Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near!

Posted on February 24, 2026 by Pastor Foley

“When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali—to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah: “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”  From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him. Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.” (Matthew 4:12-23)

We continue in the season of Epiphany with our scripture reading today, Matthew 4:12-23. Remember, the word “Epiphany” means “revealing”. During the season of Epiphany in the church lectionary calendar we read the scriptures that reveal the “big picture” of who Jesus really is. We learn what it means when the scriptures proclaim, “Jesus Christ is Lord” and “The kingdom of God is at hand”.  We learn what it means when Jesus says, “All power and authority in heaven and earth has been given to me”. In the other seasons of the church year, we focus on each of the individual “confessions” about Christ that make up the gospel. So each season is like listening to one of the individual instruments in an orchestra. But during Epiphany we hear all the instruments together, playing the whole symphony!

Sadly, most Christians have never even heard of Epiphany. Christmas and Easter have been the most popular Christian religious holidays in modern times. As a result, Christians today often conclude that Christmas and Easter must be the two main parts of the Christian message. We end up thinking of Jesus as a “Christmas-Easter Jesus”, and we end up with a “Christmas-Easter gospel.” We believe that the gospel message is that God sent his Son into the world (on Christmas!) so that he would die for our sins and open the way to eternal life (at Easter!). We know that all the other things about Jesus are important, but we think that Christmas and Easter are the cornerstones of the gospel, and as long as we get people to believe in the Christmas-Easter Jesus, the rest of the details of his life and of the Christian faith can be filled in later. 

But in fact, none of the four gospel writers (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John) begin their gospels with Christmas, and none of them end their gospels with Easter. They all want to make sure we understand that Jesus is not a new character in the Bible story who first appears at Christmas and who completes his work at Easter. Jesus is not the offspring of the God of the Old Testament, whom the Old Testament God kept hidden until he sent him into the world on a mission to die for our sins. Jesus is in fact that God who has spoken since the beginning, co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and the Holy Spirit.

In other words, the New Testament doesn’t reveal “the son of the Old Testament God”. The New Testament reveals that the Old Testament God is in fact Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So, along with all the other New Testament writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John start their stories of Jesus before Christmas and continue their stories of Jesus after Easter. They don’t proclaim a “Christmas-Easter Jesus” or a “Christmas-Easter gospel”. They proclaim Jesus as the Great “I AM”—the Alpha and the Omega—the image of the invisible God. He is the one who has been speaking since the beginning—to Adam, to Abraham, to Moses, to David, and to the Prophets. He is the Word. He is the one who created all things and the one in whom all things hold together. He comes not only to die but to defeat death. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John write their gospels not so that we respond by saying, “Thank you Jesus for dying for my sins.” They write so we will respond by falling at his feet in worship and crying out, “My Lord and my God!” That is why we have the season of Epiphany. It reveals who, and how big, Jesus is.

Jesus had gone to the south, to begin his ministry by being baptized by John the Baptist. John spoke out against King Herod because the king had married his former sister-in-law, so Herod had John arrested. When Jesus heard this, he withdrew back to the north, to Galilee, to begin his public ministry where had been raised. This was not because Jesus was running from Herod. As we see later, especially in Luke 13, Jesus knew he must enter Jerusalem freely, as its Lord, coming on the day he had appointed in the Old Testament for the city’s visitation. he would give himself up freely into the hands of Herod and the authorities only after his visitation

When the Gospel writers quote the Old Testament, it is because they want us to go back and read those scriptures. When we do that, we understand who Jesus is from Isaiah 9:6-7.

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)

Who is Jesus? He is not the Christmas-Easter Jesus who was born to die. He is the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, who reigns on David’s throne, who came to bring a kingdom that continues forever. Even death cannot stop his kingdom.

One of the controversies that Jesus faced was that the religious leaders claimed he could not be the Messiah because he was from Nazareth—“nowheresville”—in Galilee, which was the land of the Gentiles. But Jesus continually rebuked the religious leaders for their failure to read the scripture, which he said clearly testified of him. This scripture is a good example. Isaiah said the Messiah would indeed be from Galilee—and that he would in fact be the Mighty God himself.

In the case of every scripture, and in the case of today’s scripture reading, it is important to read the verses before and after the text at hand in order to fully understand the scripture’s context. Directly before today’s scripture reading, we read that Satan offers Jesus all “the kingdoms of the world”, and Jesus rejects the offer. And a few verses later, Jesus preaches “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near”. The backdrop for Jesus’ announcement is Daniel 2:44.

