Christ's Mission Overcomes Man's Opposition

Mk. 6:1-13

Transcript

Would you pray with me? Father, we thank you for your word, that your word
gives life and light. We pray that as the word goes forward, that you would
prepare our hearts, that we would be led to a greater love for Christ and a
desire to submit to his will and his lordship in our lives. Lord, for those who
are here with us who may not know Christ, would you begin to work in their
lives, draw them to Christ, turn their hearts from darkness to light, we pray.
In all things, Lord, we ask that you may be glorified in our time together. In
Jesus' name, amen. Hometown heroes, we all love the stories of folks who maybe
have accomplished something significant that go back to their hometown to
contribute in some way to their community. And typically when these things
happen, folks welcome their hero back. They receive a hero's welcome and
rightfully so. People should celebrate the achievement of one of their own. And
so we come to Mark 6 and you would think that the people of Nazareth, a little
sleepy town in Galilee, would be excited when they found out that Jesus had come
to pay them a visit. You would think that Jesus of all people would receive a
hero's welcome. But as we work through Mark 6, sadly, that is not the case. So
as we turn our attention to the text this morning, we will see that Christ's
mission overcomes man's opposition. Christ's mission overcomes man's opposition.
But we'll look at the opposition in verses 1 through 6, beginning in verse 1.
He, that is Jesus, went away from there and came to his hometown and his
disciples followed him. After an extensive season of ministry in Galilee,
proclaiming the message of the kingdom and demonstrating the power of the
kingdom, Jesus returns to his hometown of Nazareth. Now Nazareth was a little
obscure town, less than about 300 folks, mostly farmers, trades people. Not an
area that was super accessible, not a tourist attraction by any means. A little
insignificant town. No doubt the folks in his hometown had heard reports about
Jesus. We know from Mark chapter 3 that Jesus' family had certainly heard, and
obviously they were very concerned. So these folks would have heard about the
miracles. They would have heard about the teaching, about the crowds, the
controversies, the chaos. And no doubt, in a little town like that, there was a
lot of talk when Jesus showed back up. So how would these folks respond? What
kind of reception would be given to the miracle-working teacher who had grown up
living a very ordinary life in this small, obscure town? Now to be clear, Jesus
is not coming back to Nazareth simply for a personal visit. This isn't about
getting some R&R, hanging out with childhood friends, getting some good home-
cooked meals. That's not what's going on here. He's coming back with authority.
He enters into town as a rabbi would, accompanied by his disciples. And no
doubt, the townspeople picked up on what Christ was doing. So he comes back to
his hometown with his disciples following him, and in verse 2, here's what
Christ does. On the Sabbath, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who
heard him were astonished. And so beginning in verses 2 and 3, we see the
conflict rising. Jesus goes on the Sabbath into the local synagogue, and he
begins to teach. This was his custom. All throughout Mark's Gospel, we see that
Christ came to preach. He came to proclaim a message of repentance and faith.
And so before the miracles, before the healings, before the wonders, Christ is a
preacher, and he's proclaiming himself as the promised Messiah. He goes into the
Sabbath on the synagogue, and he begins to teach the crowd. Now according to
Luke's parallel account, we know that Christ is given the scroll of Isaiah, and
he goes to a Messianic passage in the later portion of the scroll. And the
passage reads this, The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has
anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the
brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the
prison to those who were bound. This text in Isaiah was a Messianic text. This
was the work of the Messiah. He would come empowered by the Spirit of God,
bringing good news, liberating those who were captive, binding up the
brokenhearted, opening the prison to those who are bound, proclaiming and
demonstrating the power of God's kingdom. And so as Christ reads this text, Luke
tells us that the crowds gaze upon him with anticipation. As he boldly declares,
today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing. The crowds are
astonished. Now this was not the first time that Christ taught, and the crowds
responded with this kind of amazement. Because when Christ came, he taught with
authority. It was not like the teaching of the scribes or the Pharisees. And so
they hear the message of Christ, they see him as he proclaims the truth, and
they're amazed. But unlike the other crowds, where the amazement would turn into
some kind of either adoration or intrigue, we find here that his hometown
response of amazement quickly turns into antagonism. Verse 2, they were
astonished, saying, where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom
given to him? How are such mighty works done by his hands? Two things are
happening here. They're questioning the source of Jesus' ministry. Earlier on,
we saw the Pharisees do the exact same thing. They said, this man casts out
demons by the power of Beelzebub. He doesn't come from God. He's operating under
the power of Satan. Well here, as the hometown folks here, Jesus proclaiming
himself as the fulfillment of the prophecies, they say, wait a minute, we know
who he is. He grew up here. We're not deceived. Where is he getting this from?
