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The Gospel of Matthew Bible Studies
The Gospel of Mark Bible Studies
The Book of Acts Bible Studies
January 2009
February 2009
March 2009
April 2009
May 2009
June 2009
July 2009
August 2009
September 2009
October 2009
November 2009
December 2009
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Time after Pentecost - Lectionary 14 (B) Text: Mark 6:1-13 July 5, 2009 Homecoming time! Yes, it was homecoming time for Jesus! After a very successful ministry in and around Capernaum, Jesus finally decided to pay a visit to the town where he had grown up. This was not just a casual visit to see his old home, family, and friends. Today’s gospel specifically tells us that his disciples followed him – that is, Jesus was coming as a Rabbi. Jesus was coming to proclaim the gospel to the people of Nazareth in the same way that he had been doing elsewhere. I am sure that the synagogue that particular Sabbath day was filled to overflowing – as crowded as our church was last week for Pastor Josh’s farewell! It was a very special event for them to have Jesus back with them. The people of Nazareth had certainly heard about many of the spectacular things that Jesus had been doing in other towns – such as driving out demons, healing people, and even bringing a little girl back to life (that kind of news travels fast!) – and undoubtedly they were hoping that he would do something like that among them. (Indeed, in Luke’s gospel Jesus actually quotes them as saying; “Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.”) (Lk. 4:23) Of course, everyone wants to see a miracle! But in the case of the people of Nazareth, that is all that they wanted from Jesus. Only a dramatic miracle would convince them that he was indeed a Rabbi or more. Otherwise, they had already made up their minds as to who and what Jesus was – that he was just another ordinary person who had nothing special to teach them. As they say in The Message translation of today’s gospel: “How did he get so wise all of a sudden, get such ability…? He’s just a carpenter – Mary’s boy. We’ve known him since he was a kid. We know his brothers, James, Justus, Jude, and Simon, and his sisters. Who does he think he is?” If Jesus had been an outside “expert” from Jerusalem or elsewhere, the people of Nazareth might have been willing to pay attention to what Jesus was teaching. But because of his familiarity to them, they closed their minds and their hearts to his message. The ironical thing is that their stubbornness is exactly what kept Jesus from performing the miracles that they wanted to see! Matthew in his gospel writes that “Jesus did not do many deeds of power there, because of their unbelief.” (Mt. 13:58) – but Mark in his account states that Jesus could do no deed of power there. In other words, according to Mark, Jesus could not perform any miracles in Nazareth even if he had wanted to – because the peoples’ stubbornness and unbelief robbed Jesus of his power! Think of what that means! I have once heard it said that the pastor only preaches half of a sermon. The other half depends upon the response of the hearers. If people are unwilling to receive the message – be it because of closed minds, other priorities, apathy, hatred, anger, or whatever – it will not accomplish anything. The preacher’s words, no matter how “godly” or “inspired”, will be useless. In a sense, that is what happened to Jesus in Nazareth. The conditions were not right for his teaching to be received. The power that had characterized his ministry in Capernaum and elsewhere never caught fire in his hometown. It was like him trying to light a pile of wet sticks – and he held the match until it burned his fingers. So what did Jesus do? He did not brood about what he could possibly have said or done to make the people of Nazareth more responsive. He simply moved on to other villages where his gospel message might be better received. And where it was, lives were indeed changed and miracles happened. When the conditions were right, God’s love worked powerfully through Jesus – and then later (as we hear in the second part of our gospel text) also through his disciples as well. So, are the conditions right for Jesus’ gospel message to work among us in our lives and in our congregation? Or to put it another way, what is necessary for Jesus’ power to manifest itself in our midst? There is a story I once heard that might help us to answer this. The story is called “The Rabbi’s Gift.” Once upon a time, there was a monastery that had fallen upon hard times. The order had dwindled – and finally there were only five old monks left. As you can imagine, they were increasingly discouraged and pessimistic about their future. Finally, the Abbot of the monastery decided to go and ask his friend – a Rabbi from another town – for advice as to what could be done to save their order. The Rabbi’s advice was simple, but cryptic. He told the Abbot that “The Messiah is one of you.” And so the Abbot came back to the monastery and told this to his fellow monks. They didn’t have any idea what the Rabbi’s advice meant, but they agreed to ponder and pray about this. And in the days and weeks and months that followed, something began to happen within their community. “The Messiah is one of us?” If so, who? Did the Rabbi mean Father Abbot? After all, he’s been our leader for more than a generation – certainly, he must be the one! On the other hand, he might have meant Brother Thomas. Certainly Brother Thomas is a holy man. Everyone knows that Thomas is a man of light. Certainly he could not have meant Brother Elred! After all, Brother Elred gets mighty crotchety at times! But come to think of it, Elred is virtually always right. Often very right. Maybe the rabbi did mean Brother Elred. But surely not Brother Phillip. Phillip is so passive, a real nobody. But then, almost mysteriously, he has a gift for somehow always being there whenever you need him. He just magically appears by your side. Maybe Phillip is the Messiah. And Brother James is just an ordinary person. But maybe he's the one! And so, as they contemplated in this manner, the old monks began to treat each other with extraordinary kindness and love on the off chance that one among them might be the Messiah. And what happened, of course, is that this created an entirely different atmosphere among them – and that atmosphere began to be noticed by people who came to visit the monastery. There was something strangely attractive and even compelling about this community in which God’s love seemed to be so powerfully present. Word of this wonderful fellowship began to spread. And then it started to happen. After a while one of the visitors asked if he could join them. Then another. And another. And so, within a few years, the monastery had once again become a thriving order and, thanks to the Rabbi's gift, a vibrant center of light and spirituality to all the realm. Getting back to our gospel, if the people of Nazareth had realized that the Messiah could be one of them how different things would have been! They would have been ready to receive Jesus and listen – really listen – to his gospel message of God’s love. And this message would have transformed their lives and would have manifested itself in many deeds of power. So it is among us at Pella Lutheran Church. Because we are the body of Christ, he is present in each and every one of us here. In that sense, each of us is the Messiah! Yes, even the least among us can proclaim and share the love of God. And when we see each other in this way and believe that Jesus is truly present in our midst, that is when conditions are right for God’s love and power to blaze forth brightly. Yes, even here – through this ordinary congregation miracles can happen, lives can be changed; demons can be cast out; and we can experience God’s healing, and peace, and joy. Yes, the power and love of God is among us right here, and right now! Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen! -------------------- Pastor George Karres 418 W. Main St. Sidney, MT 59270
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