Note: You can watch this teaching on CrossWalk’s YouTube channel.
Here are some things that jumped out at me from this week’s text, Mark 6:1-13 (NLT):
Not all environments are conducive to health, healing, growth, and success. Things just didn’t go well in Nazareth. Jesus’ family and long-time friends had a difficult time making room for Jesus to be more than a carpenter. Welcome to Family Systems Theory 101! Our families of origin – even incredibly healthy ones – are a system that does not like to be tweaked. When a part of that system gets out of order, the whole system sometimes moves to get everyone back in line. Sometimes these systems restrain us from good, new things. Sometimes, however, not so much.
Have you ever been in a situation where the context made it difficult for you to be anything other than what you had always been, where becoming something more or different or better was somehow harder than in other spaces? Have there been times when the system was helping you stay healthy? Have you ever been part of a system that allowed you to change and grow? How long did it take?
Being in Nazareth was likely difficult for Jesus to live into his anointing. We do not live in a vacuum. Like it or not, or believe it or not, we are connected more than we realize. Our actions affect those around us, and their actions affect us, too. As one who is in front of a crowd regularly, I can tell you that the energy and response of the crowd can significantly impact my energy. There is a very real energy dynamic at work. SF Giants Pitcher, Johnny Cuedo, feeds off the crowd’s energy, which is one reason that contributed to his good performance on June 25: it was the first large crowd he had pitched in front of since the pandemic began. He pitched over a month earlier on Mother’s Day, and flopped – could this have been related to the fact that it was a severely limited crowd? On a deeper level, I think it takes enormous strength and energy to overcome the impact of a context that is inconducive to health, healing, growth, and success. I believe Jesus’ capacity to perform was hindered by the effect of the crowd – the context messed with him, too. If this anointed person struggled, is it possible other human beings might, too? Perhaps it’s time to give ourselves a break?
Have you ever experienced the difference between a crowd of support being behind you versus one that is indifferent or against you? What must this be like for people with little or no support?
We can assume that Jesus was sure he was all about promoting shalom with shalom. When faced with a context that was not conducive and perhaps hostile, and aware that this dynamic was no doubt messing with him, he chose to pivot. He moved forward in an expanded way to continue his mission. He moved on. Sometimes that’s a way or the only way to live into your True Self.
Have you ever needed to fly the coup in some way? Did you leave baggage behind or was it as clean as it could be? What was that experience like for you? What were among the benefits of leaving? What was hard about it?
The disciples were sent in pairs to the surrounding villages to carry out the mission of bringing more shalom into the world with shalom. They were sent, which means the sender believed in them, yet they were also sent in Jesus’ name. They were sent in the same power and the same way as Jesus. They weren’t sent out as Lone Rangers – they had a model to follow. I wonder how everything might be different if Jesus followers followed Jesus so carefully that the world would see the connection instead of the disparity? This explains some of the instruction, by the way, about not taking too much stuff and staying with the first host, not the richest host: all of these were related to living in the Way of Jesus.
When have you been expected to represent something larger than your own ego? What was good about it? What was challenging? How has your understanding of Christianity included representing Jesus well? How has that worked for you? What areas in your life need work in that regard?
Shaking the dust off your feet. On the one hand, this is a clear statement toward the people whose dust you collected. However, it is possible that when the disciples did this, nobody noticed. Therefore, perhaps the practice was equally good for the disciples themselves – or even more so. Assessment was required on the part of the disciples to determine whether they did all that they could do. This took some time for reflection and honesty. When they determined that it simply did not make sense to keep grinding away on something that simply was not going to budge, the act of shaking the dust off their feet must have been cathartic. “I’ve done as much as anybody could. I can leave in peace.”
Have you ever been in a situation that you assessed needed to be in your rear-view mirror? How did you mark the moment? What was it like? Are you facing a similar situation now? How are you feeling about it? What do you need in place to feel peace about shaking the dust off your feet?
Not all of Nazareth remained in disbelief. By the time Jesus was executed, his brothers had come around. One, James, is even credited with a letter in the New Testament bearing his name. It would be easy for Jesus to look at his time in his hometown as a waste of energy. But there is a verse in Isaiah (55:11) where God states that God’s word will not come back void but will produce fruit. Sometimes what we do is scatter seed. We will not necessarily see the fruit, and that’s just the way it is. It is not necessarily good, but it is true. Benjamin Lay lived in the United States leading up to the American Revolution. A widely traveled and well-read man, and husband to his wife, a Quaker pastor, he became an outspoken proponent of abolition. He was convinced that slavery was completely inconsistent with Christian ethics. One of the people had conversed with regularly was Benjamin Franklin who was himself a slave owner. So respected was Lay by the Franklin household that a picture of Lay hung in their home! So influential was Lay that in his will, Franklin granted freedom for his slaves upon his death. He almost nailed it! It would have been nice if he believed so strongly to grant their freedom immediately. Sigh. Philadelphia physician Benjamin Rush, whose signature can be found on the Declaration of Independence, wrote, “The success of Mr. Lay, in sowing seeds of... a revolution in morals, commerce, and government, and in the new and in the old world, should teach the benefactors of mankind not to despair, if they do not see the fruits of their benevolent propositions, or undertakings, during their lives. Some of these seeds produce their fruits in a short time, but the most valuable of them, like the venerable oak, are centuries in growing.” Don’t lose hope if your good work didn’t pan out like you hoped – what God is about will produce one way or another.
Have you ever felt like you wasted a ton of time for nothing? Have you ever worked hard and experienced the fruit of your labor? How does knowing that Jesus’ family eventually came around affect your level of hope?
Take your spirituality deeper. I strongly encourage spending time daily reading and reflecting on a particular text. I am currently following the Lectionary, which you can use to review the texts I’ve taught or the ones coming up. Make the most of it!