All ministers know the truth...
Illustration
All ministers know the truth of the statement of Jesus that no prophet is honored in his own hometown. But despite that, most of us are very proud of our hometowns, small or large, urban or rural, healthful or polluted. Hometown is where we grew up, where our memories began, where our earliest friendships were formed, where we first began to learn.
Not long ago I saw a T-shirt which read, "YES, THERE REALLY IS A KALAMAZOO." The people of Kalamazoo, Michigan, wanted the world to know that their hometown, which is joked about, laughed about, and written about, is REAL. Even though it has an interesting reputation, those people love their hometown.
In Jesus' day, Nazareth, his hometown, had an interesting reputation. This little Judean town is not mentioned in the Old Testament or the Talmud. When Nathanael was first called to meet Jesus, he replied rather scornfully, "Can anything good come from Nazareth?"
Yet, despite the obviously negative reputation, Jesus loved his hometown enough to preach his first sermon there.
Not long ago I saw a T-shirt which read, "YES, THERE REALLY IS A KALAMAZOO." The people of Kalamazoo, Michigan, wanted the world to know that their hometown, which is joked about, laughed about, and written about, is REAL. Even though it has an interesting reputation, those people love their hometown.
In Jesus' day, Nazareth, his hometown, had an interesting reputation. This little Judean town is not mentioned in the Old Testament or the Talmud. When Nathanael was first called to meet Jesus, he replied rather scornfully, "Can anything good come from Nazareth?"
Yet, despite the obviously negative reputation, Jesus loved his hometown enough to preach his first sermon there.
