Title: Prejudice (Mark 6:1-6)
Contents
Title Prejudice / Scripture Mark 6:1-6 / Space Daebok Church
*** Introduction
A carpenter is a person who builds and builds from wood. But before Jesus' public life, his occupation was a carpenter. John 14:2-3 says, “I am going to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, you may be also.” You did. Jesus is the sure carpenter who builds the kingdom of heaven.
However, the text of this time shows the sad reality that infinite power is buried due to people's preconceived notions.
Jesus, who performed many signs and wonders and testified of the kingdom of God, went to his hometown. On the Sabbath, he was teaching in the synagogue, and many people were amazed at his teaching. Wisdom flashed in Jesus' teaching, and the great power he performed was enough to astonish people.
But the people of the hometown were apathetic. They had preconceived notions about the worldly environment in which Jesus stayed. they cry “Isn’t this the carpenter, son of Mary?” They are degrading themselves. I saw the powerful teachings and power of Jesus through the glasses of my environment. Our ancient ancestors also said, ‘Earthworms must eat dirt to live’, meaning ‘we must live according to the fountain.’ The people of Jesus' hometown thought that Jesus' actions were 'not like a native' and he went too far. They were claiming to live a humble life for themselves. Will the Messiah, whom all Israel has been waiting for so long, be born from the nameless Nazareth? And moreover, would you be born into a humble, poor carpenter's family? That was their preconceived notion.
Korea, too, is a nation with a strong sense of prejudice. From time immemorial, place of origin, class, and status took precedence over a person's character. A distinction was made between the yangban and the sangnom, and no matter how distant, if they were from a yangban, they should be respected, and no matter how smart they were, if they came from a butcher family, they should be deprived of all opportunities as well as contempt.
This absurd idea still persists in the church. Even in the church, these practices of distinguishing between the poor and the rich, the school they came from and their social status, and the status of their profession should be abandoned immediately. This idea of judging people based on their place of origin or environment is an element that needs to be removed from faith in God. Because the kingdom of God is not in words, but in power (1 Corinthians 4:20). When God judges people, he never has prejudice. No one will go to heaven because of their parents, no husband will go to heaven because of their wives, and even less will they go to heaven because of good means and good language. God will judge and reward each person according to what he has done. God said, “The father has eaten sour grapes, and the son will never have a toothache” (Jeremiah 31:29), and “the soul that sins shall die” (Ezekiel 18:2-4).
Then, let's take a look at the preconceived notions that God has to throw away immediately.
1. Prejudice obscures the truth.
Many suffer from the prejudices of others. That's why, these days, men do 'make-up' and do 'plastic surgery', which were considered to be exclusive to women, for entrance exams. It must be a tearful effort to reduce the preconceived notions of a first impression. People make a primary evaluation of how they look. 'It looks like a thief.', 'Looks like a sanim.' Then, the secondary and tertiary evaluations are made based on the school of origin, the region of origin, and the family.
This was the prejudice of the people of my hometown toward Jesus. Even after experiencing the power of Jesus firsthand, they tried to deny it. Such preconceived notions prevent people from seeing their true worth and truth. So people pay more attention to appearance.
The Lord rebuked the Pharisees who appeared to be gents on the outside, zealous for God's work, and perfectly obeying the law as 'whitewashed tombs'. Inside the tomb, the corpse was rotting, and the outside of the tomb was painted with white ash to cover the dirt. This is to warn you that it is an outward appearance.
It's not just 'good looking rice cakes are good to eat' Since Christians are spiritual people, they must have a beautiful spirit and a beautiful life. You should also be able to see the beauty and truth of your heart when dealing with others. Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” You did.
2. Prejudice alienates people and causes frustration.
It is said that ‘individual skills’ are spreading like a fad on TV these days, and even at school or at work, if you don’t have ‘personal skills’, you won’t be treated. In 'Talk Show', entertainers put their heat on 'made-up words' to arouse interest even while distorting the truth. Is that all? There is a disease that spreads all over the world. “Diet Fever”. This shows that the present world is a world that is judged by people's words, external interests, and appearance. In the end, people work together to avoid being 'alienated' and not 'bullyed'.
