KEY VERSE:
“And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people” (MATTHEW 4:23).
Leonard Ravenhill, a 20th-century revivalist and preacher of holiness, once said, “Smart men walked on the moon, daring men walked on the ocean floor, but wise men walk with God”.
Christ’s mission on earth indeed attracted men who followed Him all the way. In today’s passage, He characteristically concentrated on His teaching, preaching and healing among the people. He preached no other message than the gospel of God’s kingdom. He healed all manner of sicknesses and diseases without discrimination. These acts of kindness increased His fame, and unarguably, multitudes thronged Him. And all who came had their needs met.
What a challenge to us today! As preachers and children of God, we are all expected to follow the example of Jesus. Our goal should be to preach the unadulterated gospel and teach nothing else but the truth. Popularity or fame should never be our intention or motivation. Ministers and true disciples should focus on doing God’s will and helping those oppressed by the devil as our Master did. We must also be sensitive enough to care for the material and physical needs of the people we preach to, as Jesus did.
When we follow the steps of Christ in preaching and proclaiming the gospel backed up with the practical efforts to relieve people of their burdens and sufferings through the help of the Holy Ghost, those practical deeds of kindness accompanying the sermons of salvation will help to open people’s heart to receive the gospel. Do not sit on the fence or close your eyes to their needs. Get into action. Multitudes await you out there. The fields are white already for harvest.
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