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Gospel: Matthew 13: 54-58
Jesus came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue.
They were astonished and said,
“Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?
Is he not the carpenter’s son?
Is not his mother named Mary
and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?
Are not his sisters all with us?
Where did this man get all this?”
And they took offense at him.
But Jesus said to them,
“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place
and in his own house.”
And he did not work many mighty deeds there
because of their lack of faith.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Mother Teresa used to run a school for street children in downtown Calcutta. Written on the wall outside the school’s entrance was a set of teachings everyone was encouraged to follow, including the following:
People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
The good you do today will often be forgotten. Do good anyway.
In the end, what you do is between you and God. It’s never between you and them anyway.
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That last rule, in particular, speaks to the heart of today’s Gospel. Jesus returns to his hometown, where he begins preaching in the synagogue, sharing with the locals how he is the fulfillment of God’s promises.
He is not only the local carpenter; he is also the Messiah, the Son of God.
In the words of the prophet Isaiah, “Here is your God, he comes with vindication; he comes to save you. The eyes of the blind shall see, and the ears of the deaf be opened.”
As his listeners’ rolled their eyes and huffed and puffed in disbelief, they cried out, “Where did this man get such wisdom? … Is he not the carpenter’s son?”
I’d imagine the disciples chimed in, leaning into their budding faith, by assuring the crowds they saw the Lord perform these miracles with their very own eyes!
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Still, the wool of familiarity had been pulled over these locals’ eyes, preventing them from seeing that God was doing something marvelous in their midst.
So, “he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith.”
While such disbelief must’ve felt like a dagger in the Lord’s heart, his inner peace was never dependent upon other people’s approval, even from those who thought they knew him best.
His sole focus was doing the will of his Father, in this case, scattering the seed of God’s Word upon hardened hearts.
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So, it can be with us. We live to love and serve the Lord. Yet sometimes the hardest place to share our faith is at home, with those who’ve known us since birth.
But as Mother Teresa reminded those school children in Calcutta, “What you do is between you and God. It’s never between you and them anyway.”
Be yourself.
Share the Gospel.
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Image credits: (1) Fearless Motivation (2) JC 1st UMC (3) The Jenkins Center