As I was reading in Mark 6 today, verses 1-3 reminded me of something that I had heard recently that sheds a little more light on the life of Jesus!
1 Jesus went away from there and came to His [own] country and hometown [Nazareth], and His disciples followed [with] Him. 2 And on the Sabbath He began to teach in the synagogue; and many who listened to Him were utterly astonished, saying, Where did this Man acquire all this? What is the wisdom [the broad and full intelligence which has been] given to Him? What mighty works and exhibitions of power are wrought by His hands! 3 Is not this the Carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not His sisters here among us? And they took offense at Him and were hurt [that is, they disapproved of Him, and it hindered them from acknowledging His authority] and they were caused to stumble and fall.
They referred to Jesus as the "carpenter". We've all heard Him called the lowly carpenter who was rough and humble in His existence. We've seen movies that show Him working on wooden tables and chairs and the like. Would you like to be able to change that picture up a little? "Carpenter" here is the Greek word "tekton", which CAN refer to a carpenter (a worker in wood), but also means: a builder; a joiner; a craftsman. When I heard this taught it was also mentioned that only 5 miles from Nazareth, where Jesus grew up, was the town of Sepphoris, which, at that time, was a new and very rich city that Herod was having built up in a very modern, upscale way! I have come to believe that Jesus was not just a mere woodworker, making furniture, but that he was a "tekton", where we get our modern "technician"! He was very smart (we KNOW that!) and highly skilled (did you ever doubt that?) and would have most likely worked on the building of this city. One scholar commented that in all of His examples and parables, He never mentions working with wood. I LOVE this kind of meditation! We may not know for sure until we get to Heaven, but it is great fun to imagine! Do YOU do this type of meditation, or imagining, when you study the Word of God? If not, I would encourage you to try it! The Holy Spirit is present within us as our Teacher, among His other valuable roles (John 14:16), and He delights to teach us and show us things to look at in a whole new way! There is NEVER a dull moment with the Word of God, unless you are merely reading and not studying! Get your creative imagination going and allow the Spirit of God to take you places you have never been and show you things you have never seen! AMEN! Here is Hillsong Young and Free with "Brighter":
Shalom in Him!
