“Who Pulled the Plug?
The Cancelling Power of Contempt”
Mark 6:1-6 September 17, 2006 Play
AUDIO
(mp3)
Writing Off the Guy with the “Retarded Haircut”
- initial reaction to dismiss murderous gunman as simply ‘sick’
- prejudice leads us to reject those who are different
Mr.Impossible Meets the Incredibles
- Jesus accomplishes ‘impossible’ feats: stilling storm, exorcising
legions, healing incurable, bringing dead back to life (Mk 4:39; 5:3,
26ff, 35)
- instead of ‘hometown hero’, dismissed as just a handyman (6:3)
- not honoured by those with whom most familiar: eg Elijah, Elisha
(Lk 4:24)
- took offense / scandalized / stumbled / rejected (Ps 118:22; Rom
9:32f; 1Pet 2:8)
- prejudice prevented doing of miracles (6:5)
- faith allows God room to work, not boxed-in
Dig a Little Deeper
- reaction to Columbine produced backlash against unrelated goth
culture
- Gill “picked on” as ethnic, found refuge in gothic individualism
- dismissing poorly dressed customer cost salesman dearly
- Gandhi close to Christianity, but driven away by usher’s attitude