By The Lake

Just being by the lakeside has a therapeutic effect on many people in our fast-paced society. There are not too many of us who prefer the office over spending time at the lake. Especially on a warm day, we really enjoy hanging out close to the water, sticking out toes into it, walking along a sandy beach in bare feet, collecting shells, watching the seagulls dive, casting a lure, or going for a boat ride. It’s one of the best escapes for people that are harassed.

This wasn’t any different for Jesus. He saw the lake area of Galilee as the best place to establish His fledgling ministry. Of course, Jesus was born in Bethlehem, which is in the South of Israel, in the tribal territory of Judah. From there His parents were forced to flee to Egypt, where Jesus spent His infancy. Thereafter the family moved back North to Nazareth, the hometown of Mary and Joseph. This is where Jesus grew up and learned His trade of carpentry. As an adult He then went down to Judea where He connected with John the Baptist, where He was baptized and where He was tempted in the wilderness. Things got very tense for John shortly after this and so his cousin Jesus decided to go to a more remote and natural setting. We read in Mt.4:12 (MSG): 

“When Jesus got word that John had been arrested, he returned to Galilee. He moved from his hometown, Nazareth, to the lakeside village Capernaum, nestled at the base of the Zebulun and Naphtali hills.”

In this idyllic setting, away from the religious, political and economic hubs of the country, Jesus began to recruit His followers and train them in hands on ministry, right by the lake. Mark points out Jesus’ close connection to the lakeside locality in the first few chapters of his gospel (NIV):

Mark 1:16
[ Jesus Calls His First Disciples ] As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.

Mark 2:13
[ Jesus Calls Levi and Eats With Sinners ] Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them.

Mark 3:7
[ Crowds Follow Jesus ] Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed.

Mark 4:1
[ The Parable of the Sower ] Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water’s edge.

Mark 5:1
[ Jesus Restores a Demon-Possessed Man ] They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes.

Mark 5:21
[ Jesus Raises a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman ] When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake.

Mark 6:47-49
Later that night, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Shortly before dawn he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost.

Jesus very deliberately picked the lakeside area to launch His ministry, in order to fulfill Biblical prophecy. We read in Matthew 4:14-16 (TLB):

“This fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy: “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, beside the lake, and the countryside beyond the Jordan River, and Upper Galilee where so many foreigners live—there the people who sat in darkness have seen a great Light; they sat in the land of death, and the Light broke through upon them.”

While our little lake here at Kingfisher Crossing is not the Sea of Galilee, it is our prayer, that people who have experienced extreme darkness in their lives will have a very personal encounter with Jesus Christ, the Light of the world.

O soul, are you weary and troubled? No light in the darkness you see? There's light for a look at the Saviour, And life more abundant and free! Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face; And the things of earth will grow strangely dim In the light of His glory and grace.
(by Helen Howarth Lemmel, © 1922)