The residents of Nazareth didn’t really believe that Jesus was capable of greatness.
After all, Jesus was the son of a carpenter and He lived among the Nazarenes for years. He didn’t seem extraordinary and certainly didn’t embody the traits of a Messiah. He wore no royal garments and had no strong army in his possession. How could they believe their neighbor, Jesus, was capable of miracles, let alone that He was the Son of God?
It made no sense. But that’s the thing about faith. It’s not always practical.
Instead of providing Nazareth with a royal prince dressed in velvet robes surrounded by armored guards, God sent His Son to be humbly born in a stable surrounded by animals, and to grow up a simple laborer.
The people of Nazareth had plenty of common sense. What they lacked was faith. And, it is faith, not common sense, which allows us to take the steps necessary to be a disciple of Christ. Faith allows us to believe in what doesn’t make sense.
As true disciples, we are called to recognize that all we have is a gift from God. We are not solely responsible for our unique gifts or talents, our wealth, our health, or our surroundings. We are recipients of these gifts bestowed upon us by our most generous Heavenly Father.
Wouldn’t it be easier to believe we are great at something because we worked hard at it, and were born with some natural ability? Of course. But who gave us that natural ability? Who surrounded us with the resources, or gave us the family and friends to help develop our natural talents and utilize them in the real world?
The answer, of course, is God.
Ultimately, having a steward’s heart – recognizing that all we have is a gift from God and being thankful for those gifts – is more valuable than common sense every day.
