“The God of the ‘Wrong Turn’”
Original sermon given on The Third Sunday After Epiphany, Sunday, January 25, 2026 written and delivered by Pastor Jeff Leininger at First Saint Paul’s Lutheran Church.
Watch the sermon live.
“The God of the ‘Wrong Turn’”
Matthew 4.2-22
In the name of the Living God and the Christ who has appeared to us. Amen.
When Jesus hears that his cousin John the Baptist was arrested in Jerusalem, he withdraws, takes refuge away up in Galilee. I know it’s only one line in the Bible, and but the first verse of today’s gospel reading, but I want you to pay attention to it.
What is Jesus doing? He certainly appears to take a wrong turn here, when he withdraws up to Galilee. What kind of king and messiah does this? John the Baptist -- Jesus’ cousin, you’ll recall -- preaches repentance from the wilderness, calling people back to God. He’s preparing the way for Jesus to come and usher in the kingdom of God. But now, Herod Antipas has grown weary of John calling him out (speaking truth to power, so to speak) especially regarding Herod’s wickedness and immoral character (this guy makes Henry VIII look like a saint), and so Herod has John arrested. It won’t be long now, and John will literally lose his head over this. (You can see all the steamy details at the Lyric Opera’s production of Salome. Tickets are on sale now. Warning: not everything you see in the opera is in the Bible!)
So, John is arrested and Jesus withdraws. Surely the “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” can do better than this? Take refuge far away up in Galilee, before things even get started? Away from all the action down in Jerusalem? Really? The least he could do is get a small band of brothers together to spring his cousin from the brig in Jerusalem.
From a human perspective, Jesus is forced to take a seemingly wrong turn here.
Now I mention this from the outset because you may have had a time in life when it seemed like you took a wrong turn. Or life pushed you in a different, unexpected, unwanted direction. You had to withdraw, redirect, turn away from what you had planned. And maybe even for some this morning, you might think you’re in the middle of an unexpected, redirected, wrong-turn moment in life. It wasn’t supposed to go this way. I made too many mistakes. Or wasn’t dealt the right cards. Or was screwed over too many times. And here I am, running away, trying to take refuge, waiting for God to give me some new direction in life.
If this is the case for you, then pay particular attention to our Lord Jesus here. (Even if this isn’t the case, pay attention to our Lord!) Because in a strange way, Jesus appears here as “the God of the wrong turn.”[1] That is, what we see as a fleeing from all the action is in fact the kingdom of God getting started. What we see as “Plan B” — Jesus takes refuge away from the dangers of Herod, was actually “Plan A” all along.
Let me explain. (Or, let St. Matthew explain.) By inspiration of the Holy Spirit, St. Matthew the tax collector here records for us the events of the life of Christ. But as he does, he pores back over all the Old Testament (the Hebrew scriptures) and the light starts to come on — or “lights” come on. Ten times in his gospel account, Matthew uses the phrase, “This was to fulfill what was spoken of by the prophet…” There was a greater divine plan unfolding all along. We might see human, earthly, temporal actions and activities and consequences running the show, but Matthew calls us to look higher, dig deeper, trust something greater. Matthew’s is the “oh, so that’s why it happened that way” gospel.
So, we have a young maiden, the virgin Mary, with child, not by Joseph, her betrothed. This was to what was spoken through Isaiah, “The virgin will conceive and will give birth to a son, and you will call his name Immanuel, God with us.” (Matt. 1.22-23)
Or the Holy Family withdraws/escapes away from another Herod (this guy’s old man), and they flee over to Egypt. “This was to fulfill what was spoke by the prophet, Hosea, ‘Out of Egypt I have called my son.’” (Matt. 2.15)
Or John the Baptist appears in the wilderness along the Jordan calling people back to God. He was the one spoken of through the prophet Isaiah, “A voice of one calling in the desert, Prepare the way for the Lord.” (Matt. 3.3)
Or here in this morning’s reading, when Jesus flees Herod Antipas, he eventually settles in Capernaum by the sea of Galilee, so that what had been spoke through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: “Land of Zebulon, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles — the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and the shadow of death light has dawned.” (Matt 4.15-16)
We like to look first to the human cause and consequences, and only secondarily, perhaps, to the divine. In describing the life of Jesus here, Matthew asks us to turn this on its head: to first look to the heavenly, and only secondarily to the earthly, in order to see what God was doing all along.
