"Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?"

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Scripture

Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
(John 1:46 NASB)

 

Observation


Nazareth was a small village in the southern part of Israel. it was a village of no consequence -- there were no great schools in the area -- and really, there wasn't much to do. You worked with your hands and continued on with an existence that had been there for generations. Who cared about Nazareth?

 

Application


For some reason we often think that God can only use the extraordinary to make a difference in this world. Over and over again God, through Jesus, demonstrated that he could take ordinary people and they could do the extraordinary, but only through the infilling and empowering of the Holy Spirit.
Today people may look at us and wonder whether anything good can come out of our lives! Why -- she's just a single mother! He's a truck driver! She's a girl -- trying to do things guys do! He's not very articulate in front of people! She doesn't have any financial resources! He's never been anywhere! And yet God takes all of those excuses away and he takes the very simple circumstances of our lives and transforms them so that they may be used for his kingdom and glory.

Today, I love visiting the town of Nazareth. It is a bustling city in the country of Israel. The main street is lined with churches -- a reminder that Jesus was from this town. In the very heart of the city is the "Church of the Nazarene." There are even special signs put up by the city pointing you in that direction. Why? Because the city now has significance and the church bearing the name of the citizen of this town is special to them. The presence of Jesus Christ is what transformed Nazareth from a town of no consequence into one which will be remembered for generations to come.

It is the presence of Jesus that transforms our ordinary lives into something extraordinary. Nazareth has been glorified because of Jesus. Jesus becomes glorified when we allow him to use our ordinary lives for him and his kingdom. That is the beauty of what God wants to do in us. "Come and See!"

Prayer

Lord, thank you that you can take the very ordinary and your presence can make it extraordinary. Please, use us for you and your kingdom's sake! Amen.

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