Title: Following in the footsteps of the Lord
Contents
Text Mark 1:35-39
First of all, I would like to give thanks to the members who gave glory to God and prayed for the 33-member pilgrimage group to return from their 12 nights and 13 days of pilgrimage to the Holy Land. I bless you in the name of the Lord that the opportunity of pilgrimage to the Holy Land will come soon.
There is a saying, “Natural beauty in Africa, spiritual holiness in Israel!”
Around 1500 B.C., we spent a day in Cairo, Egypt, the starting point of God's work of leading the descendants of Israel (Jacob) who were slaves in Egypt through Moses, and the pilgrimage to the Holy Land began by visiting the Church of the Refuge of the Baby Jesus.
Massada said that 960 Zealots who fought against Rome committed suicide in A.D. 70. Even today, Israeli soldiers swear their allegiance to the country here and shout “never again”, so we must follow the example.
One night at Qumran (also called the Dead Sea Scrolls because it is close to the Dead Sea), where the manuscripts of the Old Testament were found almost completely, Jericho where Zacchaeus climbed a mulberry tree and met Jesus (now Jericho city), and the shore of the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus was active. Gaasharah Philippi, where Peter confessed, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16), returned to Capernaum through the Golan Heights, which was taken from Syria in the six-day war with Israel, and returned to Peter Suigwon Church. After visiting the Church of the Five Blessings and the Beatitudes, we rented a boat from the Sea of Galilee and held Sunday worship on board.
At the time of Jesus, there were many towns around the Sea of Galilee (Bethsaida, Korazin, Capernaum, Magadan, Tiberias).
Among them, the first place of Jesus’ ministry was Capernaum. Capernaum was a center of fellowship (Luke 7:17), and most of Jesus' disciples lived in Capernaum, and later even Jesus moved to Capernaum from Nazareth in Galilee (Matthew 4:13). Jesus performed the most miracles here. He healed the centurion's servant (Mt 8:5), the man possessed by a demon (Mark 1), Peter's mother-in-law's fever (Mt 8:14), and the paralytic (Mark 2:1). Yet, when Capernaum did not repent with Bethsaida and Korazin, Jesus rebuked them (Matthew 11:20-24). Although they are all in ruins now, only the Capernaum synagogue and some remains of that time remain.
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(1) You will see Jesus praying in the morning.
Did Jesus preach the word all day, cast out demons, or lay hands on the sick? Even though he was tired, he got up in the morning and prayed. “In the early morning, Jesus got up and went out to a secluded place, where he prayed” (Mark 1:35). Let's pray in the morning. I am a person who has to wake up in the morning to live. If you fall asleep at night and do not wake up at dawn, you are dead. Just as I have to wake up at dawn to live, I need to pray at dawn for my spirit to live. My spirit must live through prayer and the Word.
(2) Jesus who evangelizes
“Let us go to other nearby villages, and there we will also preach, for this is what I have come.” (Mark 1:38).
You can see traces of evangelism in the footsteps of Jesus. By the lakeside, in the synagogue, in the house, on the mountain, and even by the roadside, Jesus preached. Evangelism is the greatest love, power, and blessing.
(3) Jesus casting out demons
2000 years ago, Jesus cast out demons and said, “These signs will follow those who believe; in my name they will cast out demons, and they will speak with new tongues” (Mark 16:17).
You just have to be sure of the authority of the children of God. When you call on the name of Jesus, the demons tremble and go out. Please do not be afraid and be courageous. Think of it like dust on clothes and shake it off. Demons are driven out.
The word of the Bible is the same yesterday, today, and forever, the Word of the Lord, the life, the blessing, and the power.