1 He went away from there and came to His hometown, and His disciples followed Him. 2 And on the Sabbath He began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard Him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom given to Him? How are such mighty works done by His hands? 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. 4 And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” 5 And He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And He marveled because of their unbelief. ~ Mark 6:1–6
Jesus’ whole experience in His hometown can be summed up in one sentence, “They took offense at Him.” Maybe it was jealousy; maybe it was something else. Nevertheless, those hometown folks took offense and stepped into a period of spiritual darkness since they would not let the light of Jesus shine upon them. Their love had grown cold. Therefore, their faith had dwindled as well, leaving them without any kind of discernment that their Messiah and their Healer was standing before them. Because of their lack of unbelief, Jesus, in turn could do few miracles there. This isn’t a lack of the power of God.
This isn’t a lack of Jesus’ faith; this is the lack of faith people have in God, as well as the love that they have for their God. I was recently reading a Church’s website that stated that one of the codes that they live and work by, is by the code they have labeled: “We think inside the box.” This is given with the short explanation of “It’s about: Embracing Limitation” On the surface, this sounds good. It sounds like they are embracing a chapter out of Paul’s book on humility, but this isn’t humility. This is limiting God by embracing our limitations. But we must remember when we are weak, then we are strong (2 Corinthians 12:10). Therefore, we must embrace the strength of God, not the weakness of man. Our God isn’t limited; He doesn’t work in the realm of possibilities or maybes. God works and dwells in the realm of the impossible and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
Therefore, don’t be like those in Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth who refused to believe that Jesus was more than just your average carpenter. Jesus was, is, and always will be God made flesh. He was, is, and always will be the Light of the World, for He lives through us who are the light of the world. So, let your light shine before men that they may see your good works, and praise your Father in Heaven.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Don’t Be Like Nazareth.
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