This is my first post on “Meditations from Mark.” These are simple reflections about what I’m learning as a read through Matthew with a view toward following the master teacher as one of His disciples. There is nothing earth-shattering here. Jesus has already “shattered” the ceiling when it comes to being the Master Teacher. I am just hoping we all can learn anew what it truly means to become a disciple of the greatest Teacher who ever lived.
Matt. 4:4 – Jesus had a mission. Physical food is a necessity for life, but not to be valued over the Word. He desired to live by the Word. It was His “essence” food. I need to meditate on what it means to “live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”
Matt. 4:4-11 – Jesus used the Word, treasured in his heart, to repel Satan. He did not “speak on His own initiative” when He battled Satan, but rather quoted from the O.T. scriptures. As a disciple, I must have the Word imprinted on my heart in order at any time to recall its message and use its power against Satan. Prov. 3:3, “Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart.”
Matt. 4:19 – The call of Jesus to Peter and Andrew was to make them “catch” men, to “net” them for God. They left their secular work as fishermen. My secular work is important as a way to support my family and my myself, but it is not the work of God in that much of it will not last into eternity. Knowing this, I must remember that I can still do the work of Jesus in discipling others as I do secular work.
Matt. 4:18-20 – Both sets of brothers “immediately” answered the call of Jesus. None of them hesitated, like the one who later said, “Let me go home and say good-bye to my family.” There is an urgency to the work of discipling others, because souls are at stake. As with any important work, there is almost never a perfect time to disciple others, but God can harvest souls in the face of imperfect timing and imperfect opportunities. We must have faith that we can overcome any obstacle in order to “catch” souls for the Master.