Introduction:
A. How many of you have ever failed at something? We all have experienced failure, right?
1. Bob Hope, when asked about his early failures in stand-up comedy, said, “I would not have had anything to eat if it wasn’t for the stuff the audience threw at me.”
2. Do you consider Abraham Lincoln’s life a life of success or failure?
a. Lincoln once said, “I do the very best I know how – the very best I can; and I mean to keep doing so.”
b. Lincoln’s life is the best example of his own words, because he experienced more failure than success in most of his life.
c. Lincoln failed twice in business and had a nervous breakdown.
d. Lincoln was defeated in elections 8 times for the seats in government that he ran for, and only won in the elections 3 times.
B. The truth of the matter is that failure doesn’t have to be final or fatal, because there can be success in failure.
1. Malcolm Forbes said, “Failure is success if we learn from it.”
2. Marilyn vos Savant said, “Being defeated is often a temporary condition. Giving up is what makes it permanent.”
3. Here’s a poem about failure that contains many truths:
Failing does not necessarily mean you have accomplished nothing;
It may mean you have learned something.
Failing does not necessarily mean you have wasted your time;
It may mean you have an opportunity to start afresh.
Failing does not necessarily mean you are inferior;
It does mean you are not perfect.
Failing does mean you are perfectly human;
It means you are part of the imperfect human race.
C. All of us have felt the anguish of failure.
1. The ironic thing about failure is that “hindsight is 20/20 vision,” and with hindsight we see very clearly how we would do things differently if we could do them over again.
2. There are many different ways that we experience failure.
a. We make mistakes.
b. We let others down and hurt those we love.
c. We don’t live up to our goals and expectations.
d. We fail to live up to the life God intends for us to live.
D. But the most important question we must answer is: What can we do about our failures?
1. In our text today from the Gospel of Mark, we will see how Jesus dealt with rejection (failure) in His hometown, and we will see how He prepared His disciples for the rejection (failure) that they would face when He sent them out.
2. As we examine this section, we will find several valuable lessons that will help us deal with our own failures.
I. Experiencing Failure
A. Mark wrote: 1 He left there and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. 2 When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. “Where did this man get these things?” they said. “What is this wisdom that has been given to him, and how are these miracles performed by his hands? 3 Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And aren’t his sisters here with us?” So they were offended by him. (Mark 6:1-3)
1. Jesus left Capernaum and arrived at the small town of Nazareth where he grew up and matured into manhood.
2. Jesus had likely been gone from His hometown for a year or more at this point in His ministry.
3. Nazareth was a small, insignificant town located about 25 miles southwest of Capernaum, about halfway between the Mediterranean sea and the Sea of Galilee.
4. Nazareth isn’t mentioned in the OT, or the Jewish Talmud, or by Josephus the historian.
a. It was truly a small, obscure village in an out of the way location, population less than 500.
b. The common attitude about Nazareth is what Nathaniel expressed in John 1:44: “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”
B. Jesus had left His hometown as truly a “nobody” an ordinary member of their small town, but now a year later, He was returning as someone who was being declared (at least in some places and circles) as the Prophet of Israel sent from God.
1. I’m sure the people of Nazareth had heard the stories about His teaching and His miracles.
2. I’m sure they were eager to see Him and hear Him in person when He came to town.
3. So, I’m sure attendance at the synagogue that Saturday had to be a record attendance knowing that Jesus was in town and would likely come to the synagogue service.
4. And as was the custom, traveling rabbis were often invited to read the Scriptures and address the synagogue congregation on the Sabbath.
5. This is what happened that day in the Nazareth synagogue, Jesus read and taught them.
C. Mark tells us that that the initial reaction to Jesus’ teaching was one of astonishment.
1. Jesus obviously wowed them with the wisdom and power and authority with which He spoke.
2. They began to question: “where did this man get these things? And what is this wisdom that has been given to him? And how are these miracles performed by his hands?”
3. Then they questioned: “Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of these brothers and sisters?
4. In other words, “Wait a minute, we have known this guy his whole life, we know his family, he has built our furniture or fixed our broken doors. We know he hasn’t gone to Hebrew University. Who does he think he is?”
