Sixth Sunday after Trinity Mark 6:1-13 2 Corinthians 12:2-10

A child was on stage; all dressed up for the performance. He did well, too, but occasionally, when there was an opportunity to do so, he would look for his Mum in the crowd and give her a wave, which she returned. It reminded me of my own experience of being in public, with my parents among the viewers. It’s interesting, how different we may feel when we perform in front of those who know us best; it can be more daunting, and we may be looking for reassurance from them.

‘Prophets are not without honour, except in their hometown,’ says Jesus in Mark 6, as people took offense at him after he had been teaching in the synagogue in his hometown. It says that all who heard him were amazed: ‘Where did this man get all this?’, they asked. At the same time, however, they rejected his teaching, with no reason given other than the fact that they knew where he came from. Those who had known Jesus when he grew up, dismissed him. ‘And he 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.’ Mark records.

This comes as the introduction to what happened next: Jesus went among the villages teaching. He began to send out the twelve disciples two by two. He gave them authority over unclean spirits and ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; no other provisions. He said to them, ‘Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.’ What was their mission? To proclaim that all should repent, to cast out demons and cure the sick. In fact, it reflected the things that Jesus himself did, but that they could only do through his authority. They were building the renewal movement of the Kingdom of God that Jesus was proclaiming, expanding his mission with exorcisms and healing. The twelve disciples were in a sense a symbolic representation of the people of Israel. They were heralds of a new era, of the fulfilment of the prophecies of redemption. In a curious way, though, just like Jesus being rejected in his hometown and not being able to do deeds of power there, it is all connected to faith, to the extent in which people believe. The signs of the new Kingdom breaking in, were calling for a response. The first response was to repent; to accept the need for forgiveness for all the things that had gone wrong. God was calling the people back to himself, but they did need to hear. Jesus anticipated hostility; he warns the twelve that this might happen and tells them how to deal with it: to shake the dust off their feet as they leave. It’s a common thing: some people are finding it hard to change their ways; they prefer to remain sick rather than accept something new and life-giving. A new message, that is so urgent that the disciples are to rely on local hospitality and focus totally on the task at hand, that is also challenging, is not embraced wholeheartedly at the first announcement. The sending out of the Twelve as a symbolic act, was reminding the people of the old prophecies when the sick were being healed and proclaiming that the time had come for the renewal of the people. It was in preparation for God’s mighty act of salvation: the death and resurrection of Jesus. In a while, Jesus was getting ready for the next phase, that would bring him to the fulfilment of his work on earth. We are here because of it. Because God did not give up on us but chose to do the most painful work himself. Yet, it is through faith that our souls are healed and our sins forgiven. May we, then, respond by putting our trust in God and accept the life that he gives through his Son, Jesus. So that we may know not just where we come from but where we are going. Amen.