Flashback Episode — Learning from Rejection: Mark 6:1-6

Throughout Jesus’ ministry, He gained a lot of popularity from the miracles, from His teachings, and from the counter-intuitive way He developed His ministry. However, at one notable point, Jesus returns to his hometown, and during this visit, we discover a challenge that we all ultimately face as we move through life.

Let’s read what happened during this event from the gospel of Mark, chapter 6, using the Good News Translation. Starting in verse 1, Mark tells us that:

¹ Jesus left that place and went back to his hometown, followed by his disciples. ² On the Sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue. Many people were there; and when they heard him, they were all amazed. “Where did he get all this?” they asked. “What wisdom is this that has been given him? How does he perform miracles? ³ Isn’t he the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren’t his sisters living here?” And so they rejected him.

⁴ Jesus said to them, “Prophets are respected everywhere except in their own hometown and by their relatives and their family.”

⁵ He was not able to perform any miracles there, except that he placed his hands on a few sick people and healed them. ⁶ He was greatly surprised, because the people did not have faith.

Then Jesus went to the villages around there, teaching the people.

The thing I find most fascinating about this event is the reaction of those in the synagogue. They ask each other in verse 2, “Where did he get all this? What wisdom is this that has been given him? How does he perform miracles?” They then continue by framing their knowledge of Him based on what they knew. Verse 3 describes them rhetorically asking themselves, “Isn’t he [Jesus] the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren’t his sisters living here?”

Those living in Nazareth were amazed at the wisdom, knowledge, and power Jesus had, but they could not move past their knowledge of Jesus’ younger years and the family He grew up in. Even though Mark tells us that the lack of faith of those present kept Jesus from performing many miracles, a few miracles still were performed, and a small number of people were healed as a result.

However, this tiny number of miracles may have been meant to spark interest and inspire more faith. But the faith of those in Nazareth did not grow when witnessing the early healing. Instead, skepticism grew in the place of faith. As a result, these Jews were more interested in discounting Jesus because they knew His teaching didn’t originate with His upbringing, instead of pushing further and discovering the true Source of Jesus’ knowledge, and the Source of His miracle-working power.

It is because of this that Jesus makes the sobering statement in verse 4 that “Prophets are respected everywhere except in their own hometown and by their relatives and their family.” It seems that if something cannot be explained by those closest to us, or if God chooses to use us to do something special, the ones who are closest to us seem to be the least likely to understand and accept it.

I will be the first to say that this should not be the case. In an ideal world, those closest to the people God chooses to use in a special way should be the biggest supporters of the ministry and the testimony of what God is doing. What the Jews in Nazareth faced when Jesus returned is a paradox that many of us will face at some point in our lives.

While Jesus was traveling, teaching, preaching, and healing, word spread far and wide about what was happening, and what this former carpenter was accomplishing. When the rumors made their way back to Nazareth, those present had a challenge on their hands: Do they believe the rumors, even though what they are hearing doesn’t match up with their memory of the carpenter’s apprentice son; or do they accept the rumors and break out of their preconceived stereotypes, believing that God had chosen Jesus to be more than a mere carpenter?

Those in Nazareth had heard of the wonderful miracles, healing, and reputation Jesus had from His ministry in the other parts of Israel. But when those in Nazareth had the opportunity to see these miracles for themselves, they instead rejected the idea that Jesus was special because they had a history with a younger Jesus that was normal in every way they knew.

On this point, I want to pause and point our attention to the implication that if Jesus’ younger years had been filled with miracles, if Jesus had shown any above-average spiritual knowledge, or if Jesus’ growing up life contained even a single thing out of the ordinary, those in Nazareth would probably have been the first to welcome Him back and have faith in Him. In this scenario, Jesus’ younger years would have broken their stereotype for a carpenter’s son.

Instead, their reaction subtly speaks to having only experienced a normal “Jesus” and they missed out on truly seeing the divine “Jesus” when the time for His ministry had begun.

For all of us living today, we face the same challenge when walking with Jesus. It is likely that much of our walk with Him might look normal, feel normal, and/or otherwise not seem special or significant. However, just because we don’t always have a warm, fuzzy feeling of God’s presence doesn’t mean that Jesus isn’t right beside us. Probably the biggest test of our faith is what we choose to do and move forward doing during the times when we don’t have a clear direction or answer from God.

Will we trust God during the times that it seems as though He is silent and distant? Is our faith going to be based on the spiritual peaks of our past, or on the spiritual valleys? Is it possible, or even wise, to place our faith on something that isn’t as subjective as our own experience?

We all must choose a foundation for where we place our faith, and the best place I know of to place our foundation is on the big themes of the Bible. While our feelings change, and while the past high points of our lives fade within our memories, the themes of the Bible are timeless and truth. While skeptics and culture discount certain details within the Bible and try to use these challenges to discredit the whole thing, nothing will be able to topple the themes of the Bible that have lasted for centuries.

For me, this is where I place my faith, because the biggest theme in the Bible is that God loves humanity so much that He gave Himself to pay the punishment for our rebellion, and He offers each of us the gift of a new life with Him. This promise, and this version of history, is where I choose to place my faith.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

Continue seeking God first in your life. Choose to base your faith on something more solid and lasting then your feelings or your memory.

Grow your faith in God through regular prayer and regularly studying the Bible for yourself, because only through personal prayer and Bible study is your personal relationship with God going to grow into what God wants it to be.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or give up on where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!