If you would please turn in your Bibles to Mark chapter six. The sixth chapter of Mark's gospel is where we find ourselves this morning. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Mark chapter six. Mark chapter 6 verses 1 through 6 is our text this morning. Mark 6, 1 through 6. The word of the Lord. that he went out from there and came to his own country, and his disciples followed him. And when the Sabbath had come, he began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing him were astonished, saying, where did this man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to him, that such mighty works are performed by his hands? Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, Judas, and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us? So they were offended at him. But Jesus said to them, a prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house. Now he could not do mighty works there except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief. And he went about the village in a circuit, teaching. The word of the Lord, let us pray. Heavenly Father, We pray you'd be pleased to bless this family, this gathering. We pray that the worship offered to you this morning would be worthy of you. Would you worship in spirit and in truth. We pray that your good and perfect and acceptable will be accomplished in each and every one of us this morning. May you be pleased to grant us the enabling grace to to serve you, to worship you as we ought. Holy Spirit, we pray that that which you have prepared for us this morning, that you would be kind to make application of it to each and every one of us. You are he who searches the hearts and minds of your people. You know us from the crown of our head to the tips of our toes to the innermost part of our being. You know it all, there's nothing hidden from you. So you know exactly how to administer your word to us, and we pray that you would do just that. Lord, we pray that as anyone here who has not yet embraced you as their Lord and Savior, we pray that you would look to the Father asking him to draw them unto himself savingly by granting them saving faith in you, enabling them to believe. Lord, I pray you'd be pleased with your servant's work, that you would enable me to speak clearly, authoritatively, boldly, accurately, grant me singleness of mind, clarity of thought. If I should speak anything amiss, I pray your forgiveness in advance. May you be glorified in all that is said and done and thought. It is in your name in which we move, live, and have our being. We pray, amen. Beloved, deciding to become a Christian is a decision one ought not to take lightly. The decision to become a follower of Jesus Christ is a decision that needs to be taken very seriously. Many today, in effort to gain decisions for Christ, they tell those whom they are witnessing to that if they just choose Christ, that life will become so much more better for them. Beloved, that simply is not true. Sometimes choosing to become a Christian results in strained and even broken relationships and unfortunately sometimes even divorce. What does Jesus say in Matthew 10 verse 21 through 22? There Jesus says, now brother will deliver a brother to death and father his child And children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. And you'll be hated by all for my namesake, but he who endures to the end will be saved. What Jesus is referring to there when he says he who endures to the end will be saved, he's not referring to salvation as an eternal life, but he's referring to being delivered from persecution. In Matthew 8, verse 20, in response to one who told Jesus that he will follow him wherever he goes, Jesus says, foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head. And so following Christ, will cause unfortunate division within close relationships. Following Christ isn't easy. And that's what Jesus is communicating in these two passages of scripture. Following him is something that needs to be taken very seriously. It needs to be considered. One needs to, as scripture says, count the cost before a decision is made. What does Jesus go on to say in verses 34 through 39 of Matthew 10? He says, do not think that I come to bring peace on the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set man against his father and daughter against his mother and a daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. And a man's enemies will be those of his own household. He who loves father or mother more than me, he is not worthy of me. And he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. He who finds his life will lose it. And he who loses his life for my sake will find it. Christ has come. so that men, women, and children could put him first in their life. And by them putting him first in their life, what Jesus is communicating in his passage here is that it will cause unfortunate division, unfortunate disunity among loved ones. Beloved, more than several years ago, a family abandoned their daughter to the streets. This is a true story. The Lord is my witness. A family abandoned their teenage daughter to the streets because she embraced Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior. Her parents were raising their household as Jehovah's Witnesses. Their daughter heard the gospel, She believed it, embraced Christ as her Lord and Savior, and when