“53 And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence. 54And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works? 55Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? 56And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things? 57And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. 58And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.” (Matthew 13:53-58)
Jesus returns to his hometown of Nazareth, where he goes into a synagogue to impart some of his wisdom. However, the locals reject Jesus’ divinity because they know his earthly father, who is a simple carpenter, and so they doubt that this man from a family whom they personally know could also be the Son of God. They therefore ridicule him and his teachings. Because of their lack of faith, Jesus refuses to perform any miracles there. The non-believers chase Jesus to a mountain on the outskirts of town, where they intend to push him off a cliff, yet Jesus mysteriously eludes his persecutors. He goes back to teaching and preaching in Capernaum. It is specifically in his own hometown that people fail to appreciate Jesus and his miracles. Their reaction is instead one of spite, gloat, and envy. These inferior human emotions block the road to faith and divine blessings. The Nazarenes choose to be cynical, but Jesus remains loyal to his truth and carries on.
Pursuit of truth means not only looking outward, but also inward; our life’s mission is to discover truth.