But Jesus, the carpenter, looks at the material of the wood and sees the building possibilities. A carpenter finds use in an abandoned tree where ordinary people find no use. And he does not judge a tree by its appearance, but by its fruit and evaluates it.
1) When the disciples saw a man who was blind from birth, they asked, ‘Who sinned that man was blind? Is it the parents' fault? Is it your fault?’ Then the Lord said, ‘It is not because of this man’s sin or his parents’ sins. It is to show what God is doing’ (John 9:1-3). And he said, “You know a tree by its fruit” (Luke 6:43-45). Jesus does not look at the outward appearance and worldly power of man, but the possibility of the spirit, the inner man. In this way, what is valuable to God is not physical, but spiritual.
2) There was a woman who was caught in adultery. The people tried to stone the woman according to their laws. But Jesus saw the woman's spiritual potential. Let's look at John 8:4-5. “They said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery. Moses commanded in the law to stone these women, but what will you say?” (verses 10-11). “Jesus got up and saw that there was no one but the woman, and said to her, “Woman, where are those who accused you? Has no one condemned you? Answered, Lord, there is none. Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more."
3) There was a woman who poured expensive perfume on Jesus. People called it wasteful. But Jesus saw a spiritual purpose within. Matthew 26:6-9, “While Jesus was at the house of Simon the leper in Bethany, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very precious perfume, and poured it on Jesus’ head while he was eating. Are you wasting this as a doctor? It could have been sold at a great price and given to the poor.” 12, “She poured this perfume on my body for my burial.”
4) There was a sinner who was reluctant to even be close to people. This is Zacchaeus, the dwarf tax collector. When Jesus entered his house, people accused him of entering a sinner's house. But Jesus said that salvation had come to that family (Luke 19:1-10).
People judged the visible reality, but Jesus saw the invisible soul. With Jesus, nothing is useless. He accomplishes God's will through anything. Even the evil ones. He spoke through Proverbs 16:4. “The Lord hath made all things for a covering, even the wicked for the day of evil.”
Therefore, a Christian should not judge a person by outward appearances or hearsay. You should also not judge yourself by what is external. Frustration and despair are never God's will, but rather an element of unbelief.
3. Prejudice hinders the power of the Lord.
Jesus, who was scorned in his hometown, marveled at their unbelief based on their preconceived notions. Not only that, but Jesus said that he could not do any miracles. Today, these prejudices appear as distorted beliefs about Jesus.
Many saints long for outwardly manifested gifts such as the gift of prophecy, the gift of healing, the works of miracles, and tongues. The pursuit of these outward gifts invites prejudice against the faith. It is clearly stated that the purpose of the gifts is to build up the body of the Lord, the Church. Nevertheless, if we pursue only outward gifts, ultimately, not obedience to God's will, but man's thoughts and plans take precedence, limiting or hindering the Lord's power.
This is the content of Mark 9. After Jesus took Peter, James, and John to the Mount of Transfiguration, his father, along with his demon-possessed son, came to the remaining disciples. The disciples could not cast out the demon. After a while, Jesus came. The boy's father made a suspicious request to Jesus, saying, 'If you can do anything, have pity on us and help us.' Jesus said, “If you can, what does this mean? Nothing is impossible for those who believe.” Jesus rebuked the child's father for his unbelief. The child's father's unbelief was due to preconceived notions from the experiences of the disciples' incompetence. It was an expression of skepticism, saying, ‘The disciples are like that, but are the teachers capable?’.
Preconceived notions of people are not good, but how can you have good preconceived notions of the Lord? Faith is trust in the truth, trust in the living God now. So faith is always present.
Are you not caught up in irrational prejudices? Do you have wrong preconceived notions because of past events or someone's past?
Let's look to God who is always alive and working now. And let's take a look at the people and things we are dealing with now and inside them. So, I bless you in the name of the Lord that you will always enjoy the grace and power of God toward me now.