“In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.”  (Daniel 2:44)

Jesus, here in Matthew, is the God of heaven who brings with him from heaven to earth a kingdom which will never be destroyed. Jesus doesn’t transform the kingdoms of this world into Christian kingdoms. Nor is it that Jesus’ kingdom is only in heaven and we only enter it when we die. Instead, Jesus brings a kingdom from heaven which crushes all of those kingdoms.

From the beginning of scripture, God’s purpose has always been to rule directly and personally over creation. When Adam and Eve rebel against God’s rule and place themselves under the rule of Satan, God doesn’t destroy them. Instead, God proclaims the gospel:

“…And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:15)

God’s direct personal rule over his people is restored through Jesus Christ, the promised offspring of the woman. God doesn’t replace non-Christian shepherds with Christian shepherds. He himself shepherds the sheep directly and personally. He himself provides all they need.

“…I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them. “‘For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them.” (Ezekiel 34:9b-11)

We Christians are citizens of one kingdom: the kingdom of God. We are servants of one king: the Lord Jesus who presently rules and reigns over all people. He crushes all the kingdoms of this world, not us.

“With that, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear. “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:51-52)

“Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power.” (1 Corinthians 15:24)

“The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” (Romans 16:20)

But Jesus does not crush the nations with a sword in his hand; he does it with the sword of his mouth, the sword of his word.

“Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.” (Revelation 19:15)

Jesus presently holds all authority and we are his slaves, servants, and brothers and sisters. We submit to the authority of the rulers of this world, but we do not become involved in their work. We have our own kingdom to serve—the kingdom of heaven.

This is why for the first three hundred years of Christian history, Christians didn’t sign up to serve in the militaries or administrations of the countries they lived. And soldiers and civil servants who became Christians struggled to figure out whether they should continue to serve the kingdoms under which they had been commissioned. It was a real issue in the church. Unfortunately, the church has almost totally forgotten this today. It mistakenly believes that we serve Christ and the kingdom of heaven by serving in the kingdoms of this world.

In today’s scripture reading, in Matthew 4:17, Jesus announces that the kingdom of heaven has come, fulfilling the prophecies all the way back to the beginning of the scriptures. He says the proper response to the coming of the kingdom is for us to repent. When we hear that, we fill in our own meaning for the word “repent”. We think it means to feel genuinely sorry for our wrongdoing and to change our behavior. That is because we don’t understand the biblical meaning of sin.

Sin doesn’t just mean “bad things we do”, and repentance doesn’t just mean “stop doing those bad things.” Sin means “rebellion against the direct rule of God” and repentance means “receiving the direct rule of God.” The apostles repented by placing themselves in a position of complete dependence upon Jesus, the king of the kingdom of heaven.

“Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people” (Matthew 4:23)

Jesus did not do the works he did in order to give others a good impression about him by offering humanitarian aid. He does these works because he is carrying out the responsibilities of the king of the kingdom of heaven to his people. He frees them from captivity, shepherds them, and provides for their needs.

When missionaries go to other countries and give humanitarian aid, but do not preach the gospel, they are not imitating Jesus. Jesus announces his kingdom openly.

When Jesus dies on the Cross, he is not simply dutifully carrying out his Father’s command to die for our sins. He is carrying out his responsibilities as our king. On the cross he defeats death and all the kingdoms of this world and all the things that stand in the way of him shepherding us personally and providing for us directly.

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ONLINE PETITION SEEKS RELEASE OF RETIRING KOREAN MISSIONARY FROM RUSSIAN PRISON

Posted on February 4, 2026 by tdillmuth

Update: Missionary Park was taken away from her home by masked law enforcement agents at 11 a.m. February 4. They refused to say where she was going. Fortunately, a local pastor was able to work with local attorneys to find her. She has been taken to a detention center for foreigners because her visa expired January 24. By the grace of God, arrangements are now being finalized for proper legal representation for her. 

Update: Missionary Park has been moved from the detention center to house arrest after submitting a pledge not to leave Russia until the end of the investigation. The charges against her remain unchanged.

Update: Voice of the Martyrs Korea confirms that Ms. Park met for 40 minutes with a representative from the Korean consulate on the afternoon of February 3. 

