Coming Home 26 February 2008

Mark 6:1-13
Tuesday, 26 February 2008

In recent years, I have become something of a baseball fan; I guess it is a function of living in a sports town like Philadelphia. Of course, I like things best when a player from my team scores. I love to watch a home run hitter round the bases and to see him met at home plate and in the dugout by his teammates. Basically, they're saying "Welcome home."

I am struck in this reading of Mark how regularly Jesus returns to his home in the early chapters. In chapter 5, Jesus has demonstrated the far reaches of his power, as a woman who simply touched him was healed and a young girl who had died was raised back to life. Jesus has hit the ministry home run. He goes into the synagogue and teaches with power and authority. People are amazed. Then they remember who he is. They tell themselves, "He's a homeboy." And then they stumble. It's just too much for them to allow the carpenter whose mother and siblings live among them to be more than they anticipated. The sad thing is that the loss was really theirs, as Jesus was unable to perform the deeds of power there that would have ministered to them.

We have all had moments when we came home with our accomplishments in hand and expecting that we would get the home run greeting from our family and friends. Sometimes they have done more to honor accomplishments than we could have imagined; sometimes they simply could not bring themselves to celebrate us at all. But the thing we learn from this is the lesson Jesus teaches, that the truth of who we are and of what we have to say does not change on the basis of whether there's a parade or not. And even when the people at our address or in our hometown do not know how to embrace us, Jesus himself demonstrates again and again that he is our true home.

Sing, "Lord I'm Coming Home"

Pray a prayer that focuses on the people of your home.