Mark 6:3 “Isn't he the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James...”

“Who does this guy think he is?” People in Nazareth take offence at Jesus, because they stumble over the fact that they are familiar with him.

Jesus interprets the rejection as part of a prophet’s job description, resonating with something the philosopher Plutarch wrote: “The most sensible and wisest people are little cared for in their own home-towns.”

Although Jesus manages to heal a few sick people there, the negative reaction in Nazareth strangely hinders his abilities there. Opposition can hinder the work, but it never has the last word, as Jesus demonstrates by sending out the 12 Disciples.

They are given the following instructions: demonstrate simplicity and dependency, trust strangers to provide what they need, avoid appearances of seeking personal gain, stay in one home while in any given place, and if no one listens to them, they should move on, refusing to take even the town’s dust with them on their way out.

They end up being successful in their ministry, because: 1) Jesus is the source of their authority. 2) The word of God, when spread extensively, always yields a harvest (see 4:1–20). 3) The reign of God that Jesus initiates is less about elevating Jesus than about his commitment to create a new state of affairs.

Rejection from familiar people in Nazareth sits in contrast to the hospitality the disciples experience from strangers around the region. The juxtaposition makes a powerful statement about Jesus’ tendency to frustrate conventional expectations. It makes us wary about presuming that we have Jesus figured out. How does this help us know Jesus in new ways?

Mark