Matthew 4 - What Does It Mean to Be a Follower of Jesus?

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What is happening in Matthew 4?

Jesus Is Tested in the Wilderness

Right after Jesus is baptized, he is led by the Spirit into the wilderness for 40 days and nights to be tested. It is interesting that Jesus doesn't start ministry right away with people, but the Holy Spirit has a more important experience for him. In the desert Jesus is tested by the devil three times. The devil is in the garden in Genesis 3 when Adam and Eve chose to disobey God and ruined the perfect relationship with God and each other. The devil will be there at the end of Jesus' ministry to try and trick him into not going to cross to save us. 

Now the devil tests Jesus as he begins his public ministry. It is very important that we understand the strategy of the devil, as he tests/tempts Jesus. With each temptation the devil says to Jesus, "If you are the son of God!" The devil is trying to get Jesus to validate his identity, as the Son of God before it is time. 

What is Jesus' strategy for defeating the devil? 

1. Jesus spent with God in the wilderness by fasting and praying. He was prepared spiritually for the devil's attack. Are you spending time alone with God?

2. With every temptation Jesus answered the devil by saying, "It is written!" Jesus quoted the Old Testament each time, which he had studied his whole life. Jesus used the bible as his weapon against spiritual attack. See Ephesians 6:12. Are you spending time in God's Word?" 

3. Jesus directly rebuked Satan (note the both name Satan and the devil are used interchangeably), by saying "Away from me Satan". This shows Satan is real and he is a personal spiritual entity.  Did you know you can directly rebuke Satan when you are being tempted?

Jesus Begins to Preach

Jesus went back to his hometown in Nazareth and went to Galilee, where he would call his first disciples. 

What what Jesus' primary message when he preached?

"From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

You will notice those were the exact same words that John the Baptistpreached when he came on the scene to prepare people for Jesus. As we talked about before to repent means to turn around and return to God. To repent means to do a 180 degree turn from walking away from God and return to the Father's love for us. God meets us right away when we turn back to Him. God wants to be in relationship with Him more than anything else, and He created us for this.  

Why Repent?

Because the kingdom of heaven has come near in Jesus. The power and majesty of God's heavenly kingdom came to earth through Jesus in a way the world had never seen. Everything Jesus said and did was an evidence of what the kingdom of God looks like when It comes through a person. It wasn't just an ethereal concept but real life stuff! 

Did you know God's kingdom can come through you the power of the Holy Spirit? 

Jesus Calls His First Disciples

One of the most important strategies Jesus will employ to bring God's kingdom is to teach others how to live in the power of the kingdom. Knowing his time on earth would be limited. Jesus' first priority was calling and training people..  Jesus did not call mighty and powerful people but regular ole' fishermen. How did he do it?  His strategy is also to meet people "on their turf"

What did most of the men do during the day? They were fishermen. So, Jesus approached two sets of brothers. Peter and Andrew and James and John. They would be the core of Jesus' discipleship team.  

How did Jesus call them?

Jesus did not give on long discourse on the reasons to follow him, but simply said, "Follow me". I love the response of the disciples. For Peter and Andrew, "At once they dropped their nets to follow him.." For James and John, "Immediately they left their boat to follow Jesus". 

Can you imagine how compelling Jesus' words must have been for them to respond so quickly? They left their livelihood to follow Jesus. They did not hesitate or waver. Being a disciple means to "follow Jesus" without delay or excuses.  

How Do We Follow Jesus? 

The best definition of what it means to be a follower of Jesus is, "To become the kind of person Jesus would be if he were you." To follow Jesus is to learn how he lived His life in obedience to the Father through the power of the Spirit and begin a journey on becoming more like him. This will be a lifelong journey with many ups and downs. 

If Jesus needed the Holy Spirit so do we. When we come to faith in Jesus, He gives us the Holy Spirit to help and empower us. 

I think a good question to ask yourself is, "Am I still running my life my way, or have I given that up to follow Jesus?" 

Following Jesus is a radical undertaking. Following Jesus will change the things you will do and say. Following Jesus will change how you treat people. Following Jesus will give you a new purpose for your life. Following Jesus will cause you to want to be involved in activities that will have an eternal impact, rather earthly pursuits which will have no value when you die. 

Would you say you are a follower of Jesus. Why or why Not? What are the things in your life you might change to be a more intentional follower of Jesus and did the things he did in his three years on the earth. 

Please note following Jesus does not mean you will be a perfect person. Trust me after following Jesus for 40 years, I still have a lot of work to do to be more like him. I still need to die to myself every day and become the type of person Jesus would be if he were living in me. This is a journey which will never be complete until he calls me home to live with him in heaven forever.  

Jesus Heals the Sick

Jesus continued his teaching and preaching ministry by going to the synagogue. Again he is "Meeting people on their own turf!". In this case is was the synagogue, where people gathered to worship Yahweh on the Sabbath. Te content of the message was same. The kingdom of heaven had come near. 

How did Jesus demonstrate the power of the kingdom in his ministry and teaching? 

You will notice Jesus did not just talk about the kingdom, he demonstrated its power in words and deeds. In this case he, "Healed every disease and sickness among the people." Notice it was not just a few people and few sicknesses, but every disease and sickness. 

When the kingdom has drawn near there is no disease or sickness. 

When God's kingdom collides with the earth through a person like Jesus, people are restored to wholeness. In this case it is physical wholeness, but we will also see different kinds of healing in the future chapters like emotional. 

Did you realize through the power of the Holy Spirit you can pray for people who are physically or emotionally sick? Note that not everyone you pray for will be healed that moment. It is in God's timing and in his way. I love what we teach on the Alpha Course (A ten week course which teaches the basics of the Christian faith". In the talk on healing Nicky Gumbel teaches 

"When we prayed for no one, no one got healed. When we prayed for all people some got healed!" 

Summary of Matthew 4: As you can see this chapter is of monumental important as we learn to follow and act like Jesus. We say how Jesus called his disciples by meeting them where they were at on "their own turf". And Jesus showed us what it looks like when the kingdom manifests itself through us as it did through Jesus' life and ministry. 

What's Coming Up in Matthew 5 Tomorrow?

Jesus will teach his famous Sermon on the Mount for the next three chapters. This sermon represents Jesus' most comprehensive teaching on what it looks like to be his follower. Because he is teaching is mainly to his fellow Jews, He is going to teach them how the Old Testament relates to being a follower of Him. He will teach the real purpose and intent of the Law of Moses, and how they can only keep it through Him! 

See you tomorrow!