Jesus’ life on earth was lived on the move. After Mary’s long journey from Nazareth, He was born in Bethlehem, in fulfillment of the Lord’s words spoken through the prophet Micah.
2 “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Though you are little among the thousands of Judah,
Yet out of you shall come forth to Me
The One to be Ruler in Israel,
Whose goings forth are from of old,
From everlasting.” Micah 5:2 (NKJV)
Not long after His birth, the Spirit warned Jesus’ stepfather, Joseph, in a dream about the intentions of jealous King Herod. Learning of the birth of the Messiah from visiting wise men from the east, Herod would undertake a murderous rampage to eliminate any potential competition to his throne. As a result of the warning, Joseph fled to Egypt with his small family under cover of night to ride out the coming storm. This was one of Satan’s first attempts to thwart God’s redemptive plan.
When King Herod died, Joseph planned to return with his family to Judah. But again, the Spirit warned him away in a dream, telling Joseph that Herod’s son was now ruling there and was no better than his father. So Joseph instead took his family north to settle in the region of Galilee, in Nazareth.
Jesus grew in wisdom and stature in Nazareth and began working alongside his step-father as a carpenter. The young man had an amazing knowledge of scripture and exhibited great insight before the religious authorities at the temple in Jerusalem. But in other ways, Jesus was much like the other young men of Nazareth. The Bible tells us that Jesus’ first miracle would not occur until His adult ministry began, occurring at a wedding feast at Cana. At His mother Mary’s request, He would turn water into wine to help save some wedding hosts from embarrassment when their own celebratory wine ran out. The quality of the new wine greatly surpassed that of the old, which amazed the wine stewards.
When Jesus approached thirty years old, He began His three-year ministry of preaching the Good News of the kingdom of heaven in the towns and cities of Israel. To accompany and confirm His message, He healed countless people along way, even raising some from the dead. He also delivered and freed many who were suffering from demonic spiritual bondage.
Jesus’ earthly ministry had formally begun when He was baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan River. John, a second cousin of Jesus, had been given the ministry of Elijah – preparing the way for the coming Messiah. People were divinely drawn to John from all over the countryside to hear his messages, confess their sins, change their ways, and receive a baptism of repentance in the Jordan River in preparation for the coming of their heavenly King.
John initially did not want to baptize Jesus because he knew that Jesus was without sin. But Jesus insisted, and when He came up out of the water, the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus like a dove, with the voice of the Father giving His loving approval. This is a special moment in the Bible where the Trinity is seen and heard together.
After His baptism, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days to fast and pray in preparation for His three-year ministry. This ministry would lead to Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection from the dead, providing salvation for all of His believers worldwide. While in the desert, He was tempted by Satan, who did everything in his power to cause Jesus to stumble and fail in His loving mission. But Jesus held firm, using quotes He had memorized from scripture to fend off the attacks. After His time of fasting was complete, angels attended to Him and helped to restore His strength. Jesus anointed ministry was now fully underway, and He returned to the town of his youth to announce it.
16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: Luke 4:16-17 (NKJV)
1 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord… Isaiah 61:1-2a (NKJV)
20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” Luke 4:20-21 (NKJV)
Although coming to them was a great honor, Jesus was, in fact, rejected by the people of Nazareth, who saw Him only as the carpenter’s son. In fact, when He rebuked them for their unbelief, they tried to kill Jesus by throwing Him off a rocky cliff, as Nazareth is located on such a hill. But He escaped their efforts, passing right through their midst.
Jesus’ rejection would not only occur in Nazareth. He would face many who would not accept who He was. After this, Jesus’ ministry was expanded to reach out to the whole world, both Jew and Gentile, as had been prophesied by Isaiah.
1 “I was sought by those who did not ask for Me;
I was found by those who did not seek Me.
I said, ‘Here I am, here I am,’
To a nation that was not called by My name. Isaiah 65:1 (NKJV)
Later, when John the Baptist had been locked up by King Herod and began to have doubts, Jesus sent his messengers quoting from Isaiah 35:
4 Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: 5 The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 6 And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” Matthew 11:4-6 (NKJV)
God had planned to offer salvation to the whole world through the Jewish nation all along, but the rejection of Him as Messiah by many of them expedited this process. The Gospel of Salvation was henceforth offered to the Gentiles, as well. This would be spearheaded by the ministry of the Apostle Paul, who would receive his own anointing on the road to Damascus, dramatically changing the direction of his life.
The Messiah has come, anointed by the Father to provide salvation to the world.
Do you know Him?
Reflection
Who do I say that Jesus is? A carpenter’s son? A great and wise man and teacher? Or the Messiah, both God Almighty and human, the source of my faith and eternal salvation? This is the most important question we face in our life.
Lord, open my eyes to see who You really are. Help me to understand that You have been at my side every step of the way, preserving and loving me from even before my birth right up to this moment. Grant me the gift of salvation offered on Your cross through faith, that I may be cleansed of all my sin and spend eternity with You. Reveal to me Your magnificence and help me to follow You. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
Have a blessed and beautiful day in the Lord today.
Daily Meditations from the Genealogy of Jesus 