What's really the source of Jesus' ministry? He's either operating in the power
of God or in the power of Satan, and the people are openly questioning this.
They not only question the source of his ministry, but they go on to question
the validity of his ministry. Look at the questions in verse number 3. Is not
this the carpenter? Isn't this guy just an ordinary, common man like us? Who
does he think he is parading around as some kind of a miracle worker, declaring
himself to be the Messiah? We know who you really are, Jesus. So stay in your
lane. Is not this the carpenter? Is not this the son of Mary? Now these folks
knew exactly what they were doing. It was customary in their day to describe
someone as the son of his father. For example, Hudson, the son of Michael.
That's how a person would typically be described. But here they say, the son of
Mary, which again brings out this kind of questioning of the legitimacy of the
events even surrounding his birth. We know who you really are. We've heard the
stories. We've heard the rumors. We know about this supposed miraculous birth.
And we know about these miracles that you're doing. You're not who you claim to
be. You're just a carpenter. You're not even the son of your father. Are not his
brothers, James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon, and his sisters here with us? Now
remember, his family had earlier come to Jesus in Mark chapter 3, and they were
trying to forcibly pull him away from his ministry because they thought he had
gone mad. They thought he had gone insane. They said, look, we know who you are.
We know who your brothers are. They don't believe in you. Your sisters, they
don't believe in you. They're ordinary. Nothing special going on here. There is
a decisive rejecting of Christ because they thought they knew him, when in
reality, they simply did not. There's something fascinating here that I don't
want us to miss. Because sometimes we think of baby Jesus or the young Jesus,
and we almost think of him almost like a baby Yoda. He's got these magical
powers, and probably he's doing these little miracles, and people are probably
talking about it, but there's not too much, you know, there's a lot of mystique
and just uniqueness here. And we can think of Jesus that way. But that's not
exactly what happened. In fact, that was never part of the mission. Because as a
baby, as an infant, as a young man, as a worker, he experienced the full
realities of human life. Fully God, who is fully man. His upbringing, his
actions as a young man were so ordinary that no one would have had a clue as to
who he was or what he had come to do. You see, Christ living the life that you
and I live was all part of Christ's mission. His mission to be the perfect
Savior, the one who lived perfectly without sin, the one who could be our
sympathetic Savior. Christ had to come and die, yes, but he also had to come to
live the perfect life that you and I could never live. The one who experienced,
as Hebrews says, all of the things and troubles and worries of life that we
experience, yet without sin, so that he could be the Savior who knows, he could
be the Savior who cares, and be the Savior who can give us exactly what we need
in our time of need. And so this ordinary life the Savior lived is called into
question as he proclaims himself to be the extraordinary Savior who is calling
on men to repent and believe. And ultimately we find the climax of their
rejection in verse number three. It says, they took offense at him. They found
his claims to be scandalous. That's the word offense, scandal. They wanted
nothing, absolutely nothing to do with Jesus. Now why exactly were they
offended? Were they offended by the miracles? Were they offended by the good
works? No, they were offended because he claimed to be the authority, the divine
authority. They rightly understood who he was claiming to be. And they said, we
don't want your authority. They refused to acknowledge him as Lord. And the
reality is the same is true today. There are plenty of people who are just fine
with Jesus as a teacher, Jesus as a moral example or Jesus as some kind of a
prophet. But to say that he is the Son of God, that he is the creator and
sustainer and Lord of all things who demands all men everywhere to repent, that
he is the way, the truth and the life that no one can come to the Father except
through him. Well, that's a different story. That's a Jesus that people find
scandalous. But that's the Jesus of scriptures. That's the Son of God that Mark
is telling us about. They were offended by his authority, just like people
today. But they were also offended by his message. Because in Mark 1-15, we find
a summary of Christ's essential message. Wherever he would go, he was urging
people to repent and believe the gospel. He said the time is fulfilled. All the
prophecies that we read about in the Old Testament, all of the hope that the
people had waited for had finally come. The kingdom of God was in their midst
because the king had come to inaugurate God's kingdom. Repent and believe the
gospel. That was the essence of Christ's message. And people took offense at
that. What do you mean, repent? We're already children of Abraham. We're
already. Fine. People still today get offended by this message of repentance.