Ms. Park Tae-Yeon had her plane ticket purchased to return from Khabarovsk to Korea to retire at the age of 70 after 33 years of what she described as being “married to Russia”. However, authorities blocked her return home, arresting her on January 15 on immigration-related charges. Persecution watchdog organization Voice of the Martyrs Korea says the immigration charges are Russia’s way of diverting attention from what they say is a basic violation of religious freedoms. They’ve posted an online petition to the Russia Ambassador to Korea demanding Ms. Park’s immediate release, and they are urging all Korean Christians to sign it.

The petition can be accessed at https://vomkorea.com/en/petition-2026

At a press conference today at Voice of the Martyrs Korea’s Seoul office, the organization’s founders, Pastor Eric Foley and Dr. Hyun Sook Foley, expressed concern for Ms. Park’s health as well as what they described as “the declining health of religious freedom in Russia”.

“Ms. Park Tae-yeon was arrested on an immigration-related offense, but numerous reports on state-affiliated Russian media show that authorities are prosecuting a much broader case against her publicly,” says Pastor Eric Foley. He highlighted a report on January 23, 2026, by the state-affiliated Russian media outlet RIA, which cites a Khabarovsk city official who told of a months-long investigation by law enforcement agencies into religious camps for children in Khabarovsk.  That report says, “As a result of the investigation, the activities of a citizen of the Republic of Korea, who carried out missionary work while hiding behind plausible goals, were stopped.”

Caption: Screenshot of the article on the ria.ru website (https://ria.ru/20260123/habarovsk-2069843523.html)

“Ms. Park is clearly among those targeted by that investigation,” says Pastor Foley. “By legally charging her with an immigration-related violation but prosecuting a much broader case against her through state-affiliated media, authorities are preventing Ms. Park, her family, and her representatives from understanding the full scope of the real case against her. They are also preventing Ms. Park from accessing appropriate legal resources for her defense. Further, the immigration charge against Ms. Park shields the Russian Federation from international accountability for its growing crackdown on basic religious freedoms in violation of established international norms.”

The Russian media reports claim that Korean missionaries brainwashed children, forcing them to copy the Bible for hours. A Khabarovsk city official cited in the reports claims that “ideas alien to Russian traditional values were imposed on children under the pretext of education and training” and that the ultimate goal was to take the children to Korea.

Voice of the Martyrs Representative Dr. Hyun Sook Foley calls those charges “ridiculous”.

“Ms. Park Tae-yeon has been living with a sincere love for the country of Russia and its people since she arrived there in 1993. She has no prior criminal history. She has lived her whole life as a single person and has devoted herself to the locals for 33 years, to the point where she says she is married to Russia. She has practiced a life of caring for her neighbors, and her pure spirit of service has become an example for many people around her. Park Tae-yeon is a transparent and good person like a child, without political ideology or impure purpose.”

Caption: Screenshot of the petition urging the release of Ms. Park Tae-Yeon (https://vomkorea.com/en/petition-2026)

The Foleys criticized the Russian media reports for their portrayal of international ministry organization Child Evangelism Fellowship as brainwashing or pressuring children.

“Child Evangelism Fellowship has been operating around the world for more than 75 years, and they openly share their methods of evangelism through their website and books and training programs,” says Pastor Foley. “They have extensive training programs to ensure that children are never pressured or coerced, and they make sure that the wishes of children’s parents or guardians are always followed.” Pastor Foley says the videos released by Russian media which allegedly show Ms. Park and others interacting with children in Bible-related activities disprove the allegations of coercion.

“When you watch the videos, you don’t see tired children being brainwashed. You see children laughing and having a great time,” says Pastor Foley. “Child Evangelism Fellowship always says that children have a right to hear the gospel if they desire. That is one of many religious freedoms that Russia is gradually taking away from its citizens, and they are hiding that from the international community by accusing Christians of evil intentions and by imprisoning Ms. Park instead of letting her return home to retire after 33 years of genuine, caring service to the people of Russia.”

Caption: Screenshot of the video published by Readovka.news

The Foleys say that Ms. Park has so far been denied access to the Korean consulate, which they note is a violation of Article 36 of the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.

