In Your Home Town

In Your Home Town

“A prophet is not without honor except in his home town, among his own relatives, and in his own house.” Mark 6:4.

Now that we know it, it is prudent to take it into consideration. For if you are a prophet or spiritual, you are a man of God in truth and have much to give to your fellow men. However, it is not only up to you how much you can give and to how many people you can give of what God has given you. Just as much as the merchant’s sale does not only depend on his inventory of wares but is limited by the customers’ desire to buy and his ability to buy, so your ministry and your good deeds are limited by the souls’ receptivity.

If you want to give the most possible out of love, knowing that you will hardly be heard, hardly be believed, and hardly be accepted, then love will necessarily compel you to go to other places where you will have better sales of your good wares, where you—according to Jesus’ words—will not be without honor. This is how it will be if you really are a prophet or a spiritual person.

Imagine that in no other place except in your home town do God-fearing souls refuse to hear and receive your testimony. Indeed, you cannot expect to be received by other than seeking souls anywhere else. Jesus was a prophet; however, He was not received by just everyone simply became He was not in His home town.

However, all those who are of God will receive you—except in your home town. There you cannot even reckon that those who are of God will receive you or respect you.

The Jews were Paul’s own people. When they did not want to hear about God’s salvation, he boldly went to the Gentiles saying, “And they will hear it!” If you sense that you are barely being heard in your home town, then journey, by the grace that God gives, to other places where you will also find receptive ears. But what is the reason for all this? What is everyone in particular supposed to think about himself in this matter? If a brother in your home town—someone whom you know according to the flesh—proclaims a truth, you barely accept it. Yet if another brother comes from another place and proclaims the same truth, you think that it is blessed, that it is true; then you believe it. What is the reason? Something must be wrong. All of this has the same main reason. The reason is sin. This bad tree must surely have its roots in the dung heap that is made up of envy, jealousy, and conceit. We are too stiff and proud to receive from those who are nearest to us—it is too humiliating. It is more difficult for us to place our confidence in them, more difficult to believe them; it is more difficult for us to submit to them and to show them respect. It is easier with a visitor, just as it is easier for someone to bow before God who has created us than to bow before someone who is created by Him.

Just as it is the highest expression of arrogance not to bow before God, so it is extremely arrogant not to bow to a person in whom God has accomplished much; likewise it is the same arrogance to a lesser degree that causes people to respect a prophet much less in his home town, among his relatives, and in his house—people with whom he would normally associate—than a prophet from another place.

However, the spiritual person must not for that reason be deceived into thinking that they are not receptive to the truth, for when someone else comes and proclaims exactly the same truth to them which they could not receive from one of their own, they demonstrate thereby that they love the truth by accepting the very same truth with a ready willingness and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Paul exhorts the wives to show reverence to their husbands. Oh, how difficult that is for them—even if they have had the grace to be married to exceptionally and richly blessed men. They barely manage to show their great fear of God in this area. But if a spiritual man comes from another place, their entire being can be filled with reverence. God be praised for that! It is splendid! Our common desire is of course to grow to that which is even greater. It is relatively easy for them to appreciate the visitor, but it is difficult to see their reverence for their own husbands even if they are worth greater honor than the blessed man of God from another place.

What could possibly heal this sickness? It is obvious that it is sickly—sinful. The remedy is always the same. It is the Word that heals. This means: faith in the Word, obedience to the Word. Now we need to mention the words that speak about submission, humility, lowly thoughts about oneself, reverence and respect, giving honor to whom it is due, not going beyond your measure of grace, not thinking more highly about yourself than you ought to think, not being a busybody in other people’s matters, not being headstrong and conceited, not judging without God’s light, fully observing this word: “The secret things [things one doesn’t understand] belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever . . . .”

This sickness is also mentioned by the Preacher when he says, “The poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.” Eccl. 9:16. This is exactly how it is with a relative’s wisdom and with the wisdom of those who speak in one’s own assembly. When such a person speaks, people think more or less contemptuously: “Yes, we know him . . . we have heard that so many times.” But people are ready to receive (with an admiring look in their eyes) long before the visitor who is to speak has said anything to be admired.

All of us are like that, to a greater or lesser degree. We are like that as long as we are not like the Father Himself right to the marrow, from one end to the other, as long as there is more wisdom and power to be found in Him than in us. It is just a matter of reducing our folly so that there is more room for God’s wisdom in our inner man.

The spiritual person must act on the basis of these facts, sowing his noble seed where it can be received best.

All those who remain in their house and in their home town according to God’s will must esteem their relatives and their brothers in their local church very highly, according to what God has done with them! Cast all your knowledge of them according to the flesh overboard!!! Then this evil contempt will also go overboard.

Yes, but it is so very difficult, you say. Very well! But to this we are called! We are called to overcome all kinds of difficulties, impossibilities, and unimaginable situations in Christ Jesus. He does such great things in those who believe it. The greater the difficulty, the greater will be the glory—when we overcome!

Thus it will succeed for you to receive wisdom as wisdom, righteousness as righteousness, and every virtue as a virtue, with reverence and thankfulness even if it comes from those who are nearest to you. God help us all to gain as much as possible, in ourselves and in others. Amen.