5. Mark says, “So they were offended by him.”
D. Before we get into why they were so offended, let’s spend a minute on some important things about Jesus’ family.
1. The fact that they called Jesus the “son of Mary,” not the “son of Joseph,” was likely an insult.
a. The normal Jewish practice was to identify a son by his father’s name, even long after the father had died (which is what we assume happened to Joseph).
b. Small towns have a way of remembering gossip, and Jesus had likely grown up with the stigma of illegitimacy, because Mary had conceived Jesus before she and Joseph were married.
2. Are you surprised that the Bible says that Jesus had brothers and sisters.
a. We know that they were technically half-brothers and half-sisters, because Jesus’ real father was God, not Joseph, but they shared the same earthly mother, Mary.
b. Those who believe in the “perpetual virginity” of Mary, believe that Mary and Joseph never had sexual relations, and so these “brothers and sisters” were either cousins, or were children that Joseph had from a previous wife before Mary.
c. That idea that Joseph had a previous wife is not found in Scripture, but what Scripture says is that Joseph “had no union with her until she gave birth to a son.” (Mt. 1:25)
d. The early church fathers, including Tertullian (160-220 AD) clearly accepted Jesus’ siblings as children of both Joseph and Mary.
e. The docrine of the perpetual virginity of Mary didn’t come into being and gain traction until the late 4th century.
3. Mark has already suggested that even Jesus’ family didn’t fully put their faith in Jesus early in His ministry, but they did later on.
a. Jesus’ brother, James, would later become a prominent leader in the Jerusalem church and authored the NT book bearing his name.
b. Jesus’ brother, Judas, who we know as Jude, also wrote the NT book bearing his name.
E. Mark doesn’t state the reason that the people of Nazareth took offense.
1. Matthew and Mark chose not to include any information about the sermon Jesus preached on that occasion, but Luke included more information.
2. Luke tells us that Jesus opened the Isaiah scroll and read from Isaiah 61:1-2 (which is about the coming Messiah) and then sat down and said, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
3. Luke tells us that the people of Nazareth took such offense that they drove Jesus out of town to the edge of a cliff and were going to throw Him off the cliff, but Jesus walked right through the crowd and went on His way.
4. In the end, the people of Nazareth refused to believe that someone from such humble and familiar beginnings could be the Messiah.
5. They were offended and maybe even jealous that this young upstart was acting with greater authority than His family background and social status should permit – in other words, “He’d gotten too big for his britches.”
F. But, surely none of this came as a surprise to Jesus.
1. Jesus knew how the people of His hometown were going to respond to Him and yet He came anyway and experienced the rejection and failure that He experienced.
2. From this we learn an important lesson for us about perseverance and faithfulness.
II. Facing Failure
A. Mark wrote: 4 Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his household.” 5 He was not able to do a miracle there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And he was amazed at their unbelief. He was going around the villages teaching. (Mk. 6:4-6)
1. Even though this rejection of Jesus must have disappointed and saddened Jesus, it did not stop Him.
a. Jesus understood human beings and was realistic about human frailty and unbelief.
b. And so Jesus applied a familiar proverb to Himself: “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his household.”
2. A common saying used today: “an expert is somebody who is more than 50 miles from home.”
a. Familiarity can breed contempt, and it is hard to view someone as a superstar or guru who you have known their whole life.
b. Even the president of the U.S. is someone’s son, brother, father, or best friend.
c. The mother of an important person might remind them, “remember, I changed your diapers!”
3. Ultimately, Jesus didn’t need honor or kudos from people, He knew who He was, and the person He was trying to please was God the Father.
a. We must keep our eyes and priorities in the same place – on God and in God.
b. If we need a daily shot in the arm of praise or recognition from people to get the work of God done, then we are depending on the wrong source and have the wrong goal in mind.
c. Jesus could handle failure and rejection, because what He needed came from God.
B. When Mark said that Jesus was not able to do a miracle there, except a few healings, it didn’t mean that Jesus’ power was weakened by the unbelief of the people.
1. Jesus’ power is the same whether anyone believes or not.
2. What I think Mark was saying was that Jesus didn’t do many miracles because few people sought Him out for His help.
3. On other occasions, we see the whole town show up where Jesus is in order to benefit from His healing power, but I think what happened there in Nazareth is that most people rejected Him and didn’t seek His help.