There's a kind of Christianity today that makes no moral demands, that requires
no repentance of any kind. Just ask Jesus in your heart. Believe in Jesus. Pray
the prayer. And he'll deliver you from all your problems. He'll heal you. He'll
make your marriage better. He'll give you success. He'll help you fulfill your
potential. He'll turn your life around. You need Jesus. Little bumper stickers.
Try Jesus. We like that kind of message. But that's not the message of the
gospel. That's not the scandal of the gospel. The scandal of the gospel is you
and I cannot save ourselves. We are not the righteous moral people that we think
of ourselves as. We are helpless, helpless, hellbound sinners who can do nothing
to earn God's favor, who deserve eternal wrath. We are so helpless and helpless
that God had to send his Son to do what we could never do so that through his
grace we could be restored and reconciled to God. And God calls us to turn from
darkness to light, to renounce our rebellion and embrace Christ as the Lord and
Savior. And the truth is that gospel message is offensive. We read all
throughout the New Testament that the gospel is a scandal, that the Jews seek
wisdom, the Greeks seek this, but we preach Christ crucified. Folly to those who
are perishing, but to those who are saved, the power of God. So Christ comes. He
proclaims himself as the Messiah. He points them to the prophecies of the Old
Testament and he says, this is what I've come to do. And his message and his
manner of ministry authenticate this truth. And yet because of the offense of
the gospel, people reject. If it happened back then, it will happen surely
today. But here's the good news, that this rejection did not stop Christ and his
mission because Christ's mission always and ultimately overcomes man's
opposition. So in verses four through six, we see the conclusion of the story.
Jesus said to them, a prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and
among his relatives in his own household. And he could do no mighty works there,
except that he healed. He laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them.
And he marveled because of their unbelief. First off, notice what Jesus says.
Essentially he says familiarity breeds contempt. What other crowds recognized
his own hometown could not see. They had so seen the humanity of Christ, they
could not envision the divinity of Christ. They missed what was obviously in
front of them. Familiarity breeds contempt. It goes on to say he could do no
mighty works there. Now that's an interesting way of wording things. Because
Mark is relaying that Jesus is the Son of God. All power, all authority rests in
his hand. And yet it says he could do no works there. Remember that the purpose
of Christ's miracles were not simply to draw attention to the miraculous, but
rather to demonstrate that Christ's kingdom had indeed come. That he was the
king. And because the people had rejected the proclamation of Christ as king, he
gave them known signs to demonstrate that he was king. And so it goes on to say
that he marveled, marveled because of their unbelief. Now this is the only time
in the New Testament where we see Christ responding this way. We find all
throughout Mark's gospel the crowds marveling at Christ, but now Christ marvels
at them. And why? Because of their unbelief. Because of their hardness of heart.
Now honestly, as I think about this text, it's really hard for me to grasp this.
Because as God, he knows all things and yet he marvels. Wonder of wonders.
Christ experiences all of the emotions that we experience. He knows that. He
knows what it is to be in the presence of the hard-hearted and to marvel at
that. And yet, experiencing all of this, he did so without sin. The conclusion
of verse 6 says, and he went among the villages teaching. Obviously he was
affected by their response. He marvels. He's amazed at the hardness of heart and
the unbelief. He is affected by the response, but he's not deterred by it.
