and sick people, as I read in the scroll of Isaiah in Nazareth.

Sick minds, broken hearts, and neglected bodies are signs of the devil's power. Every healing, not just those of possession, is like casting out the devil to me.

God has made me a doctor, not of the body, but of the soul and of the spirit. You cannot separate the body from the soul or the spirit. The body needs care, the soul needs love, and the spirit needs hope. If one is missing, the disease spreads in all directions. Sometimes the physical cause of an ailment has long since disappeared, but the symptoms remain. A gesture of love and a word of hope can then do so much. But sometimes God also intervenes in inexplicable ways. He is the creator of spirit, soul, and body, and when I feel that he is healing, I will not be afraid to say so.

We are visiting Nathanael in Cana when a man from Capernaum comes up to me. It is Chusas, who manages Herod Antipas' estate there. He asks me to hurry down to the lake, because his son is dying. But I feel that he is alive. "Go back, your son is alive." When I return home a few days later, there is a gift waiting for us. My mother tells me that it was brought by Chusas' wife, Hanna, as a token of gratitude for her son's healing. Could they really believe that I can heal from a distance? God is king.

*       *      

On the main road past Capernaum, I see my cousin Levi sitting in the tax office. I know he is ashamed of the work he does. "Follow me," I call, and he gets up and comes with me. He asks why. "Call it Mattei'jah: a gift from the Lord," I say. He feels so liberated that he prepares a feast in his house. All his colleagues and acquaintances must hear the message. From now on, he will call himself Matthew.

When I come outside, I hear the Pharisees grumbling to my friends. "Why are you eating and drinking with tax collectors and other sinners who don't obey the law?" "Healthy people don't need a doctor, but sick people do. If you call people to repentance, you shouldn't seek out the righteous, but the sinners."

But even some of my own friends have difficulty with my exuberant lifestyle. "When we were disciples of John, we often fasted, and the disciples of the Pharisees also fast often. But with you, we eat and drink as if there were no tomorrow."

'Who can make the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? Don't compare me too much to John. You can't mend a torn cloak with a new piece of cloth. When the new piece gets wet and shrinks, the tear will only get bigger. Nor should you put new wine into old wineskins. If the wine ferments, the skins will burst and everything will be lost. You must put new wine into new wineskins. I understand that you find it difficult to accept that I am different. No one who has drunk the old wine wants new wine; the old wine tasted good, didn't it?

*      *      *

On the day of rest, we go to the meeting. At the back, I see someone with a hand that has been cramped for years. I know that cripples are not considered full members in worship. The man is very unhappy when I bring him to the middle of the meeting. Everyone looks at us. "You say I shouldn't seek out sinners. But what about this man here in the meeting? Why wouldn't God heal him, here and now? Isn't it a crime if I see him sitting here on the day of rest and don't help him?" I look at him: "Do you dare to stretch out your hand?" He does, and his hand relaxes completely.

Teaching God's kingdom       

There is less and less work. By noon, people are already arriving and I have to stop working. Some come with pain or illness, others with depression or family problems. Often they have walked for days, from Galilee and Perea, Jerusalem and Judea, or from the Golan and Batanea, yes, from all over Syria. And the longer they have had to walk, the greater their hope and confidence in healing. The hand I lay on them is often the last push they need on their journey to the Father. And He does not disappoint.

The neighbors have complained. And it is no longer possible to stay in the narrow streets of the city. That is why we now take the people to the fishing grounds of the Seven Springs at the foot of a barren mountain, more than a mile outside Capernaum.

After speaking, I climb the mountain. Alone. To pray and regain my strength. To understand the words of God, as Moses did. And now, after so many days of uninterrupted speaking, I am tired. It is cold, and I seek shelter in a small cave. I spend the whole night there praying: "Father, what have I gotten myself into?"

