Today’s reading is Mark 5:1-6:56.

Before I share my thought from today’s reading, I was reminded of a little joke. In a Bible class, the teacher asked her elementary grade students what they would have said had they been Herod when Herodias’s daughter asked for the head of John the Baptist. After all, he had promised her anything up to half of his kingdom.

Little Johnny raised his hand. When the teacher called on him, he said, “I’d have told her that I meant something from the other half of the kingdom.”

Okay, on to what really stands out to me today. I can’t help but notice Jesus was unable to do many miraculous works in Nazareth. Why? Mark 6:5-6 suggests it was because of the unbelief of those in the town. Sadly, many today have latched on to this and acted as if this means a human’s lack of faith is so strong that the power of God cannot overcome it. This teaching makes man more powerful than God. It is as if to say that Jesus summoned all His power and might but these people were just too strong for Him and He couldn’t cut it.

However, the last story in the same chapter actually demonstrates the point. In Nazareth, people didn’t believe. Therefore, they didn’t come to Jesus for miracles. Look in Gennesaret in Mark 6:53-56. Here the people did believe. Because they believed, they ran about the whole region to bring people to be healed.

You see, the issue is not that my faith is necessary for Jesus to work. The issue is if I don’t believe, I won’t come to Jesus to get Him to do His work.

This applies to me. I am looking for spiritual healing. It is not that my faith accomplishes it. Nor is it that my lack of faith overpowers Jesus’ strength. Rather, if I don’t have faith, I won’t come to Jesus and He won’t work. That is why my faith is so important. Without faith it is impossible to please Him, because without faith I won’t come to Him to learn His way. But as faith increases, then Jesus can do His work in me.

That is why I always end with…

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What did you get out of today’s reading?