4. I also think it is ironic and a bit comical that Jesus doing even a few miracles wouldn’t be amazing and newsworthy, but in contrast to how many miracles Jesus often did, Mark wanted to show how different it was in Jesus’ hometown.
5. But I think the lesson for us is to be sure we don’t limit what God does or can do because of our lack of faith or unwillingness to ask – God often waits to act until we ask.
6. James wrote: “You do not have because you do not ask of God.” (James 4:2)
7. Let’s be sure we are believing in God and asking God to act and work, but not selfishly, but in line with God’s will and purposes.
C. Amazement has been a major theme for Mark throughout Jesus’ Galilean ministry, but the amazement is usually in response to Jesus’ words and works.
1. But here Mark tells us that it is Jesus who was amazed.
2. The NT relates only two times when Jesus was amazed by people.
a. First, positively, Jesus was amazed at the faith of the centurion, who believed Jesus could heal his servant from a distance – “If you just say the word, my servant will be healed.”
b. Second, negatively, Jesus was amazed at the depth of their unbelief and contempt.
D. Certainly, this rejection at Nazareth was painful for Jesus, but Jesus faced it and did not allow it to deter His mission.
1. In the last sentence of verse 6, Mark reports that Jesus was going around the villages teaching.
2. Jesus didn’t allow the failure and rejection to stop Him, but just kept on doing what God called Him to do.
3. Jesus not only experienced and faced failure, but He used it in the training of His apostles.
III. Using Failure
A. Mark wrote: 7 He summoned the Twelve and began to send them out in pairs and gave them authority over unclean spirits. 8 He instructed them to take nothing for the road except a staff—no bread, no traveling bag, no money in their belts, 9 but to wear sandals and not put on an extra shirt. 10 He said to them, “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that place. 11 If any place does not welcome you or listen to you, when you leave there, shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 So they went out and preached that people should repent. 13 They drove out many demons, anointed many sick people with oil and healed them. (Mark 6:7-13)
B. Jesus immediately put the lessons of failure to work in the training of His apostles.
1. It was time to send them out to put into practice the things that they had been learning.
2. Up until this point it had been “come and see,” but now it was time for them to “go and do.”
3. There is a time for both “come and see” and “go and do” in our lives as Jesus’ disciples.
4. There is a time and place for ongoing training and encouraging, but there also needs to be the time to go and serve.
5. If we are always receiving but never giving, then we become stagnant and dead like a stagnant pond or the dead sea.
C. In these verses, we see that Jesus gave them many practical instructions.
1. First, Jesus sent them out in pairs.
a. How scary would it have been to be sent out alone, but just having one other person to go with gave them fellowship, support, accountability and protection.
b. Also, going in pairs may reflect the OT need of 2 witnesses to confirm testimony.
c. We really do need each other to accomplish God’s purposes.
d. We notice that Paul rarely worked alone, but usually had others with him for training and for accountability.
e. The idea of never doing ministry alone is a good practice for all of us.
f. Whether we are going on a mission of mercy, or a visit, or a Bible study, let’s take someone along so they can learn and be blessed in serving.
2. Second, Jesus sent them out without physical supplies, but sent them out with spiritual power.
a. Jesus sent them out with spiritual power and authority over demons and disease, and with the power to preach and teach.
1. That must have been an amazing thing to experience.
2. Up until then, Jesus had done powerful and amazing miracles while they watched.
3. But now they would be able to employ the same power and perform miracles – wow!
b. Jesus also sent them out with nothing but a staff in their hands (reminiscent of Moses & Elijah) – a staff gave them a tool for protection against animals, and stability on the roads.
1. But they could not take anything to eat, no money, and no extra clothing.
2. Imagine if Jesus had sent them off for a month and they were going to take enough money and supplies for a month – that would be quite a load!
3. Jesus didn’t want them to be bogged down with supplies, nor did he want them to be a target of thieves.
4. But what a test of faith to take only the clothes on your back and leave for a period of time with nothing to eat and no money to buy anything you needed.
5. They would learn that God would provide for them through the generosity of others.
6. God is pleased when we live in a way that expresses our trust in God that we trust that God will provide what we need, when we need it.
