This is part of a Daily Devotional Orwell Bible Church prepares each week. You can get a copy from our Downloads and Literature page.

Two events relate how Jesus was rejected, first those of Jesus’ hometown, Nazareth (14:53–58), and second, Herod’s beheading of Jesus’ forerunner, John the Baptist (15:1–12). Both the Nazarenes and Herod rejected the message that Jesus was the Messiah and that they must therefore repent of their sins.

Three miracles are then related (14:13–36), showing Jesus’ compassion (14:14) and credentials as the promised Messiah and King of Israel. Jesus’ authority over creation is demonstrated by his feeding of well over 5,000 people (vv. 13–21) and walking on the water (vv. 22–33), followed by his authority over sickness (vv. 34–36) and readiness to associate with and touch those who viewed as unclean.

Truths to Nail Down and Meditate On

1. While some will repent of their sins and trust in Christ, the sad truth is that most will not, whether regular people or great rulers. Don’t evaluate ministry “success” by numbers; be faithful!
2. You may well be persecuted for righteousness’ sake, like John the Baptist was. Jesus was himself rejected by his own hometown, so don’t expect to experience anything different! (John 15:20) Jesus said those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake have a sure future ruling with him (Matt 5:10). Rejoice that you’re counted worthy to suffer for his name’s sake (Acts 5:41), knowing that suffering for Christ goes hand-in-hand with believing in him (Phil 1:29; 2 Tim 3:12).