Then I remember how Moses also explained God's laws to the people from morning till evening. Until his father-in-law Jethro came and saw how exhausted Moses was. On his father-in-law's advice, Moses sought helpers. I ask for twelve helpers. One for each tribe of Israel. When day breaks, I walk down the hill. The first people have already gathered there. I stand still, a few steps up the slope, so I can see who is there. I ask God in my heart if He has chosen each one of them.

Of course Simon Peter and his brother Andrew, Jonah's sons. And the sons of Zebedee and Salome: John and James. Then Philip and his friend Nathanael, son of Telamyon. Then the sons of my father's brother Chalpai: Levi, the tax collector, his brother Simon, who had joined the Rebels, and James, the younger James. Finally, the twins Judas and Thaddaeus, sons of James, and Judas, son of Simon, from Keriot in Judea. To distinguish them, we usually call the first Judas 'Thomas', twin brother.

I give them proverbs as a backbone for our conversations. This is how the masters learn. They do not allow their disciples to write down their words. They must be written on their hearts. In the circle of disciples, the texts are repeated, mistakes are corrected, and applications are discussed.

In the conversations, nuances are added and conclusions are further developed. New sayings are added. In this way, the teaching grows, not as a preconceived argument or a list of sayings over time, but in all directions and on all points that are discussed. After some time, they know my sayings by heart. I ask them to spread out among the crowd. After each part of my speech, they must talk to the people and answer their questions. They can bring the difficult questions to me.

*

I usually ask the people to sit down on the grass. I then go up the slope so that everyone can see me. In this way, I bring them the message of God's kingship. I share with them a mix of teachings and stories that I can vary depending on the the time we have or the questions we get.

            'Good news for the poor, who are weighed down by the burdens
            of today's kings;
            but bad news for the rich,
            who find their comfort in luxury.

            Good news for those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
            for they shall be satisfied;
            but bad news for those who are full
            and satisfied with the order of the day.

            Good news for those who weep,
            for a better time is coming;
            but bad news for those who laugh,
            for the roles are being reversed.

            Good news when people mock you and reject you,
            did not their fathers do the same to the prophets?
            Bad news if everyone wants to hear you,
            for false prophets speak what people want to hear.

- o – o – o – o -

Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them. Heaven and earth will pass away before one jot or tittle of the law of God passes away. Whoever breaks the least commandment and teaches people to do so will not be recognized before God's throne. But whoever does them and teaches people to do so will be honored in the eyes of their king.

- o – o – o – o -

Learn every day what it means that God is your king.

1. Remember how Moses said, "You shall not kill," but if you do, you will be brought before the judge. Yes, I tell you today that anyone who lives in enmity with his brother will be brought before the judge, anyone who despises him before the High Council, and anyone who slanders him before the flames of hell.
2. Remember how Moses said, 'You shall not commit adultery,' but if you want to divorce, do it properly. Yes, I tell you today that any man who looks at another woman with lust has already committed adultery in his heart. And anyone who wants to divorce his wife makes her break her vow of fidelity.
3. Remember how Moses said, 'You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain,' but you shall fulfill your vows to God. Yes, I tell you today not to swear at all. Not by heaven, for it is God's throne. Not by earth, for it is his footstool. Not by Jerusalem, for it is the city of our great King. For yes is yes, and no is no. Anything more is evil.
4. Remember how Moses spoke: 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth', you shall not take more than that. Yes, I tell you today: do not resist our enemies, but if they strike you on the left cheek, turn to them the right cheek also. If they demand your cloak, give them your coat as well, and if they force you to carry their load for a mile, go with them for two.
5. Remember how our people say, 'You shall love your neighbor, but you shall hate Israel's enemies. But I tell you today: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you and pray for those who persecute you. For then you will be children of your heavenly Father, who causes his sun to rise on the good and the bad, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
6. Remember how Moses said, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself, for I am the Lord.' Yes, I tell you today: if you love those who love you, what more are you doing than the tax collectors? If you are kind to those who treat you well, what more are you doing than the pagans? If you only lend to those from whom you expect something in return, what credit is that to you? Love your enemies, do good to all people, and lend without expecting anything in return.
7. Remember what the president of the High Council said: 'Do unto others as you would have them do unto you; this is the law and the prophets'. Today I ask you to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. For this is the law and the prophets.

