UPDATE FOR ALL STUDENTS AND READERS

We just finished the very dramatic Chapter 14 of Matthew’s Gospel. We saw where the wicked king Herod was forced to arrest John the Baptizer because his wife was upset over what the preacher was saying. It seems that in one or more of his sermons John the Baptizer had denounced Herod for illegally taken his brother Philip’s wife, Herodias, to be his wife. Philip and Herodias already had a daughter named Salome.

But Herodias wasn’t finished, she didn’t want John the Baptizer merely arrested and then let go after a certain period of time. No! She wanted him dead! But how? Then she hatched a plan. She had her beautiful young daughter, Salome, to dance on Herod’s birthday. It was a custom for a king to be generous on his birthday. So she instructed her daughter that when Herod asked what it was he could give her for such an enticing dance, she was to say, “I want John the Baptizer’s head served on a platter.”

With reluctance, Herod did just that. And when Jesus heard about it, because John the Baptizer was a relative through his mother, Mary; and because John the Baptizer had been ordained by God to be the messenger announcing Jesus’ coming and ministry, He took it personally. This prompted Jesus to seek solitude where He could grieve, but when He arrived at his destination, a large crowd was there to greet Him. So instead of sending them away to wait another day, He began to teach them and heal their sick.

By the end of the day everybody was hungry, so Jesus asked His disciples to feed them. But they had no food. Then Jesus asked them to see what they could find. They came back with a little boy’s lunch consisting of five small flatbreads and two sardines. So Jesus took this little meal, blessed it, gave some to each of His disciples and told them to distribute it. What a miracle! There was enough food to feed 5,000 men plus women and children! Not only that but when they took up the scraps it filled twelve baskets!

When it was all over, Jesus told His disciples to go by boat across the lake to the other side and He would join them later. While on the crossing, the disciples ran into a wind storm. It got worse as the night wore on. Then, right in the middle of the night, a figure appeared walking on the water. At first, they were frightened, but when Jesus identified Himself it calmed their fears. However, Peter wanted to make sure. So he asked the figure on the water to invite him over to where He was. Jesus did so, and Peter got out of the boat, and sure enough, he started walking on the water toward Jesus.

But the wind was still blowing pretty hard and the water was not calm and smooth and Peter became afraid as he stepped over one whitecap after another. As soon as he took his eyes off Jesus, Peter began to sink into the stormy waves. But Jesus reached out and pulled him back up, and together they walked to the boat. As soon as they got in, the wind stopped, the waves ceased, and they sailed on to their destination.

The disciples were astounded. They looked at each other, then turning to Jesus they bowed before Him and said, “Truly, you are the Son of God.” They then kept on sailing until they arrived at their destination. But as soon as they embarked from  the boat and came on shore, people there recognized Jesus and soon the word spread. So people started bringing their family and friends to be healed, merely by touching the hem of Jesus’ garment.

What a wonderful story! But instead of Jesus setting up His ministry headquarters there, He would soon be greeted by skeptics and doubters. They were not out to learn more about the anointed prophet from Galilee but to find fault with Him and His disciples. We will encounter them in the next chapter. I hope and pray you will continue to walk along with me as we travel this path in Matthew’s Gospel, telling the greatest story every told.

I want to thank you and congratulate you on your love for God’s Word. And I ask Him to bless you for taking the time to study it so that you can know more about His Son Jesus. God bless you.