3. Third, Jesus explained the etiquette of hospitality.
a. They were to stay with whoever invited them into their home.
b. Hospitality was the general practice of ancient cultures.
c. Any stranger who came to town could expect to find lodging among the citizens of the village.
d. Jesus taught them to stay in whatever home first opened their door to them, and not to move if they got a better offer later - that would be an insult to their host.
e. This reminds us of our own responsibility to be hospitable and how we can use our homes to advance the kingdom of God and build up the body of Christ.
4. Finally, Jesus gave them a way to face their failures.
a. With His own rejection in Nazareth fresh on His mind, Jesus told them: If any place does not welcome you or listen to you, when you leave there, shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them. (Mk. 6:11)
b. Jesus knew that His disciples would have the door slammed in their faces, just like Nazareth had slammed the door in His face.
c. But rather than get angry or employ further wasted energy, Jesus gave them the simple instruction to just move on to the next door or next town.
d. The concept of “shaking off the dust” is a bit foreign to us.
e. Jewish rabbinic laws stated that the dust from a pagan country was defiled and so a Jew walking back into his country was supposed to purge himself by brushing off the dust.
f. A pious Jew would also pick off every particle of dust before he entered the temple.
g. The shaking off of the dust was also the way of expressing that my responsibility is over and that the responsibility now laid with the person left behind.
h. Those who have been exposed to the truth and who knowingly rejected it, would receive God’s future judgment.
i. Our jobs as messengers is to deliver God’s message, we can’t coerce, manipulate, or threaten people into the kingdom of God.
j. Each person must make their own decision, but unfortunately and sadly, some will reject the Gospel, but we must allow them to do so.
k. This doesn’t mean that we quit when the going gets tough or write them off, but it does mean that we have permission to move on in the face of rejection.
l. We can’t let the rejection of some keep us from sharing the good news with others.
D. The apostles went out and did the work of God and verses 12 and 13 are a summary of their work.
1. They brought the message of repentance to the people, which was the basic message of John the Baptizer and Jesus at that time – repent for the kingdom of God is near.
2. Our message today is repent for the kingdom of God is here.
3. Our world is so self-absorbed and so sin infested, and people need to repent by turning away from sin and turning from self-centered living to God-centered submission.
4. And in addition to preaching, the apostles brought God’s mercy and help to people suffering from demon possession and physical illness.
5. Today, in addition to the spiritual healing that we offer through Jesus, we are trying to relieve the physical suffering of people through our outreach ministries as we share the love of God in practical ways – like bread, food, and clothing.
Conclusion:
A. As we bring this sermon to a close, let’s be reminded that there can be success in failure.
1. We are going to face rejection and disappointment, and not all that we try to do in the name of God will lead to the outcomes that we hope for.
2. But when that happens, what will we do with those failures?
3. Like Jesus and His apostles, we must learn to expect those failures and persevere in them and through them.
4. We must not let failure stop us from continuing in faithfulness and endurance.
5. We can learn from failure and improve through practice.
6. But in the end, the only thing that matters is pleasing God and receiving His approval and rewards – which are based on faithfulness and not on results or success.
B. There can be success in failure.
1. We must not let the past dictate the future.
2. God can handle the past and give us a new present and a new future.
3. God wants us to shake off the dust, and move on to the next house, or town, or opportunity.
4. Like the apostle Paul, we can forget the past and strain toward what is ahead, and press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus (Phil. 3:13-14).
5. Let’s end with a word of encouragement from Hebrews 10: So don’t throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you need endurance, so that after you have done God’s will, you may receive what was promised. For yet in a very little while, the Coming One will come and not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith; and if he draws back, I have no pleasure in him. But we are not those who draw back and are destroyed, but those who have faith and are saved. (Heb. 10:35-39)
6. Let’s us be filled with confidence, faith and endurance so that we never give up or quit. Amen!
Resources:
• Truth for Today Commentary: Mark 1-8 and 9-16, Martel Pace, Resources Communications.
• The Success of Failure, Sermon by David Owens
• Sent by Jesus, Sermon by Nate Shinn
• Hometown Blues, Sermon by Nate Shinn
