Turning On The Light
Matthew 4: 12-22
(Mark 1:14, 15; Luke 4: 14, 15)
Galilee, where Jesus grew up, was in northern Palestine. Many Gentiles had lived among the Jews in Galilee for centuries. The Jews around Jerusalem, which was in southern Palestine, looked down on their Galilean cousins. They thought the Jews in Galilee were contaminated because they had regular contact with Gentiles.
The Jews in Jerusalem also thought they were more religious than their cousins, and that the light of God’s truth shined brightly around their city. In their opinion, Galilee was in the spiritual darkness. However, the “light” of Jesus was seen in Galilee more clearly than it was in Jerusalem. When we feel like we’re in the dark, we look for the light. God wants to give us light so we can find our way to him and a fulfilled life.
