On the Sabbath [Jesus] began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded.

Mark 6:2

Our gospel reading today (Mark 6:1-13) begins on the Sabbath, and begins with Jesus doing what he always did on the Sabbath: Worshiping God. 

Which is why we are here, after all. Today, we are doing what scripture teaches, and what Jesus himself did in our gospel reading, which is to honor the Sabbath day by going to worship. 

And I don’t know about you, but I really need this Sabbath rest these days. We are in the midst of a very anxious time in our country. And maybe in your personal life too. Which makes remembering the Sabbath day so critical. 

This is our weekly chance to get away from the stress and anxiety in our world, and to rest for a while in the presence of God. And don’t we all need that rest? 

But we are also here to learn from Jesus – from what he taught, and from what he did. So let’s turn to today’s gospel reading and see what we can learn. 

He Could Do No Deed of Power There

In today’s reading, Jesus is in his hometown of Nazareth, doing what he always did on the Sabbath: He is at the synagogue, worshiping God. And he is teaching there too. Wouldn’t it be amazing to have Jesus himself teaching here? 

But the people gathered that day in his hometown are skeptical. They know this young man. They remember him growing up, learning to be a carpenter, from his dad. They know his family. And here he is acting like he’s something special! So they rejected his teaching; they “took offense at him.” 

And the consequence was that Jesus “could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.” 

Now, I think that is pretty important, so I want to say a little more about it. Because of their unbelief, Jesus could do no deeds of power in his hometown of Nazareth. That is kind of surprising, isn’t it? How does our belief or unbelief limit Jesus’s power? Is that even possible? 

There is a mystery here that I have been puzzling over all week, because I really do think it has something important to teach us. At the least, it suggests that our faith matters, and it matters a lot. There are some things that God will not do without our consent and cooperation. There are some things that Jesus would not do, apparently could not do, without the condition of faith. 

Is it too strong to say that even Jesus can fail? Maybe. But we can at least say that Jesus is willing to fail. 

Choosing the Way of Love

Think for a moment about the famous test that Jesus faced in the wilderness, before he began his public ministry, when Satan tempted him in three different ways. The last of these recorded in Matthew’s Gospel is the temptation to have power over all the kingdoms of the world, if he would just fall down and worship Satan. 

It seems ridiculous that Jesus might be tempted by that, but think about it: This is the temptation to take control, and to force our world to get it right. This seems like a temptation that any of us might consider. The world certainly needs help. But it is not always willing to admit it. 

So maybe Jesus was tempted to force himself on the world, to make us do what is right. But he would have to have Satan’s help to accomplish this. Because it is not the way of God. And because of that, it is not the way of Jesus either. He does not insist on his own way. Love does not insist on its own way.

Jesus is not going to force himself on this world. Just like he is not going to perform works of power in his hometown if they take offense at him. Because our faith matters. Our consent matters. 

Jesus would rather fail with love than succeed with power. So Jesus chooses the way of love, always. Even when it leads to what the world might call failure. 

Jesus is showing us in this story that failure is not always a bad thing. And not always something that can be avoided. It happened to him, and it will happen to us. So what do we do when it happens? That brings us to the next part of today’s gospel reading. 

Christianity’s First Mission Trip

In the second half of this gospel reading, we have a very significant event – you might call it Christianity’s first mission trip. Jesus has called the twelve apostles. They have been learning from him, observing him, and have been with him as he has had great successes and the notable failure in Nazareth. Now it is their turn. 

Think of when you first learned to drive. You started watching your parents or other drivers a little more closely. You started paying attention to road signs. You studied and eventually passed the test and were given a learner’s permit. And then, it was time to get behind the wheel. And so it was for the apostles. They had been learning from Jesus and watching him. But now it was time for them to take the wheel. 

So Jesus sent them out, two by two, with the instructions and the authority to do what he did. He even told them what to do if they are not welcomed, if a community refuses to listen to them: Shake off the dust from your feet and move on. They might fail, in other words. Just like Jesus did in Nazareth. 

Their success or failure is not entirely up to them. And it is not entirely up to us either. We are not called to be successful; we are called to be faithful. And to entrust the results to God. 

But with all of that in mind, let’s take a closer look at the instructions that Jesus gave to his apostles before he sent them out on their first mission trip. Because they can help us to see just what it means to be faithful and to entrust the results to God. There are three specific orders that Jesus gave to his apostles before sending them out. 

Travel Light

First, Jesus “ordered 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 to put on two tunics.” 

In other words, we are supposed to travel light when we go on the mission that Jesus sends us on. Why? Maybe because traveling light means that we are trusting in Jesus. Traveling light means that we don’t need a back-up plan. We only need to follow instructions, and trust our boss. 

Traveling light also reminds us that we already have everything we need to serve our Lord. We don’t need to make more money, have more time, solve whatever problems we face in our life right now, or do anything else before we go to serve the Lord. We already have enough right now. We have everything we need, right now, to do what Jesus is asking of us. So, we can and should travel light. 

Stay There Until You Leave

Second, Jesus said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place.” What does he mean by that? How is it even possible not to stay someplace until we leave it? 

Let’s imagine the apostles don’t do that. They get to a town, and even as they start telling people about Jesus, they are looking ahead to the next town. They are not really listening to people’s questions. They have already left, in a way. And even while they are there, they are not looking ahead, staying in one house one night, and another the next. 

This happens nowadays too. You probably know people who are constantly looking for a better job, a bigger house, and on and on. Jesus was wise enough to know that this restlessness is human nature. So, he instructed them to stay where they are, until they are called to leave. 

Shake Off the Dust

But that brings us to the third instruction that Jesus gave, after the instructions to travel light and to stay in a place until they leave it. “If any place will not welcome you,” Jesus said, “and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” 

We go on this mission, in other words, with a caution: Not everyone will accept us, or our message, with open arms. There will be some that will refuse to hear us, for whatever reason. All we can do with them is entrust them to God, and move on. 

It is not our responsibility to successfully bring God’s kingdom to our world. As if we could! It is our task to enter a community, do as Jesus teaches, and leave the results to God. If it doesn’t work out, we shake the dust off our feet and move on. Just as Jesus did in his hometown. 

He entered the community, and they took offense at him. There wasn’t anything he could do about that. So, he shook the dust off his feet and moved on. If it happened to Jesus, we shouldn’t worry too much if it happens to us. 

Trust Jesus, by traveling light. Commit ourselves to a place and a community. But if we are not welcomed, if it doesn’t work out, don’t be afraid to shake off the dust and try something different. 

Come Away and Rest

The apostles went out and did what Jesus taught them. And we have to peek ahead to find out what happened when they returned. In verse 30, we read that “The apostles gathered around Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught.” And he said to them, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.” 

And I bring that up to point out, once again, the importance of finding rest in Jesus. It is the pattern that he teaches, of learning from him, doing what he teaches, and then resting in him. 

Which brings us back to why we are here today. To learn from him, again, but also to rest in him. This is the pattern of being a follower of Jesus. And it is why we are here. 

Each Sunday, we return from our week in the world to come back to this beautiful sanctuary to gather around Jesus. Whether we have succeeded this week or failed really doesn’t matter. We are here now. Learning, worshiping, resting. And getting ready for another week of serving Jesus. Doing what he teaches, and leaving the results to him. 

May we do this faithfully, to the glory of God. Amen.