14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. (Mark 1:14-15 KJV)
Jesus Begins His Ministry
In our Savior’s first beginning to preach the gospel, we are told when, where, and what he preached.
When he began his preaching: Jesus began to preach after John was put in prison. This shows how God’s messengers are often mistreated by the world, hated and punished for boldly confronting sin. John was imprisoned for reproving Herod’s incest (Mark 6:17-18). But as soon as John was silenced, Jesus began to preach. God, in his care for the church, ensures it is never left without instruction. Silencing of one of God’s ministers doesn’t mean the end of his gospel. When some faithful ministers are hindered, others are raised up in their place. He never allows all their voices to be silenced at once.
Next, where he began to preach: Jesus began preaching in Galilee. The Gospel of John gives an account of Christ’s earlier preaching in Judea (John 2–3), which the other gospel writers omitted, focusing instead on Galilee, since that was less familiar to those in Jerusalem. At the time, the land of Canaan was divided into three main provinces: Judea in the south, Samaria in the middle, and Galilee in the north. Galilee itself was divided into upper and lower regions. Upper Galilee, called “Galilee of the Gentiles,” bordered non-Jewish territories. Capernaum was the main city there, with Chorazin as a smaller town.
Much of Jesus’s ministry took place in Galilee. He was conceived and raised in Nazareth, a city in Galilee. He first preached in Capernaum, performed his first miracle in Cana, and was transfigured on Mount Tabor—all in Galilee. His usual residence was there, and he only traveled to Judea and Jerusalem for the feasts. After his resurrection, he told his disciples to meet him in Galilee. His birth in Bethlehem, death in Jerusalem, and ascension from the Mount of Olives near Jerusalem were the only events tied specifically to Judea.
All of this fulfilled prophecy, proving Jesus to be the promised Messiah. According to Isaiah 9:1-3, the Messiah would dwell in Galilee. Yet, because he was from Galilee, many Jews refused to believe in him, mocking, “Can anything good come out of Galilee?” (John 1:46). Ironically, his presence and ministry there should have convinced them that he was indeed the Christ foretold in Scripture.
Finally, the message he preached: Jesus preached both a truth and a call. The truth was that “the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand” (Mark 1:15)—the time foretold by the prophets had arrived. The call was, “Repent, and believe the gospel.”
The promised time had come, bringing a new spiritual and heavenly era. God always keeps time; when the time is fulfilled, his promises unfold, even if they seem delayed from our perspective. In response to this kingdom, Jesus called people to repent and believe the gospel. While many expected the Messiah to come with political power and external glory, Jesus told them to prepare not for war and prestige, but for personal transformation.
They had broken God’s law and couldn’t be saved by their own merit, whether Jew or Gentile. They needed to embrace the covenant of grace—repentance toward God and faith in Jesus Christ. By repentance, we turn from sin and give glory to our Creator; by faith, we receive forgiveness and honor our Redeemer. These two go hand in hand—repentance fuels faith, and faith makes repentance sincere. Both must be shown in a life of obedience to God’s commands. This was the message then, and it remains the same now: repent, believe, and live a life shaped by both.