Because he knows that his mission will overcome man's opposition. Now the
conclusion of verse 6 functions somewhat of a transitional verse here as the
shift begins to focus on the mission that Christ is about to send his disciples
on. But before we go to verses 7-13, it's important to remember this. When Mark
is writing this Gospel, he's writing to primarily Gentile believers. So those
who had not grown up with the Old Testament hope of a Messiah. Folks that would
have grown up worshipping family idols. So I want you to imagine these Gentile
believers. They go to their family members and they tell them that they've
renounced all the household gods. They've renounced the religion of their
fathers and their forefathers and those who went on before. In fact, they not
only renounced that religion, but now they're worshipping a Jewish Messiah, who
of all things was crucified and supposedly raised to life. Can you imagine the
rejection that these folks would have experienced being followers of the Lord
Jesus? And what an encouragement it was for them to know that this was all part
of God's plan. That the Messiah that they serve, that the Jesus that they are on
mission with, he knows that rejection. And he cares. And his good purposes will
ultimately be accomplished for our good, for his glory. Because the one who
calls us is also with us. And he knows our suffering. He knows rejection. Now
praise God there are many of you that when you came to Christ, your family
rejoiced. But there are some of you here, you've come to faith in Christ and
there's been great opposition within your own family. I think of my father who
grew up in a Catholic background and when he came to faith in Christ, his family
was so irate that he had rejected his background that they kicked him out of the
home. He knew what it was to suffer. And Christ knows. And he's with us. And
it's all part of his good sovereign purpose to redeem and transform a people for
himself, for his glory. So he knows. He knows opposition, just like you and I
know opposition. But the good news is that his mission, despite the opposition,
will triumph. So despite the opposition, he continues to press on preaching and
teaching. And then in verses 7 through 13, we find him then calling his
disciples to follow in his footsteps to do the same as well. Verse 7, and he
called the 12 and began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over
the unclean spirits. He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a
staff, no bread, no bag, no money in their belts, but to wear sandals and not
put on two tunics. And he said to them, Whenever you enter a town or house, stay
there until you depart from there. And if any place will not receive you, they
will not listen to you. When you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet
as a testimony against them. Verse 12, so they went out and proclaimed that
people should repent. And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many
who were sick and healed them. Now earlier in Mark's Gospel, Jesus calls these
men to be his disciples, to leave their jobs, leave their vocations, leave their
livelihoods behind and follow him, to be with him. And as they are with him,
what happens? They see the miracles. They see the healings. They hear the
teachings. Christ personally takes them aside and explains more thoroughly what
he is doing. They observe the various responses that people have to Christ's
ministry. And all the while, Jesus is preparing them for a task. He's inviting
them into his everlasting mission. Up until this point in Mark 6, their track
record was not exactly super. If you remember last week, we saw that the
disciples rebuked Jesus because it seemed as if Jesus didn't care or wasn't
concerned about the potential danger that they found themselves in. In Mark 5,
they actually rebuked Jesus again when Christ asked who in the crowds had
touched him. It was clear up until this point, they still had not really grasped
the significance of Jesus' identity. And yet, despite their obvious failings,
their obvious shortcomings, Christ had not given up on them. He is a patient,
merciful Savior. Aren't you thankful for that? So through it all, he's patiently
working, patiently molding, patiently preparing a people to the praise of his
glory who would proclaim and advance his glorious kingdom. He was doing it then,
and he's doing it now. Now as we read this text, there's one thing to remember
though. There is a unique mission that Christ is sending his disciples on. This
is not the same exact mission that you and I have today. He's sending them into
Jewish towns to proclaim the message of the kingdom, to demonstrate the power of
the kingdom. And there was a uniqueness here about this mission that was
different from other missions that Christ would send his disciples on. So the
instructions that we read here aren't exactly the same as the instructions that
we have for the mission that God has called us today. So we need to be careful
how we apply this. This isn't teaching us minimalism in order for the
accomplishment of the mission. You and I don't have the same power to go casting
out demons, etc, etc. But there are principles here that certainly apply to the
mission that God has entrusted to you and to me. So in verse 7, notice what
Jesus does. First he calls the 12. He calls them to himself. He sends them out.
