Wednesday April 23rd

Wednesday, April 23 — Psalm 52, Leviticus 15:25-16:25; Mark 6:1-6

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S (Scripture):Mark 6:3
3 Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary" and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him

O (Observation): Jesus humanness becomes an issue for some regarding his authority to speak and the power he has.

A (Application): The word 'Just' is a limiting word. For example, I am 'just' one man.  Or I am 'just' a stay-at-home-mom. Here, it is applied to Jesus because he is 'just' a carpenter, the son of Mary. Because Jesus is in his hometown, there were people who saw him grow up, remember him as a young child, know him as 'just' another Nazarene. As they say, you can't go home again.

What we find in Jesus accessibility (being human/like one of us) the people of Nazareth contend against Jesus....for them he is JUST a carpenter, a local, no one really special. Yet Jesus IS the Son of God.  We have trouble holding those two things in tension with one another (Jesus' humanity with Jesus' divinity)

But in a more certain way we have trouble making an identity for ourselves in limiting the power of who we are in our own identity by using the same limiting word - ' Just.' We excuse ourselves away from God's calling and mission every time we claim; 'but I am just a _______."  In the same way Jesus spoke on the authority given to him by the Father, we too claim the authorioty placed on us in our Baptism...child of God.  These words dismiss the limiting word 'just' and claim for us the power and authority God places on us to represent God here on earth and bring in the Kingdom God claims for us.

P (Prayer): Limitless God, empower us to speak your authority, reclaim us in the identity you place on our lives, and forgive us when we limit who you created us to be.