I teach an Adult Bible Community at Thomas Road Baptist Church called the G.A.P. (for Graduates and Professionals), and each week I post the outlines and discussion questions from my lessons on the G.A.P. page on Facebook. A while back I started posting these notes on the blog too. So, here is the outline for our meeting on January 9, 2011. This lesson looks at Mark 6:1-6 and discusses the contrasting amazement found in this chapter. The contrast is between the amazement of the people of Nazareth and the amazement of Jesus at their unbelief. If you have any questions or would like to add a comment or two, that would be great!
An Amazing Contrast!
Mark 6:1-6
Introduction
Our trip to Tennessee during Christmas Break
How many of you traveled during break?
What was it like “going home” again?
How were you received?
In Tennessee, we heard a sermon on Mark 6
Lisa and I discussed it in the Wal-Mart parking lot
I was struck by how this story is framed by an amazing contrast
On the one hand, you have the people of Nazareth being amazed at Jesus, and on the other, you have Jesus being amazed at his hometown folks
You may see some similarities in our passage today to your own homecoming, but I want us to see two other things:
1. The Crowd’s Amazement
2. Jesus’ Amazement
Mark 6:1-6
What amazes can hinder or inspire
1. The Crowd’s Amazement
Mark 6:1-2
Notice here that the crowd is amazed or astonished at Jesus. Jesus spoke to them, and they were amazed.
These people no doubt had heard of Jesus’ accomplishments (remember, he visited them once before—Luke 4:16-30—and he had done great deeds in Galilee)
In Luke 4, Jesus went to his hometown to preach. In his first sermon to them (from Isaiah 61), he claimed to be the Jewish Messiah. While the people were wondering at this claim, he quotes a proverb that is repeated in our passage today. Then, in a twist of sorts, Jesus mentions that many of the prophets did miracles and other mighty works OUTSIDE of Israel.
The implication is that these works were done outside of Israel due to Israel’s hardness of heart and lack of faith in God. Jesus is telling Nazareth that they won’t get miracles for the same reason.
Needless to say, the people got mad and tried to kill Jesus.
Now, here he is in Nazareth again. What could possibly be the result of this second visit?
Would Jesus get respect, or would he be rejected a second time?
Mark tells us that the result of this visit is that the crowd was amazed
In Mark 6:2, what was the source of the crowd’s amazement? What was it about Jesus that amazed them?
They knew his Messianic claims and preaching
The source of their amazement was as follows:
They were “amazed” at his words/wisdom
They were “amazed” at his works
Actually, they weren’t amazed at the words or the works per se, but they were amazed at who was doing them
The people wondered where Jesus came up with these ideas
They were puzzled or astonished at his speech and wisdom
They were amazed at his miracles
But their amazement was not made up of faith
They were surprised that a boy from home was doing so well
The amazement of the crowd hindered them from hearing and receiving Jesus
Mark 6:3—they begin to take offense at the hometown kid
These people were surprised that the carpenter’s kid could do these things
Didn’t he grow up right there in Nazareth?
Didn’t some of them know his brothers and sisters?
Hadn’t they all heard the “rumors” that he was an illegitimate child?
Didn’t they “know” the TRUTH about Jesus?
Their amazement was that this boy who years before had toddled around Joseph’s shop could all of a sudden show such promise
He didn’t have a seminary education
He wasn’t even certified by the religious leaders
He had no training in preaching, in theology, or in teaching methods
Jesus, the hometown boy from the wrong side of the tracks, was now the one speaking with authority
Like the skinny kid who never got picked in PE growing up to be the captain of the football team, the folks were amazed that this illegitimate child of Mary was speaking legitimately
The people of Nazareth judged Jesus primarily on what they thought they knew about him
“How could this hometown boy do so well?”—They wondered.
Amazement can hinder or inspire
What would the crowd say about us?
Maybe we’ve lived similar lives
We messed up early on—messed up our families, messed up with sin, messed up with addictions, we’d “never amount to much”
Maybe we were born on the wrong side of the tracks
Or maybe we were born to the “right kind” of family, but never seemed to live up to the promise of our lives
We were the “golden child” who seemed to have everything going his or her way—voted “Most Likely to Succeed” or captain of the sports team, president of the school body, etc.
