We always want our faith to revolve around the center of what God has revealed, which is of course the gospel. But it is not enough to have the word gospel in our conversation. We must see that our definition of the word matches the teaching and instruction of Christ.
As Christ resists the temptations of Satan, we see Him in contrast to both Adam and Israel. First we see the Spirit’s imperative. The text makes plain that the Spirit drove Christ into the wilderness. The word used (ekballo) is very strong (v. 12). As we have already seen, the wilderness is a picture of desolate Israel, a place of temptation and defeat. The Spirit drove Christ there to be tempted (v. 13). As the second Adam, note the contrast between this and the first great temptation of the first Adam. In the first, the location was a garden, and the result was defeat. Here the location is a forsaken wilderness, and the outcome was glorious victory. Christ is also the antitype of Old Testament Israel. They spent forty years in the wilderness also; they were tempted; they stumbled and sinned. But Christ, the new Israel, tempted for forty days (v. 13) resisted and stood where all others had fallen. Christ encountered Satan and wild beasts, and when He had won the victory, angels came and ministered to Him (v. 13). The first Adam encountered the dragon, did not win the victory, and was expelled from the Garden.
The story of John the Baptist’s arrest is told elsewhere. Here it is just mentioned in passing to make clear the time when Christ began His ministry in Galilee (v. 14). What did Jesus preach? The language here is striking. Jesus preached the gospel of the kingdom of God (v. 14). We preach a truncated gospel, and it is not surprised that the results are so different. The message of the kingdom is part of the biblical gospel. What are the elements of this gospel? These are the sorts of things He said when He preached the gospel of God’s kingdom. First, the time is fulfilled. This is no ad hoc gospel. The salvation of God’s elect was settled aeons before. Second, the kingdom is at hand. The words are plain enough. We have expended a great deal of eschatological ingenuity in order to make this mean, “the kingdom is not really at hand.” But it was, and is. Third, Jesus says, “repent ye.” Sin destroys, sin is irrational, sin is a liar, and sin offends God. Turn from it. Here again, we modern evangelicals have sought to “improve” on Christ’s message, and it is not really an improvement. And last, “believe the gospel.” Belief is demanded, and unbelief must therefore be identified as the great thief of all that is lovely. Do we believe the time was fulfilled, the kingdom was at hand, and that sin and unbelief have to go?
After this, we have the call of the fishermen. Christ here calls two sets of brothers to follow Him — Simon and Andrew, and James and John. We learn from other Gospels that their call was not as abrupt as it might appear here, but we must still note they left all behind irrevocably. Simon and Andrew were actively fishing with a circular net (v. 16). Jesus calls them from that task, and tells them He will make them fishers of men (v. 17). He uses a very homely image for evangelism, but we must never apply our notions of fishing to what He had in mind. Christ is not speaking of trout fishing in a mountain stream. He is talking about hauling nonbelievers into the Church en masse until it almost sinks the boat. He is talking about fishing with nets. And right then, they followed Him (v. 18). James and John were working at a different aspect of the fisherman’s trade, that of mending nets. Jesus calls them, and they drop everything, leaving their father behind. They straightway follow Christ.
In much popular preaching and teaching, the disciples of Christ are represented as spiritual boneheads. This is fine, where the text requires it, as long as we still remember that here, even before all their missed lessons and opportunities during the course of Christ’s ministry, they still far excel us. Look what they did! And look at how we would figure out some way to exegete our way out of the demands of discipleship. They left everything and followed Him.