in the darkness

Jesus Begins to Preach

12 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he returned to Galilee.13 Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali–

14 to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:

15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the sea, along the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles–

16 the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”

17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”

matthew 4

i'm writing this from cordona in san diego. right now it's 7:16 in the morning and i'm reading the bible on the living room couch. there are about 9 kids upstairs who are sleeping. i'm still getting to know them but just listening to their stories already, i know that each and every one of them needs God in their lives. i am helping out with neighborhood ministries. this ministry reaches out to inner city kids and approaches them with a holistic approach in tutoring the kids, hanging out with them, and sharing the Gospel with them. we shared a little bit about our families last night. my heart broke as these teenagers shared in their small groups. these guys and girls have gone through so much. divorces, loneliness, foster homes, sexual abuse. and yet, i have hope. man, when they get together, there's this joy that overcomes the room and a comfort that washes over their faces. God is working and moving here. and it's amazing.

Jesus went to the land of the gentiles. to the land of the people who did not know God. the land of darkness. the land of the shadow of death. He went to galilee. He started his ministry in this place. these people were kept in the dark, they've never known the light of God. so when Jesus came into the picture, there was a great "light that dawned." to kids or even adults that have never heard the Gospel, this news that God loves them and forgives them and wants to take care of them rocks their world. in a world of darkness, of pain and hurt, or broken families and homes, God's light shines so brightly.

*tangent/rant* something i've been taking notice of is that it seems that the people who were truly broken and needed salvation have become the people who are the most on fire for Christ compared to people to a lot of people who seem to have "known" Him a long time. i've been asking myself, "why?" why is it that the majority of these people who have grown up in churches, youth groups, vacation bible schools, and christian conferences are the furthest away from God? i was watching a sermon from matt chandler the other day and he shared something on this. it seems that the American church has its own gospel that it teaches to its people. it teaches kids and adults that if you do the right things, you'll earn God's blessings and favor. not blatantly, of course, but that's what's getting through. we teach our kids that if they don't watch r-rated movies, don't cuss, share, and be kind to others, God will bless us! and the moment something bad happens to us, we break up with "the love of our life," our house is foreclosed, our parent get divorced, we don't get into the schools we wanted to get into, we automatically go straight to God. "God, what's going on?? i did everything right! i did everything you told me to do! and you're going to do this to me??" we've been taught a false gospel. we need to realize and turn our teaching back around. that God is not a genie or some sort of vending machine that grants us anything we want if we do the right things. God is great and good and note this: a father. He disciplines. He doesn't just give because we ask. He teaches lessons because He loves and He knows we won't learn anything unless He puts something in our lives to show us that! no wonder the gospel that we've been teaching isn't shining brightly! no wonder that unbelievers look in and laugh at us! this gospel we've been teaching is fake! the real Gospel is this: God created us. We fell. He sent His son, Jesus, to redeem us by dying on the cross and raising from the dead. Jesus told us to repent of our sins and live the life He showed us how to live. As we wait for the return of the King. note: our part is to repent (turn away from our sins, not just turn, but run the other way) and live life the way He showed us to. to take care of the orphans and widows. to sacrifice our lives as in our time, money, preferences, comfort to serve God. to truly love, and not secretly hate, each other. if we asked american christians these simple things. how many people do you think would actually be doing the things that Jesus asked us to do? honestly. think about it. not a lot. and i'm just as guilty. this is why nonbelievers laugh at us, because we're hypocrites. and it's not that we should feel like we're "ready" to serve God. that we have to get "cleaned up" to serve God. God uses you the moment you accept Him. the Kingdom begins now. what are you going to do about it?