Yet life never quite panned out—the hometown crowd was disappointed
Like George Bailey in “It’s a Wonderful Life,” maybe we just got stuck
Then, somewhere along the way, we met Jesus and he changed us
Our past didn’t disappear and we didn’t necessarily become overnight successes, but something changed
That change involved our actions and our words
We didn’t act the way we used to act, we didn’t talk the way we used to talk
The change caused us to try to act like Jesus and to speak openly of his grace and love for others
Some folks were amazed, and they didn’t like it—in fact some were offended
Amazement can hinder or inspire us—what amazes you?
2. Jesus’ Amazement
Mark 6:4-6—Jesus addresses the crowd’s astonishment
A prophet is without honor—this is a familiar proverb that addresses the first three verses—those who know us the best are often least likely to think the best of us.
Why? Because they “know” us!
They think they know who we “really” are, so to speak (warts and all)
Like the people of Nazareth, however, Jesus is also amazed—he is amazed at the lack of faith he sees in his hometown
It is ironic that his rejection at home contrasts to his acceptance in other towns. The lack of faith at Nazareth is contrasted to the faithfulness found in others. (Remember the Gentile woman from the region of Tyre in Mark 7:24-30)
It is ironic that his rejection at home contrasts to his acceptance by others in other towns. The lack of faith at Nazareth is contrasted to the faithfulness found in others.
The lack of mighty works in Nazareth is ironically contrasted to the miracles Jesus does elsewhere.
The point here is this—the people are amazed at Jesus’ change and success, he is amazed at their lack of change and lack of faith
Amazement can hinder or inspire
Jesus was “amazed” at least once before—the story of the centurion’s daughter (Luke 7:1-9)
This man would not even expect Jesus to come to his house
He understood authority and simply trusted Jesus to accomplish what he said he would do
We need to learn from this centurion, we need to develop his kind of faith
When we choose to follow Christ, we must change. We should act different
We ought to be faithful to (i.e., “show faith in”) Jesus and do the works he calls us to do and speak the words he asks us to speak and act as though what he says is true
Being a Christ-follower in this way sets us against the world and its mindset—we become enemies (in some cases) to those who are familiar with us
Like Jesus, we may be rejected for our stand and for our claims
Amazement can hinder or inspire
On the other hand, a lack of faith(fulness) may lead to powerlessness
Jesus did few works among them due to their unfaithfulness to him
The Gentile woman and the Roman centurion received from Jesus because they responded to truth with faithfulness
The people of Nazareth would not accept the truth since they thought they “knew” Jesus
To know God through Jesus Christ requires a response of faith and faithfulness (John 1:11-13; 17:3; 7-8)
Jesus was amazed that they could not believe, that they could not be faithful
As a result, no power was manifested in their midst
The crowd was amazed at Jesus’ miracles, but Jesus was disappointed at their powerlessness
The crowd was amazed at Jesus’ works, Jesus was amazed at their lack of faith
Which would you rather be judged by: the crowd or Jesus?
How would the crowd judge you today?
How would Jesus judge you? Would he be amazed at your faith?
Amazement can hinder or inspire—what amazes you?
Application
This story of amazing contrasts in Mark 6 starts with a return home, includes a conflict of expectations, and results in amazement. Some are hindered in coming to the truth due to their insistence that they know the “real” story, while others come to faith as they act in response to the truth spoken by the Lord
Some are simply amazed by the crowd, or the miracles, or the circumstances. Others find themselves amazed at the revelation of God’s kindness in Jesus and respond with faithfulness
I think there are some things we can do this week that will show whether or not we understand Mark’s point:
First, we must have a true relationship with God through faith in Christ alone. There is no other way to get past the crowd’s judgment or to avoid the hindering opinions of the chattering mobs. We must settle it once for all—Jesus is either completely in charge of our lives, or we will continue to bow our knees to lesser gods who think that they know the truth
Once we have set aside Jesus as the only boss for our lives (1 Peter 3:13-17), then we need to make him our focus. This week, spend time reading what God has said, not what others say God has said. Reread Mark 6, look at some cross references, dig into the Scripture. Don’t take my word for it. Investigate the truth. Spend time with the author and finisher of our faith.
Then do what he tells you to do—love God, love others. Who in your world has been rejected because they didn’t “measure up” to the expectations of others? Love them, show them respect. Take time to share your knowledge of God with others. Don’t worry about the opinions of the crowd, just tell them the truth.
Be amazed at what God has done and said, then get out there and actually act on it.
Amazement can hinder or inspire—which will it do for you this week?
Thanks for reading!
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