The Gospel for this Sunday is from Mark 6:1-13. The selection contains two sections: a) Mark 6:1-6, Jesus being rejected at Nazareth, and b) Mark 6:7-13, Jesus sending out the twelve Apostles.
In the first section, we see Jesus teaching in His hometown synagogue. His old acquaintances are not favorably impressed. In fact, they take offense. "And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them." (Mark 6: 4-5 ESV). In this case, familiarity breeds contempt, and the unbelief of the people at Nazareth hinders any great manifestation of His ministry. After showing compassion by healing a few individuals, Jesus moves on to minister elsewhere. Even as presented by Jesus Himself, the Gospel is not always accepted.
In the second section, Jesus sends out the Twelve in pairs with instructions for their work on His behalf. Again we see that Christ's Gospel will not be universally accepted. He warns the Apostles, "And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them” (Mark 6:11 ESV). Yet, the overall result was positive. The Apostles proclaimed the message of repentance, cast out demons and healed many of the sick.
Thus, in this Sunday's Gospel from Mark 6, we see the two-sided results of the proclamation of Christ's message. Neither in the New Testament nor in our times does the Christian proclamation meet with universal acceptance. In many places, people do not believe. Some are doubtful or skeptical; some are plainly hostile. Nevertheless, some people have their hearts opened by grace, and when that happens, there is repentance, faith and many cases of spiritual and physical healing.
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