And he does it two by two. Yes, there's a companionship component, but also if
we go back to the Old Testament, we find this principle that by the mouth of two
or three witnesses, every word is established. So he wants the truth to be made
known as two proclaim the same message in unity. He equips them. He gives them
authority, his authority to accomplish his mission. And then he gives them
instructions. He lets them know what they need to do and how they need to live
so that they can carry out the task that he has given to them. Now, again,
there's a unique mission here that requires a unique way of living. And we get
this sense of urgency as he charges them in verse 8 to take nothing for their
journey except a staff. No bread, no bag, no money for their belts. This is
going to be a journey that requires radical dependence upon Christ to provide
their needs. He says, and when you enter, but to wear sandals and not put on to
tunics. And he said to them, wherever you enter a house, stay there until you
depart from there. And if any place will not receive you, they will not listen
to you when you leave, shake off the dust that's on your feet as a testimony
against them. Now, the earlier part of the instructions here echoes the Exodus
language of leaving Egypt with urgency and with haste. This mission would
require great urgency. It would require great dependence. They would trust God
to meet their needs through the people. But there was also provision here for
rejection. When folks reject you, when you are not received, shake off the dust
of your feet. This was a symbolic gesture the prophets practice in the Old
Testament that demonstrates the disciples are not responsible for the people's
rejection. They proclaimed they've been faithful to their task, but they've been
rejected. And ultimately, these people are accountable to God for their
response. Jesus basically is saying here through this symbol, you've done your
part, and they're going to be responsible for their response. Now again, this is
not an apples-to-apples paradigm for the mission that God has given to his
church. But there are certain principles here that absolutely shape the life and
work of those who've been sent out by the risen Christ to proclaim and
demonstrate the power of his kingdom. Christ sends us with his authority to go
and proclaim the message of repentance and faith. In Matthew 28, we read, All
authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go. You are my
ambassadors. You are my representatives. You have my authority to go and
proclaim the message of the kingdom, to make disciples, to instruct them, to
build them up into Christ like this. You have my presence. You have my
authority. You have my blessing. Now go. And he not only sends us, but the good
news is he equips us. We have everything that we need in Christ to live in a way
that by God's grace, the task that he's given us will be accomplished. And so
no, our mission is not exactly what the mission of the disciples had here, but
yet as the people of Christ, we've been sent out on mission for Christ and his
presence is with us. And yes, we will be rejected and yes, we will experience
antagonism, but we will not be surprised because our savior endured the same.
And yet we can take heart because Christ's mission always overcomes man's
opposition. So we see what Jesus did. Now in verse 13 or verse 12, rather notice
what the disciples do. So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent
and they cast out many demons and anointed with oil, many who were sick and
healed them. What did the disciples do? Do they fully understand everything
that's going on? No, but they obey. They do what Christ commanded them to do.
They preach, they proclaim, they demonstrate the message and power of the
kingdom. Some reject, some receive, but they obey. In simple faith, obedience to
Christ, they go proclaiming the message of Christ and living in a way that
demonstrates the beauty and the power of life in his kingdom. Living day by day
by faith, trusting in God to provide their needs. And again, some receive, some
reject. Our job is not to control the outcome. Our job is simply to be faithful,
knowing that Christ's mission ultimately overcomes man's opposition. So in Mark
6, we see that rejection is a typical response to gospel endeavors. Folks have
rejected Jesus. They will reject his followers as well. Our responsibility
though, in the midst of this rejection is to follow in the footsteps of Jesus,
to be faithful, to obey his commands, to trust him, to provide for our needs and
to labor with realism, but also labor with faith and hope. Because we know
ultimately in the end that Christ's mission overcomes man's opposition. And so
friends, take heart. Be encouraged. Don't quit. Continue trusting in Christ. And
I pray that this text will encourage us as we seek to be faithful to the mission
that Christ has entrusted to us as well. Let us pray. Father, we thank you for
Jesus. Thank you that through the power of your spirit, you turned our hearts
from antagonism to the authority and message of Jesus, to repentance and faith.
Father, thank you that you are with us and that you invite us into your good
eternal mission, redeeming and transforming the people for yourself. You call us
to proclaim your gospel. You send us with your authority and your presence and
you equip us with everything that we need for life and godliness and mission. We
give you praise and glory. Father, when we experience rejection, and we will, I
pray that we would take heart from this passage knowing that Jesus knows he
cares and yet he calls us to the good work that he's doing in this world. So
Lord, I pray that we would take heart knowing that your mission ultimately
overcomes man's opposition. We praise you and thank you for your son Jesus. It's
in his name we pray. Amen.