Moving Forward - 28 January 2025
- danalewisambrose
- Jan 28, 2025
- 1 min read
TUESDAY, January 28, Thomas Aquinas
Mark 6:3b And they took offense at him.
What a sad situation this is for the people of Nazareth! Jesus returns to his home synagogue and astounds the people with his teaching, but their response is based on what they remember, wondering, “How can this be?” And it is this doubt that causes them to stumble, or as Mark tells us, “they took offense.” The Greek word for this skandalon, from which we get scandal, means “a striking against,” as if they encountered a block of some kind and tripped over it. The stumbling block is their own thinking.
What makes this even sadder is that because of their stubborn refusal to believe, Jesus isn’t able to do much of anything there, and he leaves. Thomas Aquinas, whom we remember today, said, “To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.” The people of Nazareth were trying to understand and explain what they saw and heard of Jesus when what they needed was faith. Sometimes my own need to understand trips me up, too, and I fall, sprawling. Lord, help my unbelief.
MOVING FORWARD: When have you fallen short of God’s call because of doubt or disbelief?
(Source: Forward Day by Day Movement)
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