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Jesus came home. “Then He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him” (6:1). His own country means His hometown, Nazareth, where He grew up (Mark 1:9). He came to teach. Jesus did not come to show off. On the Sabbath He taught in the synagogue, just as He did in other towns (Mark 1:21). A synagogue was a meeting place where people prayed and heard God's Word read aloud. Astonished. “And many hearing Him were astonished” (6:2). Astonished means so surprised that you can hardly speak. A good question. They asked, “Where did this Man get these things?” (6:2). They could not deny His wisdom. They had also heard about the mighty works done by His hands. The true answer. Mark tells us at the very start who Jesus is: “Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (Mark 1:1). At His baptism the Father said, “You are My beloved Son” (Mark 1:11). His wisdom came from heaven. Close to home. Jesus came to the people who knew Him best. He still comes close to ordinary people in ordinary places, like your home, your school and your church. What we learn. Being amazed by Jesus is not the same as trusting Him. Jesus wants you to listen to Him, believe Him and follow Him.
The carpenter. “Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary?” (6:3). A carpenter was a builder who made doors, tables, tools and roofs. His family. The people named His family: He was the “brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon” and they asked, “And are not His sisters here with us?” (6:3). They knew every one of them. Offended. “So they were offended at Him” (6:3). They tripped over Jesus. He seemed too ordinary to be God's chosen King. Truly a man. Jesus really did grow up, learn, work and get tired. “Jesus increased in wisdom and stature” (Luke 2:52). He knows what everyday life is like, because He lived it. Truly God. The carpenter of Nazareth is the Word who made the world. “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made” (John 1:3). Humble on purpose. “Though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Jesus chose a plain life so He could come close to us. What we learn. Do not judge Jesus by how plain He looked to Nazareth. Listen to what He said, and see what He did. A humble Savior is still the Lord of all, and He can be trusted.
Jesus answered. “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house” (6:4). God sends a prophet to speak His message. An old pattern. God's messengers were often refused by their own people. Even the prophet Jeremiah's hometown plotted against him (Jeremiah 11:21). Our memory verse. John wrote, “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11). Nazareth was the first place it happened. No mighty work. “Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them” (6:5). Was Jesus weak? No. Jesus never lost His power. But He does not force His help on people who push Him away. Matthew says He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief (Matthew 13:58). Still kind. Even in a town that rejected Him, Jesus healed the sick who came. He promised, “The one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out” (John 6:37). A careful word. This does not mean that a sick person who stays sick has too little faith. God is wise, and He loves us in every answer. What we learn. Unbelief closes the door to what Jesus wants to do. Trust opens it.
Jesus marveled. “And He marveled because of their unbelief” (6:6). To marvel means to be amazed. Amazed at faith. Another time Jesus marveled at a Roman officer who trusted Him to heal his servant from far away. Jesus said, “I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!” (Luke 7:9). What faith is. Faith is trusting God and taking Him at His word. “But without faith it is impossible to please Him” (Hebrews 11:6). What unbelief is. Asking honest questions is not unbelief. Unbelief is refusing to trust Jesus after He has shown who He is. He kept going. “Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching” (6:6). In a circuit means in a big loop, from one village to the next. Still loving. Later many more people turned away from Jesus, and at last He was taken to the cross. But rejection never stopped His love. He died for the very people who said no to Him. What we learn. Jesus is looking for faith. He keeps inviting people to trust Him, and today He is inviting you.
The problem. Nazareth's “no” to Jesus is the same “no” every heart says to God. We want our own way, and we push Him out of the center of our lives. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin is not only doing wrong things. It is refusing to trust and honor God.
Our efforts fail. Nazareth had the synagogue, the Sabbath, the Scriptures and Jesus living down the street. None of it saved them. Being close to church things cannot save us either. We are saved by grace through faith, “not of works” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
The rejected One. Long before, Isaiah wrote that the Messiah would be “despised and rejected by men” (Isaiah 53:3). Jesus was rejected in Nazareth, and later in Jerusalem, all the way to the cross. He knew it would happen, and He came anyway, because He loves us.
The cross and the empty tomb. “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures… and that He rose again the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). “He was wounded for our transgressions” (Isaiah 53:5). The One people pushed away took the punishment for their sin.
The response. “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). Receiving Jesus means turning from sin and trusting Him as your Savior and Lord. Jesus is not only a wise teacher from a small town. He is the Son of God, and He is inviting you to welcome Him today.
John wrote these words about Jesus near the start of his Gospel. “He came to His own”: Jesus came into the world He had made, and He came to His own people, Israel. In Mark 6 He came even closer, to His own hometown, His own relatives and His own house. “And His own did not receive Him”: to receive someone means to welcome them and trust them. The people of Nazareth did not welcome Jesus. They knew His face, but they did not know who He really is. That is sad, but John did not stop there. The very next verse says, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). Anyone who welcomes Jesus by trusting Him becomes part of God's family. Say this verse when you are tempted to think you already know all about Jesus. Then ask yourself, Have I welcomed Him into my life?
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📚 Jesus the Carpenter 📚 Faith and Unbelief