Because of their lack of faith

Because of their lack of faith

Scripture:

When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” And they took offense at him.

But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”

And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith. Matthew 13:53-58

Observation:

In this passage, we now see the Lord come to his own hometown, where he begins teaching and healing people in the local synagogue. Everyone is amazed because they recognize him as a local boy, as the carpenter’s son. They know his mother Mary, and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas. They even know his sisters. They probably have chairs or tables or beds in their homes that Jesus build with His own hands. After a while, they find they cannot accept Him telling them how to live. They cannot get past looking at his upbringing and cannot believe that someone whom they had known as a little kid can possibly be the Savior of the world, the Son of God. Doubtlessly, no small bit of jealousy played a role here as well.

The NIV version describes their attitude as “taking offense” at Jesus. The translation literally means they stumbled over Him. The Lord sadly tells them “a prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home”. The sad result of this atmosphere was that the Lord did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.

There were two main problems with the townspeople. The first was their prejudice, and this prejudice is common among people we know well and live together with. If we look with human eyes, and use human reasoning, we will inevitably be prejudiced. We may doubt how God can raise up the boy next door or a close cousin to become a great evangelist or a famous preacher. We may still be blinded and let a great person for the Lord pass by without our noticing. Jesus came from only a humble carpenter’s family, not from a famous lineage of Pharisees or teachers of the law. Again, we are reminded that we must not judge things from the outward appearance but look deeper into the truth of things, guided by the wisdom of the Holy Spirit.

The second problem of the townspeople was their lack of faith. This passage also teaches us how the faith level of a congregation has a great impact on the occurrence of miracles in a place. That is why great miracles tend to be more commonplace in the rural areas where the simple folk have simple yet powerful faith. In the more urban areas, where there are many skeptics, even within the church, miracles are considerably less. Many of us wonder why God does not seem to move much in our lives and why life seems rather dull and unexciting. But how strong is our faith? Are we willing to take a paradigm shift in our faith level, to believe that God truly answers prayer, and that He does miracles today just the same as when He walked the earth 2,000 years ago?

Application:

Beware of our human tendency towards prejudice. Instead of judging easily by our human eyes and human standards, instead look to the Holy Spirit for wisdom and ask “What do You want me to see, Lord?” We need to pray that God will help us look not at the outward appearance, but at the inner truth of things.

Pray to the Lord to grant us a paradigm shift in our faith level. How do we increase our faith? Pray for more faith! Ask God for that special anointing! Believe that God answers prayers today! Begin to see spiritually miracles before they even happen! See the Lord working actively in our lives, leading us from glory to glory, showing us great and marvelous miracles even as we serve Him.

Prayer:

Father God, forgive me I pray for the many times I have looked with prejudice with others, judging them, condemning them, without so much as a thought. Teach me, dear Lord, to learn to look and discern with spiritual eyes, to patiently listen to You, even as we interact with others. Give us that special word, that special knowledge, that we might make a difference in helping someone who is in need.

Help us O Lord, increase our faith, open our eyes and our heart to believe. Move, O Lord, even in our lives. Lead us O Lord, to lives of greater meaning and purpose. Show Yourself strong, we pray. May Your great name be praised forever! In Jesus name, Amen.