15 Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed him, and he healed them all 16 and ordered them not to make him known.17 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah:
18 “Behold, my servant whom I have chosen,
my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased.
I will put my Spirit upon him,
and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
19 He will not quarrel or cry aloud,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets;
20 a bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory; and in his name the Gentiles will hope.”
my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased.
I will put my Spirit upon him,
and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
19 He will not quarrel or cry aloud,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets;
20 a bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory; and in his name the Gentiles will hope.”
(Matthew 12)
Jesus was getting quite a following. Many were tired of "dead religion" with all its rules, regulations and ruts. But Jesus did not want simply popularity of those who would "like" Him. He avoided the limelight as much as possible, staying out of the streets and on the hillsides. He kept perspective. So did Matthew. In the midst of presenting Jesus as the Messianic King, he two times reminds himself, his readers, and us, that Jesus came to bring Gentiles, those outside of historic Israel, forgiveness, hope and justice. Let us be reminded that Jesus does not just love me and mine, but all the peoples of the earth, and that as we share our relationship with Him with others, we may find that He joins us to people whom we consider "not like us", more than He does those we see as our own. Following Jesus isn't meant to be popular, just life-changing.
No comments:
Post a Comment