Mark 6:3
Our
families help shape us in so many ways. Think about all the parents who pass
along the family occupation to the next generation. Many people in the military
are there because their families served before them, and they feel it is the
right thing to do. Many professionals follow their parents into medicine, law,
teaching. And blue collar workers often do what their parents did, the building
trades, factory work, long haul trucking.
Our
families shape what and how we think, who and what we trust, and the kind of
people we eventually hand around with, both positively and negatively. We are
not isolated from our parents. We are a product of that environment. We can
conform or rebel. Both come out of that family setting.
As
Jesus went back to his family, the place where He was raised and where He learned
carpentry, probably from His father, He doesn’t seem to fit into that place
anymore. He is very different from the little boy playing ball that everyone
remembers. And this difference raises questions in the minds of the
townspeople.
The
first question deals with the fact that Jesus was a carpenter. Carpenters are
generally not the scholarly type. They generally don’t attend higher education.
They don’t specialize in teaching and theological matters. They are much more
practical in their focus. They make and fix things with their hands.
So
when Jesus comes back to town and He seems more like an educated teacher of His
day than a skilled laborer, the people of his hometown can’t figure out where
He obtained His wisdom. He is just a carpenter, after all. He didn’t go to
Seminary. He doesn’t have any degrees after His name. How could He know
anything?
The
town also knew Mary, His mother. She wasn’t anyone special. She was a god fearing
woman, but just a mom and wife. Perhaps we could add to that list a widow. We
learn from church tradition that Joseph had died by the time Jesus began His
ministry, but there is no independent confirmation of that. She ran a household
with several children, a feat in itself, but nothing truly special.
And
then there were Jesus brothers and sisters. We know almost nothing about them.
Some have said they could be cousins or step brothers of Jesus. But again, they
add nothing the explain why Jesus is who He is. Jesus teaching and miracles can’t
be explained by looking at His brothers and sisters. Looking just makes you
more confused. Jesus is so different than they are.
Maybe
you are so very different from your background. Maybe you chose to be different
from your family of origin, your parents and siblings. Hopefully you made the
choice to step up and allow the LORD to lift you. And if you are reading this,
you probably haven’t made the choice to step backward and downward.