December 2, 2015 (Wednesday)
This evening at Bethel Baptist Church, Ingleside, we will continue our study of The Gospel of Mark, and we will find ourselves in Mark 6, in which Mark continues to describe the ministry of Jesus.
Jesus went to Nazareth, his home town. What had been their reaction to the wonderful happenings in the life of one of the “favorite sons?” Had they been overwhelmed by what Jesus had been saying and doing? Absolutely not. As he taught in the synagogue, they asked, “Where did this man get these things? 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?” They rejected him.
Jesus’ response was, “”A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.”
Did Jesus just give up and quit? Not on your life. He redoubled his work by sending out his disciples two by two, giving them power over evil spirits. “They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them” (Mark 6:12-13).
Jesus went full speed ahead with his work, and this was very upsetting to King Herod, who had beheaded John the Baptist. He screamed, “This is John, whom I beheaded, raised from the dead!” Of course, that was not the case, but Mark is showing us that the opposition to Jesus, first from his own people in Nazareth, and then from the King, was not enough to keep him from performing his mission.
Jesus came to save us from our sins, and nothing would be able to keep him from doing that. The opposition would be powerful and eventually would result in his being crucified, but we all know now that Jesus Christ came into this world to die for us, saving us from our sins, and showing us what the Bible means when it says, “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).