Ministry of Jesus
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The ministry of Jesus, in the
Jesus' early Galilean ministry begins when after his baptism, he goes
In the later Judean ministry Jesus starts his final journey to Jerusalem through Judea.
The final ministry in Jerusalem is sometimes called the Passion week and begins with Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem.[18] The gospels provide more details about the final ministry than the other periods, devoting about one third of their text to the last week of the life of Jesus in Jerusalem.[19]
Overview
canonical gospels |
Portals: Christianity Bible |
The gospel accounts place the beginning of Jesus' ministry in the countryside of Roman province Judaea , near the River Jordan.[1]
The gospels present
Luke 3:23 states that Jesus was "about 30 years of age" at the start of his ministry.[2][3] There have been different approaches to estimating the date of the start of the ministry of Jesus.[2][23][24][25] One approach, based on combining information from the Gospel of Luke with historical data about Emperor Tiberius yields a date around 28–29 AD/CE, while a second independent approach based on statements in the Gospel of John along with historical information from Josephus about the Temple in Jerusalem leads to a date around AD 27–29.[3][23][24][26][27][note 1]
In the New Testament, the date of the Last Supper is very close before the date of the crucifixion of Jesus (hence its name). Scholarly estimates for the date of the crucifixion generally fall in the range AD 30–36.[29][30]
The three Synoptic Gospels refer to just one passover, specifically the Passover at the end of Jesus's ministry when he is crucified (with the exception of Luke's Gospel, which narrates a visit of the Holy Family for Passover when Jesus is twelve years old). There are three references to Passovers in John's Gospel: 2:13, 6:4, and 12:1. Some contend that the Gospel of John refers to only two actual Passovers, one at the beginning of Jesus's ministry and the second at the end of Jesus's ministry, and that the third reference to Passover is only a forecasting of the second Passover in the Gospel of John. But much scholarship recognizes that a lot of time passes between 6:4, "the Passover . . . was at hand," and 12:1, "Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany..," especially at the beginning of Chapter 7 which even includes another feast (Booths/Tabernacles), and then again at 10:22 another season passes as well as the Feast of Dedication.
This third reference to a passover in the Gospel of John is why many suggest that Jesus's ministry was a period of about three years. Scholars that support a three-year ministry, such as Köstenberger state that the Gospel of John simply provides a more detailed account.[20][21][31]
During the ministry of Jesus, the
Baptism and early ministry
The gospels present John the Baptist's ministry as the precursor to that of Jesus and the Baptism of Jesus as marking the beginning of Jesus' ministry.[1][20][21]
In his sermon in Acts 10:37–38, delivered in the house of
John 1:28 specifies the location where John was baptizing as "Bethany beyond the Jordan".
Luke 3:23 and Luke 4:1 indicate possible activities of Jesus near the Jordan River around the time of his baptism, as does the initial encounter with the disciples of John the Baptist in John 1:35–37, where "two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus".[38][39][40] Assuming that there were two incidences of Cleansing of the Temple, which was located in Jerusalem, a possible reference to an early Judean ministry may be John 2:13–25.[41][42][43]
Ministry in Galilee
Early Galilean ministry
The Early Galilean ministry begins when, according to Matthew, Jesus goes back to Galilee from the
The Gospel of John includes the Wedding at Cana as the first miracle of Jesus taking place in this early period of ministry, with his return to Galilee.[44][45] A few villages in Galilee (e.g. Kafr Kanna) have been suggested as the location of Cana.[46][47]
The
In this early period, Jesus' reputation begins to spread throughout Galilee. In Mark 1:21–28 and Luke 4:31–37, Jesus goes to
Luke 5:1–11 includes the first
This period includes the Sermon on the Mount, one of the major discourses of Jesus in Matthew, and the Sermon on the Plain in the Gospel of Luke.[6][54] The Sermon on the Mount, which covers chapters 5, 6 and 7 of the Gospel of Matthew, is the first of the Five Discourses of Matthew and is the longest piece of teaching from Jesus in the New Testament.[54] It encapsulates many of the moral teachings of Jesus and includes the Beatitudes and the widely recited Lord's Prayer.[54][55]
The Beatitudes are expressed as eight blessings in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, and four similar blessings appear in the Sermon on the Plain in Luke, where they are followed by four woes that mirror the blessings.[56] The Beatitudes present the highest ideals of the teachings of Jesus on mercy, spirituality and compassion.[56][57]
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Marriage at Cana
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Synagogue in Capernaum
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First disciples and Miraculous catch of fish
Major Galilean ministry
The Major Galilean ministry, also called the Great Galilean ministry, begins in
The beginnings of this period include
In this period, Jesus is still gathering the
In the
In Matthew 11:2–6 two messengers from John the Baptist arrive to ask Jesus if he is the expected Messiah, or "shall we wait for another?"[67] Jesus replies, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk".[68] Following this, Jesus begins to speak to the crowds about the Baptist.[69]
This period is rich in parables and teachings and includes the Parabolic discourse, which provides many of the parables for the
At the end of the Major Galilean ministry, Jesus returns to his hometown, Nazareth. His wisdom is recognised there, questioned, and rejected.[72]
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Twelve Apostles
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Seventy Disciples
Final Galilean ministry
The Final Galilean ministry begins after the
Following this, the gospels present the Walking on water episode in Matthew 14:22–23, Mark 6:45–52 and John 6:16–21 as an important step in developing the relationship between Jesus and his disciples, at this stage of his ministry.
