His Final Departure from Galilee for His Ministry Beyond the Jordan

["Click here for Matthew's account"]
["Click here for Mark's account"]
["Click here for Luke's account"]

We are indebted to John for these last 6-recorded events in the life of Christ that we have just studied. They have described in great detail, His last attempt to bring His message to Jerusalem. We now leave the Gospel according to John and turn to the last months in the life of Christ, studying events that are recorded only in Matthew, Mark and Luke. Christ returned to Galilee from Jerusalem and there, after a few weeks, left Galilee for the last time. In the remaining months, before Palm Sunday, Jesus will do the following:

Commission the 70 Disciples.
Give instructions concerning marriage and divorce.
Bless the "little children".
Explain the relationship of riches to eternal life.
Relate the parable of the laborers in the vineyard.
Forecast His death and resurrection.
Give the standards for "greatness".
Heal the blind beggar at Jericho.
Dine with Zacchaeous.
Raise Lazarath from the dead.
Relate plots of His death.
Attend a supper in His honor at Bethany.

By then, we will have completed 2/3rds. of the Gospels. So we start these last few months with His final departure from Galilee.
In the accounts of Matthew, Mark and Luke, we jump from His teaching on humility, self-denial and forgiveness, to this reference of His leaving Capernaum, "Thus when He had finished these sayings, He went away from Galilee." This was no small event in the life of Christ. He had grown up in Galilee. He had lived there sense He was 9 years old. He had worked there as a carpenter and supported His mother and brothers for perhaps 15 or 20 years. This had been His home the location of His friends. He was leaving, never to return until after the resurrection.
He went to the banks of the Jordan, to the east of Judah. These people, like the Galileans, were not "orthodox Jews", but never the less, they deserved the presence of Jesus for they were also of the House of Israel.
Notice great multitudes followed Him. Matthew says, "He healed them there." Healing meant a great deal at the hands of Christ. It encompassed physical healing, spiritual newness, re-birth, salvation, newness of life and hope. Then, as we will see from this point on, the Pharisees will be with Him constantly in an effort to entrap Him in some breaking of the Law.
Luke, in his Gospel, simply describes this event in 9:51, as, "When the days drew near when He was to be "received up", He set His face to go to Jerusalem." But there are many events that must come to pass before He reaches Jerusalem. Luke records a few of these events prior to the commissioning of the 70 Disciples, which are not recorded in the other Gospels. Setting His face towards Jerusalem, He entered the villages of the Samaritans. The people there would not receive Him. When James and John saw this they wanted to bring fire down upon them but Jesus rebuked them. As they were going down a road, a man said to Jesus, "I will follow you wherever you go." But Jesus said to the man, "I don't even have a place to lay my head." Later, Jesus saw another man and said to him, "Follow me." But the man said to Jesus, "Lord, let me go first and bury my father." Then Jesus said, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the Kingdom of Heaven." Thus we see examples of how people respond to the call of Christ.

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