DCLM DAILY MANNA DEVOTIONALFOR NOVEMBER 3, 2022 – (THE WAGES OF PRIDE)
TOPIC : “THE WAGES OF PRIDE“
Text: Mark 6:1-6
1. And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him.
2. And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue; and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands?
3. Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.
4. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.
5. And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.
6. And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.
KEY VERSE: Mark 6:6
“And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And He went round about the villages, teaching.”
MESSAGE
Two women in Shanghai discussed Hudson Taylor, a radical missionary, who believed that China would never be won for Christ by quiet and ease-loving Christians. The women wondered if he was ever tempted to be prideful of his many accomplishments. One of them inquired from Taylor’s wife, Maria, who asked her husband if he was ever tempted to be proud. With surprise he asked, “proud about what?” His wife explained: “About all of the things you have done.” Taylor responded, “I never knew I had done anything”.
The residents of Nazareth, Christ’s country home, were too proud to recognise Jesus other than as “the carpenter, the son of Mary”. Pride and unbelief did not allow them to recognise Him as the Son of God who could raise the dead, restore full sanity to a mad man and cure a woman of a longstanding blood flow, all of which took place in the preceding chapter. They missed a golden opportunity to receive an overflow of blessings because of preconceived notions and prejudice.
Man’s little gods in science, technology and wealth have also come between him and his Creator. Sinful man cannot offer the appropriate spiritual response to the love of God. He proudly regards his advances in medicine, education and industry as adequate buffer to eliminate God from his affairs. Man now believes God is out of contention in the race to save humanity from self-inflicted problems. So, like the inhabitants of Nazareth, he is denied the much needed intervention from the God he does not respect.
Like Christ, the believer must continue his work for God even if he is faced with rejection and disrespect. We do not need the respect and honour of men to be useful to heaven. Despite being contemned, Christ laid His hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them. We must ask for grace to spur us into greater work for God regardless of man’s indifference.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Rejection should motivate the focused evangelist to labour more for heaven.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 Kings 5-7
Daily Manna is the daily devotional of the Deeper Christian Life Bible Ministry (DCLM). It is an extraction of God’s Word designed to draw the sincere seeker closer to God on a daily basis through an insightful exposition and analysis of God’s Word.