they found out, when they learned of her newfound faith in Christ, she came home one day, and all of her belongings was on the front yard, and the doors were locked. She was no longer welcome in her home. Thankfully, a couple in the church took her in and gave her a home. but that's an unfortunate reality. Following Jesus Christ is a crucial decision to make. The Apostle Paul understood this unfortunate reality that by becoming a Christian, some will experience great difficulty with family members. In Corinth, there were those who were already married when they became Christians. And because of that, they suddenly found themselves in an unequally yoked marriage. They suddenly found themselves married to an unbeliever. They didn't know if they should remain married or if they should divorce their unbelieving spouse. What do we find the Apostle Paul saying in 1 Corinthians 7, verses 10 through 16? There we find the Apostle Paul giving this counsel to the church of Corinth. He writes, now to the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, a wife is not to depart from her husband. But even if she departs, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife, So what Paul is saying here, in the case of a Christian marriage, a wife is not to divorce her husband or a husband is not to divorce his wife. If they do, they are to remain unmarried or they are to seek to be reconciled to one another. Paul goes on to say, he says, but to the rest, I say, he's referring to those who find themselves in an unequally yoked marriage, Christian and non-Christian, but to the rest, I say, not the Lord, say, if any brother has a wife who does not believe and she is willing to live with him, let him not divorce her. Let him not divorce her. And a woman who has a husband who does not believe, if he is unwilling or if he is willing to live with her, let her not divorce him. And then Paul goes on to say, for the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband. Otherwise, your children would be unclean, but now they are. Holy. But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart, and a brother or sister is not under bondage in such cases. In other words, if one finds themselves, suddenly finds themselves in an unequally yoked marriage. You know, they were both unbelievers when they got married. The gospel came along and one of them became a Christian. And the other one says, you know what? I don't like this. I don't appreciate this. I can't stand this. I can't take it anymore. I'm out of here. Paul says, let that one depart. And in that scenario, in that particular scenario, the believing spouse is free to remarry. That's why Paul says, That's why Paul says that they are no longer, that they are not under bondage in such cases. They are not bound to remain single the rest of their life. Paul goes on to say, but God has called us to peace. For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save your wife. In other words, Paul is saying, if they're willing to stay with you, stay with them because they just might end up becoming a Christian through your testimony, through your witness, through your devotion to Christ. And so when Paul says that the wife is sanctified by the husband or the husband is sanctified by the wife, he's referring to influence. The person is being influenced by the believing spouse's love and devotion to Christ. And through that influence, the unbelieving spouse just may be saved. Beloved, as we can see from Jesus and the Apostle Paul, becoming a follower of Jesus, becoming a Christian, deciding to embrace Christ as one's Lord and Savior can and does indeed come with its challenges. It does come with its challenges, challenges that were not there before. In John chapter 15, verses 18 through 21, we find Jesus preparing his disciples for his departure. And we find him saying these words to them. Beginning in verse 18 of John 15, if the world hates you, know that it hated me before it hated you. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for my name's sake, because they do not know the one who sent me. And so the reason for the hostility, the reason for the hatred, is because they don't know God. They're an unbeliever. And so as Christians, beloved, as Christians, we should expect some heat from the world. We should expect some pushback. We should expect it. Because after all, Jesus Christ himself was rejected by his own. Let's read Mark, our text, chapter six, verses one through six, and then we'll look to our Heavenly Father once again in prayer. Mark chapter six, beginning in verse one. Then he went out from there and came to his own country, and his disciples followed him. And when the Sabbath had come, he began to teach in the synagogue, And many hearing him were astonished, saying, where did this man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to him that such mighty works are performed by his hands? Is this not the carpenters, the son of Mary, the brother of James? Judas and Simon are not his sisters here with us? So they were offended at him. But Jesus said to them, a prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house. Now he could not do no mighty work there, except that he laid hands on a few sick people and healed them, and he marveled because of their unbelief. Then he went about in the village in a circuit, teaching. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this, your word. We pray your richest blessings upon the reading and hearing of it. In your holy name we pray, amen. Again, verses one and two. Then he went out from there and came to his own country, and his disciples followed him. And when the Sabbath had come, he began to teach in a synagogue, and many hearing him were astonished. saying, where did this man get these things? And what wisdom is this, which is given to him, that such mighty works are performed by his hands? And so Jesus and the disciples return to Nazareth, and on the Sabbath, he enters the synagogue and he begins teaching. Well, what exactly was he teaching that resulted in the astonishment and the offense. When we look to Luke's gospel, chapter four, verses 16 through 30, we have the context, the background context for our passage. In Luke chapter four, beginning in verse 16, we read these words. So he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as his custom was, when he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and stood up to read, and he was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, the spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me. to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim the liberty to the captives and recover the sight of the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. And so here we find Jesus reading Isaiah, quoting Isaiah, indicating, telling the people in the synagogue that he is the fulfillment of this prophecy. Verse 20, then he closed the book and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue, they were fixed on him. Their eyes were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. So all bore witness to him and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, is this not Joseph's son? And he said to them, you will surely say this proverb to me. Physician, heal yourself. Whatever we have heard done, in capronym, do also here in your country. Then he said, assuredly I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country. But I tell you truly, here's where they became upset. Here's where they became offended. But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land. But none of them was, but none of them was Elijah's son, except to Zarephath in the region of Sinai, a woman who was a widow. And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elijah the prophet. And none of them was cleansed, except Naaman the Syrian. So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust him out of the city, and they led him to the brow of a hill on which their city was built, that they might throw him down over the cliff. Then passing through the midst of them, he went his way. Beloved, the idea, as Christ indicated in what he just said, the idea that God would withhold his grace from Israel and shower it upon Gentiles, infuriated, the people in the synagogue. The idea that God would not be merciful to the people of Israel and be merciful to two Gentiles, non-Jews, non-Israelites, infuriated the people in the synagogue. When Jesus began to teach, many were greatly surprised. They were impressed at his gracious words, but their astonishment turned into resentment, anger when Jesus taught that God showered his grace upon two Gentile women while withholding it from Israel. His authority teaching offended them. They couldn't believe what they were hearing. Who is he? Jesus, to make such bold statements, they probably thought. Who is this person to make such bold statements, to proclaim such teachings? What does he mean? Who is he to say that God showered Gentiles and withheld his grace from Israel? Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary? The brother James, Judas, and Simon are not as sisters here with us, so they were offended at him. We read in verse three. When considering their statement about Christ, which true statements, it is very clear that they did not understand exactly Jesus Christ, his full identity. You see, Jesus Christ is truly man and truly God. They embraced the former and they rejected the latter. Many people today, brothers and sisters, likewise, they embrace the former. They fully accept that Jesus Christ is a historical figure, that he was a man. But they reject the fact that he is God manifested in the flesh. They reject his deity. They say he was a prophet, he was an excellent teacher, while rejecting the fact that he is indeed God in the flesh, Emmanuel, which is translated God with us, Matthew 1, 23. How does Jesus respond to being rejected by his own? What does Mark go on to record for us in verses four through six? There we read, but Jesus said to them, a prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house. You see how Jesus gave us these concentric circles? In his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house. He goes from wide to narrow, broad to narrow. Now he could not do a mighty work there, except that he laid hands on a few sick people and healed them, and he marveled. He marveled because of their unbelief. Then he went about the villages in a circuit, teaching. Beloved, when we consider John chapter four, verse 43 through 44, where we read, Now, after two days, he departed from there and he went to Galilee. Well, why did he go to Galilee? In our text today, it's historical setting is in Galilee. Now, after two days, he departed from there and he