Monday, November 7, 2011

A Second Chance


Mark 6:1-6

The Lord Jesus returned to His hometown, Nazareth.

The last time He was there, things didn’t go well for Him.

He went to the synagogue and preached from Isaiah 61 (Luke 4:16-20).

In that service, He proclaimed Himself to be the Jewish Messiah.

But the people rejected His message and tried to kill Him.

He left Nazareth and preached in other places in Galilee.

*******

Now, a year later, He returned.

He wanted to give His family, His friends and His neighbors another chance to receive Him and His message.

*******

The People Were Shocked By His Preaching (2)

When He began to speak, the people who heard Him were amazed.

They were filled with fear.

They immediately spoke among themselves about:

His Words

The Lord Jesus preached with grace and charm.

His words were filled with divine authority.

He knew what He was talking about.

His words must either be accepted or rejected.

His Wisdom

When the Lord Jesus spoke, His words were filled with truth.

He taught spiritual truth by using the common everyday things around them.

The Lord’s wisdom left the people shaking their heads in disbelief.

His Works

The people had heard about the miracles He had performed elsewhere.

They could not believe it.

*******

The People Stumbled Over His Person (3)

The people of Nazareth rejected His message because they thought they knew everything about Him.

They saw Him as a common man!

*******

They knew His occupation.

They call Him a carpenter.

They saw Him as a common craftsman.

*******

They were offended in Him.

They refused to listen to Him.

*******

They resorted to ridicule!

They called Him the son of Mary.

*******

They reacted to His words, His wisdom and His works with contempt and unvarnished ridicule.

They could not accept what they could not explain!

*******

The People Were Shunned By His Power (4-6)

The people rejected Him and His message.

Familiarity breeds contempt.

They looked at Him and saw Him as one of their own.

*******

Because of their unbelief, the Lord Jesus Christ was unable to perform many miracles there.

Only a few sick folks were healed.

*******

A few people came to Him in faith and those people received His help.

The rest rejected Him and were rejected by Him.

*******

When the Lord Jesus saw the depth of their rejection, He marveled at their unbelief.

He marveled at the lack of faith among His own people.

*******

These people had heard the truth, seen the truth and still turned a deaf ear and a blind eye to that truth.

As a result, the Lord Jesus Christ left Nazareth again.

There is no record that He ever returned there again.

Their rejection of the Lord Jesus was total.

The Lord Jesus Christ abandoned them to their choice!

*******

Many have become a lot like the people of Nazareth.

They are so familiar with the things of God, the message of the Bible, the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ, the burial and the resurrection that they are no longer moved by them.

*******

They have allowed their hearts to grow cold and calloused toward the things of God.

*******

Today would be a good day to get before the Lord and ask Him to warm our cold heart one more time.


1 comment:

Lette's Haven said...

Good story indeed! Your blog niche is spiritual and inspirational things. Goodluck on your blog! Cheers!

Lette's Haven

Get Paid for Browsing the Internet with LogiPTC Sign up for PayPal and start accepting credit card payments instantly.