The Foleys say they will exhaust every effort to see Ms. Park freed. Voice of the Martyrs Korea has posted an online petition at https://vomkorea.com/en/petition-2026. They’re urging all Korean Christians to sign it as soon as possible. They plan on delivering the petition to the Russian Embassy shortly after Chinese New Year, with copies also being sent to the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.

Caption: Screenshot of the video published by Readovka.news
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The Baptism of Jesus

Posted on January 20, 2026 by Pastor Foley

Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:13-17)

When we look at the context of Matthew 3:13-17, we see that Jesus’ baptism is his ordination into priesthood. In the Old Testament, a man would be ordained for priesthood at age 30. At his baptism, Jesus is ordained not to the Aaronic priesthood, but to the priesthood of Melchizedek, as noted in Hebrews.

Jesus (left) is being identified by John the Baptist. Painting by Ottavio Vannini in the 17th Century.

Not only this, but, when we realize that the voice from heaven is quoting Psalm 2, we can see that Jesus’ baptism is also his coronation as king.

I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain. I will proclaim the Lord’s decree: He said to me, “You are my son; today I have become your father.” (Psalm 2:6-7)

Looking at the context in Isaiah 42 helps us to see that the words of the voice from heaven show us that Jesus is the Messiah.

“Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations” (Isaiah 42:1)

Equally important, the baptism of Jesus is the beginning of a new creation. Just as the Holy Spirit hovers over the waters in Genesis 1, and just as the dove is sent out by Noah after the flood, the Holy Spirit hovers on and rests on Jesus at his baptism.

And, directly after this, Jesus, as the new Adam, is tempted by Satan just as the first Adam was; but Jesus does not fall into temptation and, later, defeats Satan on the cross.

The Nicene Creed says, “We believe in one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.” Baptism is not a public declaration of your seriousness about Jesus. It is a public declaration of Jesus’ seriousness about you.

The phrase “one baptism” of course means that we shouldn’t get baptized two or more times. But the more important meaning of “one baptism” is that Jesus’ baptism is the only baptism. We are baptized into Jesus’ baptism.

“So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” (Galatians 3:26-27)

“Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.” (1 Corinthians 12:12-13)

“Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” (Mark 16:16)

This is how we are saved—by being baptized into Christ. Why? Because baptism is how we enter the Lord’s death. The water of baptism is not only water, it is also the blood of the Lord which he shed for us. We are washed in that blood not just by “asking Jesus into our hearts”, but by baptism. This is why Jesus refers to his death as his “baptism”.

“But I have a baptism to undergo, and what constraint I am under until it is completed!” (Luke 12:50)

So, Jesus is not only King and Messiah. He is also the sacrifice that we partake of and whose death we enter into in order to enter the new creation—the Kingdom of God.

These are basic and essential Christian truths. Sadly, these are preached less and less today, even in good churches. Modern Christians think that it is important first to build relationships with people, encourage them, prepare their hearts, and convince their minds before preaching the gospel.

But salvation is a plunge into death, and sinners cannot be convinced to take that plunge. We drown in the waters of baptism—it is a violent end to the life of a sinner. Baptism is crucifixion. Baptism is us accepting that we are guilty. Baptism is about us dying to the world and all worldly hopes and forms of support.

“Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Romans 6:3-4).

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20).

Do you realize that no one chooses to be baptized? Our fallen, sinful self can never be convinced to choose to die with Christ. So how does it happen that we come to Christ?

We come because he calls. And that call always happens through the proclamation of God’s word.

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day” (John 6:44).

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”” (Romans 10:14-15)

The reason you can’t encourage or persuade somebody to be born again is because prior to being born again we are spiritually dead. Dead people cannot be encouraged or persuaded about spiritual matters because they are dead.

“Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned.” (John 5:28-29)

The new birth is always a miracle, not the result of effective church ministry. Everyone who comes to the waters of baptism, whether they realize it or not, is responding to the call of Christ. We are like Lazarus in the grave, and Jesus calls to us, “Lazarus, come out!”

It doesn’t matter how good the worship band is. It doesn’t matter how persuasive your friend is. It doesn’t matter how good the pastor’s preaching is. The only way we are baptized is because Christ calls us out of death. We have no more choice over our new birth than we have over our old birth. No one can come to the Son unless the Father draws him. All Protestants agree that, unless God calls through his word, a sinner cannot enter the waters of baptism.

Faith is a gift from God. Faith is not an openness to God that we can cultivate in the heart of sinners.

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