Prayer
Before you read, I invite you to pray this prayer based on Psalm 119:156.
LORD, Your mercy and compassion are free and boundless.
Please revive me by the power of Your Word.
so that I may walk in Your way. Amen.
Briefly prepare your heart in silence, and ask the Holy Spirit to awaken your awareness to the voice of God, coming to you through His Word.
Reading
When Jesus had finished teaching the crowds in parables, He took His disciples with Him to his hometown, Nazareth. In those days, it was customary for the local synagogue leaders to allow visiting teachers to share God’s Word through reading and teaching a passage of the Law or Prophets. And that’s what happened to Jesus.
From our point of view, it seems awesome that the locals from Nazareth had the honour and privilege of hearing Jesus Himself as the preacher of the day. Imagine that happening to us one Sunday morning! But sadly, despite the fact that they already seemed to have heard that Jesus’ ministry was characterised by great wisdom and power, they did not receive Him and His ministry with attentiveness and eagerness to hear the Word of the Lord. Instead, simply because they knew that He came from a humble, working class family, they took offence at Him and closed their hearts and minds to His ministry.
Then, because the Lord always honours human freedom to choose, “He did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith” (v.58). Their hardness of heart and their prejudice robbed them of Jesus’ ministry.
Whenever we gather for worship, we as the congregation are responsible for much of the sermon’s effectiveness. As the congregation, our attitude creates the atmosphere through which God’s Word must travel to get to us. Either we create a barrier through which God’s Word, coming to us as a sermon from the preacher, cannot penetrate; or else we come with such expectancy that even the poorest sermon delivered by the most “unskilled” preacher becomes a powerful, living, breathing, life-changing instrument in our lives.
Although Jesus does not give a direct command in this passage, the implication of His words in v.57 is clear. Jesus calls us not to dishonour those who speak the Word of God to us, simply because of their appearance, background or some other human factor. Many a message from God has been robbed of its power, not because anything in it was inaccurate to God’s Word, but purely because the minds of those who listened were so prejudiced against the messenger that the Word never had a chance of penetrating.
Contemplation
Please take time to ponder what Jesus has commanded us. Turn these declarations over in your mind. Keep them in mind throughout the day and live in step with Your King, Jesus.
As a disciple of Jesus Christ,
- I wil come to every sermon with a heart longing to hear from God and His Word, regardless of the apparent frailty of the messenger.
- I will trust the Holy Spirit to speak to me whenever God’s Word is preached.
P.S. – Perhaps this is a good moment to remind you about the availability of the Saturday Evening Prayer Guide on the Resources Page. It is specifically aimed at helping us prepare our hearts and minds for meaningful worship.
Lord Jesus, prepare my heart to worship You with Your people, and to hear from You through Your preached Word this coming Sunday. Amen
Dave's Diary 
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