- o – o – o – o –

Make sure that you do not do what is right in order to please people. For then you will have no reward from your heavenly Father:

• When you give your gifts, do not trumpet them in the synagogue or on the street. Pretended goodness is rewarded in the theater. Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, and your Father who sees what is hidden will reward you.
• When you pray, do not stand in the synagogues or on the street corners and make a show of praying. The hypocrites do that to be seen by others. Their time has already been rewarded. Pray to your Father in secret, and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
• When you fast, do not look gloomy. Do not go around with your eyes blackened. You are not fasting to make your voice heard in heaven. Anoint your head and wash your face. And your Father, who sees everything, will hear you.

- o – o – o – o -

Pray and you will receive.               
Seek, and you will find.        
Knock, and it will be opened to you.
           For whoever prays receives, whoever seeks finds.
And whoever knocks will be opened.
 
Let go, and you will be let go.          
Give, and you will receive.
Well shaken and pressed, your share will be measured out to you.
           For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
            it will be measured to you.
 
Let your heart speak, as your father does.   
Do not judge, and you will not be judged.
Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.
For with the judgment you use, you will be judged,
           you will be judged.

- o – o – o – o -

Remember that one blind person cannot guide another; would they not both fall into the pit? Remember that a student is not yet a master, but has much to learn to become like his master. How can you say to your brother, "Let me take the speck out of your eye," when—look—there is a log in your own eye? Do not play the master. First learn to see clearly yourself, then you can help your brother remove the speck from his eye.

- o – o – o – o -

Do not store up treasures on earth, where moths and rust destroy them and thieves break in and steal them. Store up treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys them and where thieves do not break in and steal them. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. A good person brings good things out of the good treasure of their heart, and an evil person brings evil things out of the evil treasure. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. There is no good tree that bears bad fruit, nor is there a bad tree that bears good fruit. Every tree is recognized by its own fruit. You don't find figs on a thorn bush, or grapes on a bramble bush.

- o – o – o – o -

Not everyone who addresses me as 'Lord, Lord' acknowledges the kingship of God,

but those who do the will of my heavenly Father.

• For whoever hears my words and does them is like a man who, when building his house, dug deep and laid the foundation on rock. When the rain fell and the floods came, the walls of that house could not be shaken, because it had been built on rock.
• But whoever hears my words and does not act on them is like a sloth who builds his house on loose sand, without a foundation. When the rain falls and the water flows down the slope, the walls collapse, and the house collapses with a great crash.'

*

When we enter Capernaum at the end of the day, the leaders of the meeting are waiting for us. One of them, Jairus, tells me that a valued servant of the commander is seriously ill. At the commander's request, they urge me to heal him: "He is worthy of this, for he loves our people and has given us the manpower and materials to build our House of Assembly."

The garrison in Capernaum is manned by mercenaries from among the Gentiles. But Capernaum is fortunate to have this commander. He has come to love the God of Israel and is considerate of our feelings.

I walk with them. But not much further, near the commander's house, friends of his approach us with a second message:

"Sir, don't bother going to a pagan like me. That's why I'm sending my Jewish friends to you. Just give the order and my servant will be healed. For I know what it is to obey orders and to give orders. When I say to my soldiers, 'Go,' they go, or 'Come,' they come. Or to my servant, 'Do this,' he does it."

I am astonished. This man, who has only met me in passing, sums up the essence of God's kingship in a single sentence. I turn to Jairus and the others and say, "How much effort do I have to put into explaining this to the Israelites, and this Gentile understands it and applies it!" I see in Jairus' eyes that these words hurt him.

Later that day, I hear that the sick man is doing well. Thank God.