Lent 2026 Day 23: Mon 16 Mar
Mark 6:4-6
4 Then Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his own household is a prophet without honour.” 5 So He could not perform any miracles there, except to lay His hands on a few of the sick and heal them. 6 And He was amazed at their unbelief. And He went around from village to village, teaching the people.
Jesus is suffering from home-boy syndrome. How could a local lad ever get to be something special? In fact, “can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Jesus would have known that home would be a tough assignment. He knew they’d give him aa hard time.
The image and legacy of the son of the tradesman carpenter/stonemason was not going to change for the locals. They’d known him from a child. He would have been an unusual boy who clearly knew his Scripture and could ask deep questions, but he wasn’t welcome to come back here and start telling them what for. Amazement at miracles turns to rejection just like that.
Still, even amongst the indifference there were some who came forward for healing – Jesus did not seek them out. He healed them. It seems that there were more sick people about, but they presumably did not come forward. I wonder what kept them back. Could it have been the air of negativity surrounding that day; or the feeling that, with so many people stifling faith, coming forward would be a waste of time or perhaps an embarrassment if Jesus didn’t heal them; or did they feel that the local boy could not possibly live up to the reputation that came with him?
Note that every person upon whom Jesus laid his hands was healed. It may have been a few people, but they were healed, though no-one seemed that amazed, apart from the subjects themselves. “Mum, he healed my shoulder!” “Really? And just who does he think he is, and what were you doing queuing up in front of him? I’ll hear no more about this. Now go and get the wood in for the fire.” He would have healed more if they had come forward. There were no failures on Jesus’ part. There were no miracles once the locals had turned.
Jesus moves on to the surrounding areas.
Do you ever dream of moving elsewhere so that you can leave your failures behind and start a new life there?
Father God, I am where I am and you can use me despite my glaring errors and mistakes, my history of failure, my poor efforts in sharing the Good News and my sense of worthlessness. Remind me daily that you are changing me daily into the likeness of Jesus. Amen.
Paul