went to Galilee. Why did he go to Galilee? Verse 44, for Jesus himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. Jesus went there. Jesus went there. I believe we can conclude that Jesus went to Galilee because there he did not need to fear being honored in such a way that would bring him into immediate collision or immediate conflict with the Pharisees, creating a premature crisis. You see, the crisis would come. The conflict would come. It's part of God's divine plan of salvation, but it wasn't time yet. And so going to Galilee, Jesus did not have to be, so he did not have to be concerned with a premature crisis. And that's why so often we find during this ministry when he heals someone or he raises someone from the dead, he tells, or delivering the demoniacs from demon possession, he tells them not to say anything. It wasn't time. for the crisis yet. So not only was Jesus rejected by his own kinsmen, but also by his own relatives, and some even within his immediate family. We see this in Mark chapter three, verse 21, and John chapter seven, verse five. By God's grace, beloved, Jesus' brothers Their unbelief was changed to belief. Their unbelief was changed to faith. And we see this in Acts chapter one, verse 14, where we read these words. These all continue with one accord in prayer and supplication and with women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. And so his brothers eventually came to saving faith. They eventually believed in Jesus Christ. Beloved Christ came, his first advent, his ministry was the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy concerning God's promise of the coming Messiah, the Redeemer. He was, due to their unbelief, rejected by his own people. That too being the fulfillment of Old Testament scripture, Mark understood and wanted his audience to also understand that. Beloved, being a faithful follower of Jesus Christ, us being faithful in our following of Jesus Christ will not always be a walk in the park. There will be difficult periods. There will be times of controversy. When we take a firm stand, I'm gonna follow the Lord. I'm not gonna compromise. I'm gonna do what is right in God's eyes. I'm gonna be fully committed to Jesus Christ. No more compromise. I'm gonna fully devote myself to Jesus Christ. Beloved, it's guaranteed. Scripture speaks of it. We will experience some heat for being faithful followers of Jesus. We can expect it. And there's no need for us to be surprised or get upset over it, because we understand why. It's because they don't know the Father. They don't believe. So we don't need to be surprised by that. Actually, we can have compassion toward them. And as the Apostle Paul instructed the Corinthians, we don't need to abandon them, but through our relationship with them, We can, you know, God can use us to influence them toward the gospel, and who knows, they just might be saved. They might embrace Jesus. We don't know that. But the Lord knows. We're just called to be faithful. And so it's not always, it's not always gonna be a cakewalk. There will be difficult times, there will be times of experience, I mean, We receive difficulty from ourselves in following Christ. We give ourselves heat. We battle with ourselves in being faithful to Jesus, don't we? Yes, we do. How much more those who don't believe? And so we too, if we haven't yet already, we will be rejected by our own because of our love and devotion the King Jesus. And so we can take heart, because we understand why, and we can have compassion upon them, because we understand why, and we can have hope, and we can be encouraged, because we understand that the gospel is the power of God to salvation. And so if we just faithfully follow Christ, share the gospel, let our light shine before them, Lord knows, only the Lord knows, they just might be saved. Then he went out from there and came to his own country, and his disciples followed him. And when the Sabbath had come, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many hearing him were astonished. saying, where did this man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to him that such mighty works are performed by his hands? Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James? Judas and Simon are not his sisters here with us, so they were offended at him. But Jesus said to them, A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house. Now he could not do a mighty work there except that he laid hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief. Then he went about the village in a circuit, teaching. Let us pray. Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for the wonderful gift of salvation. Father, we thank you for allowing us to come under the hearing, the influence of the gospel, enabling us to believe, opening our ears opening our eyes to Jesus Christ. Father, may we always be found faithful. May we always be found faithful, following Jesus Christ, keeping his commands, doing all that he's taught us, all that he's commanded of us. And Father, in regards to those in whom we experience conflict in whom we experience pushback because of our faith in Jesus. May we be faithful witnesses to them. May our lives be a source, a vehicle, a tool of influence upon them to soften their hearts to the gospel, to consider hearing and believing the gospel of Jesus Christ. In your holy name we pray, amen.