MY CAPERNAUM. By Pastor Fernando

SCRIPTURE. Matthew 4:12-16

¹²When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he returned to Galilee. ¹³Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— ¹⁴to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:
¹⁵"Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
the way to the sea, along the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles—
¹⁶the people living in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned."

OBSERVATION

Jesus begins his ministry in Galilee, most exactly in the city of Capernaum. According to the prophetic word of Isaiah and the report of Matthew, the people of this city were living in darkness. It was the land of the shadow of death. Jesus intentionally decides to shine His light in the darkest places. It was there where He found His first disciples. From there, His healing ministry became notorious and His fame spread until Syria.

APPLICATION
As we chose to follow the ministry of Jesus, we need to find our own Capernaum, a place where darkness seems to have domain, and shine the light of Christ's love with faithfulness. We cannot be afraid of the darkness. We need to be in the midst of it. Many Christians want to stay in the light always because they fear the darkness will overpower them. We need to find our Capernaum so we can make a difference in this world.

Last night my good friend from church invited me for dinner with one of his colleges from work. He warned me that his friend was kind of... lost. And it was true. This guy is close to professional success, but afar from the restoring love of God. His conversations were filthy and his mindset was covered by darkness. What a contrast! All day I was surrounded by pastors in a conference, and at the end of the day I was with someone living in the darkness. I realized that I was in Capernaum, and that I like to be in Capernaum.

I enjoyed my dinner with this gentleman. We did not talked about Christ, but he said that our time together was the highlight of his trip. The Lord reminded me of the importance to be around people that are living in darkness. How else they are going to see the light? We cannot hide the light under a bushel. We need to shine God's light, like a city on a hill.

PRAYER

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you so much for the Capernaum moments you give me to shine your light. Please give me a passion to always seek opportunities to shine your light in dark places and to give people living in darkness a taste of what it means to walk with you. Amen!