And so, what happens when Jesus “takes a wrong turn”? Withdraws, redirects, takes refuge way back up in Galilee? The backwater, mixed-race, Gentile-ridden land first hears the gospel, first sees the light, in complete reversal of their pathetic history and perfect fulfillment of prophecy. Fishermen get called, leave their nets, and begin fishing for men. The good news of God’s new kingdom is preached everywhere, diseases cured, demons cast out, lives change, world changed forever. The amazingly unexpected gospel of Jesus Christ takes a “wrong turn” detour right into their lives and ours.
And this truth about the “God of the wrong turn” most certainly has tremendous implications if life hasn’t worked out the way you planned; or if currently, you feel you’re in a “wrong turn” moment, being unfairly or unexpectedly redirected.
So, what might all this mean for our “wrong turn” moments? First, the example of the ministry of Jesus here, calls us to guard against despair; or said more positively, to stay anchored in hope. It’s hard to imagine a more difficult beginning for Jesus’ ministry: the promised forerunner, his own cousin, is imprisoned (and eventually martyred) for calling people to repentance. Jesus takes refuge up in Galilee, and what’s his first sermon, here? “Repent!” How’s that going to work out for you, Lord? Well, we know how it works out for him — it takes him all the way to the cross.
When our lives don’t end up where we expected them to go, we are called away from despair to remain anchored in hope. Even Jesus experienced a “wrong turn” turned right. He will not abandon us in any circumstance. If the king of the universe was still at work way up in Galilee, he’s at work in your life today too… even when it’s way harder than you thought, and more confusing than ever, more uncertain than planned. To despair in a seemingly “wrong turn” time in life is to refuse to trust in the Jesus who withdrew to preach in “Galilee of the Gentiles.”
Second point from Jesus’ “wrong turn” moment: don’t wait to get to work for the kingdom. Whatever your circumstance, wherever you’re planted, however you got there to begin with, however uncertain the future. Jesus takes a turn, withdrawing up to Galilee, and does what? Sits around moping about how difficult this is? Starts making plans to maybe get back on track one day? No! Our Lord immediately gets to work, right where he’s at, proclaiming the kingdom of God. No one would have guessed that it would all start up in Galilee. And you might not expect that God needs you, where you’re at, to do his work.
Bloom where you’re planted — the old saying goes…Preach where you’re placed… Work wherever you wrong-turned and get started now. If you wait for the right turn, the right place, the right time to finally get on with God’s work, you’ll never get started.
Thirdly, trust the greater plan. St. Matthew reminds us constantly throughout his gospel account that something bigger was going on. Only later would he, by the Holy Spirit, fully trace the Divine causes and consequences above the human ones. In your life too today, don’t get discouraged, but trust the God of the “wrong turn”. Your plan “B, or C, or D” might in fact be God’s plan “A”.
This is especially important for so many of the young people worshipping with us. It’s so easy to be discouraged with the redirection your life has taken, to see only the present moment, to feel that nothing ever works out for you.
I have to share with our young people in particular that we have a wealth of wise, mature (old?) Christians in this congregation who have been there. They know what it’s like that life took a difficult, challenging, even tragic wrong turn.
But they’ll tell you to trust the greater plan; and even more, to trust the one who is the greater plan. You might not be able to see it now, but the God of the “wrong turn” who withdrew up to Galilee is still at work for your good.
He is the light of all the nations, healer of our every ill, savior who went to the cross, risen now and ruling over all things — including all of our “wrong turn times”.
Don’t despair but remain in hope; get to work right where you’re at like the fishermen who became fishers of men, and trust in his greater plan.
Come soon Lord Jesus. Amen.
[1] I am grateful to Dr. David Schmidt’s insights on this reading from “Lectionary Kick-Start”, from Concordia Seminary’s online podcast, scholar.csl.edu/lks.
