The Life of Christ

• This cut deeply to the core of their inflated Jewish nationalism which elicited a violent carnal response!

Lk. 4:27 “And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”

Naaman was also a Gentile.

• Following Jesus’ rejection, He presents these two illustrations to warn that faith is above race.

• It was also a silent subtle prophecy that after Israel rejects Jesus, the Gospel will go to the Gentiles.

Lk. 4:28-30 And all in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things; 29 and they rose up and cast Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff. 30 But passing through their midst, He went His way.

This hill stands at the edge of the city and presents a steep fall to certain death.

• Had they in fact thrown Him off, He would have floated softly down to the bottom, avoiding the many sharp rocks aimed to carve up His body.

• Jn. 10:15 says, “No man could kill Him”; He would have to lay down His own life.

Instead, He turned around and passed through their midst. • At this moment Jesus demonstrated Himself as the Breaker, the One able to break through any wall of opposition.

• Micah 2:13 reads, “The one who breaks open will come up before them; they will break out, pass through the gate, and go out by it; their king will pass before them, with the Lord as their head.”

• In 2 Sam. 5:20, King David said, “The Lord has broken through my enemies before me, like a breakthrough of water.”

SECTION 46

Mt. 4:12-13 Now when He heard that John had been taken into custody, He withdrew into Galilee; 13 and leaving Nazareth, He came and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali.

Nazareth was His first hometown; Capernaum will temporarily become His next.

• This city serves as His base from which He will travel throughout Galilee.

• Capernaum is also where Peter, Andrew, James and John all lived.

• It appears that after He was with His disciples in Cana, He went to Nazareth alone while they returned home to Capernaum.

In Capernaum He spoke frequently in the synagogue; it is also where He healed most of the sick and cast out the first demon.

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