Major teachings in this period include the Discourse on Defilement in Matthew 15:1–20 and Mark 7:1–23 where, in response to a complaint from the Pharisees, Jesus states: "What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean.'".[76]
Following this episode, Jesus withdraws into the "parts of
In the Gospel of Mark, after passing through Sidon, Jesus enters the region of the Decapolis, a group of ten cities south-east of Galilee, where the Healing the deaf mute miracle is reported in Mark 7:31–37. After the healing, the disciples say: "He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak." The episode is the last in a series of narrated miracles which builds up to Peter's proclamation of Jesus as Christ in Mark 8:29.[80]
Judea and Perea to Jerusalem
Later Judean ministry
In this period, Jesus starts his final journey to Jerusalem by going around
Later in this period, at about the middle of each of the three
Peter's Confession begins as a dialogue between Jesus and his disciples in Matthew 16:13, Mark 8:27 and Luke 9:18. Jesus asks his disciples: But who do you say that I am? Simon Peter answers him: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
In the Gospel of Matthew, following this episode, Jesus also selects Peter as the leader of the Apostles, and states that "upon this rock, I will build my church".[32] In Matthew 16:18 Jesus then continues: "That thou art Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my church". The word "church" (ekklesia in Greek) as used here, appears in the Gospels only once more, in Matthew 18:17, and refers to the community of believers at the time.[91]
Later Perean ministry
Following the proclamation by Peter, the account of the Transfiguration of Jesus is the next major event and appears in Matthew 17:1–9, Mark 9:2–8 and Luke 9:28–36.[12][85][86] Jesus takes Peter and two other apostles with him and goes up to a mountain, which is not named. Once on the mountain, Matthew 17:2 states that Jesus "was transfigured before them; his face shining as the sun, and his garments became white as the light." At that point, the prophets Elijah and Moses appear and Jesus begins to talk to them.[85] Luke is specific in describing Jesus in a state of glory, with Luke 9:32 referring to "they saw his glory".[92] A bright cloud appears around them, and a voice from the cloud states: "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him".[85]
The Transfiguration not only supports the identity of Jesus as the Son of God, (as in his Baptism), but the statement "listen to him" identifies him as the messenger and mouth-piece of God.[93] The significance is enhanced by the presence of Elijah and Moses, for it indicates to the apostles that Jesus is the voice of God, and, instead of Elijah or Moses, he should be listened to, by virtue of his filial relationship with God.[93] 2 Peter 1:16–18 echoes the same message: at the Transfiguration, God assigns to Jesus a special "honor and glory" and it is the turning point at which God exalts Jesus above all other powers in creation.[94]
Many of the episodes in the Later Judean ministry are from the Gospel of Luke but, in general, these sequence of episodes in Luke do not provide enough geographical information to determine Perea, though scholars generally assume that the route Jesus followed from Galilee to Jerusalem passed through
This period of ministry includes the
Addressing his apostles in Matthew 18:18, Jesus states: "Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven". The discourse emphasizes the importance of humility and self-sacrifice as the high virtues within the anticipated community. It teaches that in the Kingdom of God, it is personal humility that matters, not social prominence and clout.[95][96]
At the end of this period, the Gospel of John includes the
Final ministry in Jerusalem
The final ministry in Jerusalem is traditionally called the
Before arriving in Jerusalem, in John 12:9–11, after
In the three Synoptic Gospels, entry into Jerusalem is followed by the
In that week, the synoptics also narrate conflicts between Jesus and the elders of the Jews, in episodes such as the
In
A key episode in the final part of the ministry of Jesus is the Last Supper, which includes the Institution of the Eucharist. In Matthew 26:26–29, Mark 14:22–25, Luke 22:19–20 during the last supper, Jesus takes bread, breaks it and gives it to the disciples, saying: "This is my body which is given for you". He also gives them "the cup" to drink, saying this is his blood. While it may have been fermented, none of the biblical accounts refer to it as wine, but rather as "the fruit of the vine" or "the cup". In
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Last Supper and Eucharist
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Farewell discourse
See also
- Gospels and theology
- Christ myth theory
- Gospel harmony
- Historical Jesus
- Jesus Seminar
- Jesus in Christianity
- Life of Christ in art
- Life of Jesus in the New Testament
- Miracles of Jesus
- Parables of Jesus
- Associated places
- Al-Maghtas
- Qasr el Yahud
Notes
- ^ a b Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible states that Jesus began his ministry "ca 28 AD" at "ca age 31". In Chronos, Kairos, Christos: Paul L. Maier specifically states that he considers the Temple visit date in John at "around 29 AD/CE", using various factors that he summarizes in a chronology table. Maier's table considers 28 AD/CE to be roughly the 32nd birthday of Jesus, and elsewhere he states that 5 BC was the year of Jesus' birth.[28] Paul N. Anderson dates the temple incident at "around 26–27 AD/CE" Jerry Knoblet estimates the date as around AD 27 AD/CE. In their book, Robert Fortna & Thatcher estimate the date at around AD/CE 28. Köstenberger & Kellum (p. 140) make the same statement as Maier, namely that the 32nd birthday of Jesus was around 28 AD/CE when his ministry began.
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