A NOT SO WELCOME HOMECOMING

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

When Jesus had finished these parables, He moved on from there. Coming to His hometown, He began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all His sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” And they took offense at Him.

But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”

And He did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.

Matthew 13:53-58

Jesus left there and went to His hometown, accompanied by His disciples. When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard Him were amazed.

“Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given Him? What are these remarkable miracles He is performing? Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at Him.

Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” He could not do any miracles there, except lay His hands on a few sick people and heal them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.

Mark 6:1-6

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Before we look at today’s passages from the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, let’s go back in time a little, shall we? Look these accounts of times before and shortly after Jesus was born:

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David.

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. For no word from God will ever fail.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. Luke 1:26-27, 35, 37

After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Get up, take the child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child’s life are dead.”

So he got up, took the child and His mother and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that He would be called a Nazarene.  Matthew 2:19-23

Taking these passages into account, we see two items of importance which connect Jesus to the town of Nazareth as His hometown.

First, His parents were from Nazareth. We know this before Jesus is even conceived within Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph and Mary were natives of Nazareth and the district of Galilee.

Why is this important to remember?

Because it explains why they chose Nazareth as their destination after they left Egypt, their temporary place of refuge after escaping Herod’s murderous plans after Jesus was born.

You may recall that Herod heard Jesus was given the title King of the Jews by the visiting, searching Magi and Herod would not have anyone grow up to rival him, a Roman king who had been placed in power and authority over Judea and its capital city of Jerusalem. He had hoped he could dupe the Magi into revealing Jesus’ exact location but after being outwitted, Herod ordered the slaughter of all boys two and younger in Bethlehem. Prior to this happening, an angel of the Lord told Joseph in a dream to flee to Egypt with Mary and Jesus, and they did just that, saved from the deadly danger of Herod (Matthew 2:1-18).

When things were safe and Herod was dead, the angel told Joseph it was okay to take Mary and Jesus home and given that Herod’s son was ruling in place of his father in Judea, Joseph took his wife and son back to Galilee and settled in Nazareth which became Jesus’ hometown (Matthew 2:19-23). He would be known as a Nazarene, fulfilling the predictions of the prophets.

Fast forward to today’s passage and you would think that Jesus would have been accepted with open arms and great fanfare in his hometown after all that He had done. After all, who else in Nazareth had miraculously healed the afflicted, drove out evil demons, or resurrected the dead as He had? Jesus, the prophesied Messiah and proclaimed Son of God Himself, had come home but as we see in today’s scripture verses from Matthew’s account:

When Jesus had finished these parables, He moved on from there. Coming to His hometown, He began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all His sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” And they took offense at Him.

But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”

And He did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.  Matthew 13:53-58

  

After all the parable teaching Jesus had done, the scriptures tell us He moved on to His hometown of Nazareth in Galilee. Once there, He did what He typically did wherever He was, teaching in the synagogue. And as we have seen on other occasions when Jesus brought instruction, His pupils were often left in awe and amazed. Awash in wonder, we find the Nazarenes asking:

“Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all His sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?”

A lot of people ask questions about whether Jesus had any brothers and sisters. Here, in these closing verses of Matthew 13, we find the answer for the scriptures leave no doubt that Jesus had siblings and quite a few at that, four brothers and at least two sisters. Jesus may have been the first born but He had lots of company in His younger siblings.

Back to our story at hand regarding Jesus’ acceptance in Nazareth for as we see, the people were in a state of disbelief that Jesus could be the same young child they watched grow up under the watchful eye of a carpenter named Joseph and his wife Mary. They couldn’t quite grasp how Jesus could have attained the abilities He had, the ability to impart wisdom and direction in His teaching, and the ability to heal others, often times with a simple touch or word.

The people of Nazareth had two ways they could go in handling Jesus.

First, they could have just accepted Him as the One the prophets had foretold, rejoicing and giving thanks that God’s one and only Son had been raised in their midst. They could have done this but they didn’t.

Instead, they rejected their own hometown hero, choosing to take “offense at Him” to which Jesus replied:

“A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”

Think about the places Jesus had traveled and the things He had accomplished. As He went from place to place in His ministry, He drew crowds of people who came to receive His wise teaching and/or healing power. They honored Jesus through their belief and trust that He could bless them in some way and bless them He did.

But in Nazareth, He was not received the same. He experienced a not so welcome homecoming and as a result, those in His hometown reaped what they sowed for we read where Jesus “did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith”. If the residents of Nazareth were going to refuse Jesus their honor then He would not honor them either.

So where does this leave us today?

Well, I think we have to ask ourselves who we are like in regard to accepting Jesus.

Are we like those who embraced Jesus and His ministry, paying Him the respect and tribute He deserves?

Or are we like the Nazarenes who couldn’t even find it in their hearts to welcome home Jesus in a special way?

In one instance, Jesus was received. In the other, He was rejected.

In one instance, those who received Him were blessed abundantly. In the other, those who rejected Him were blessed scantly.

All this begs the question, “Where does Jesus stand with you?”

Amen.  
In Christ,
Mark
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