Eastertide Week Two: Remember the Resurrection
Day 5: The Supreme Value of Belief
Unbelief is a cancer to our faith.
Only two times is it recorded that Jesus marveled (which means to express astonishment, surprise or shock). The disciple Mark paints the first scene worth remembering. Jesus, back home from His first ministry journey, stood before his neighbors, friends, and relatives as He taught in the synagogue. Initially the “many who heard Him were astonished …” (Mark 6:2).
But their hearts quickly closed and they concluded, “This can’t be true” because Jesus was just a carpenter, the son of Mary who was pregnant before marriage. And then … “they took offense at Him” (5:3). Mark summarized, “And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief” (6:5-6).
Read that last sentence again and let it soak into your soul. The many who listened that day were God’s people! They were His own, Israel! Yet, in spite of all their knowledge of the Torah, unbelief ruled their hearts, which stopped, prevented, or pushed back Jesus’ miraculous power to work.
How is that possible? I have no idea, but it seems the mighty, all-powerful Creator God of the universe chooses at times to be restricted by unbelieving people.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Barbara Rainey from Ever Thine Home to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.