Hi, welcome to Redeem the Commute. I’m Ryan, your host for the daily challenges. This week’s topic is part of our series called Jesus Is… where we’re trying to learn about the identity of Jesus, through studying some key stories in the Bible.

Our daily challenges are meant to help you explore what it means to follow Jesus, even if you don’t have a lot of time. We have a rhythm that keeps us in sync, even if we’re not a community that meets together in person regularly. Every Monday we introduce the week’s idea. Every Tuesday we study it in the Bible. Every Wednesday we see how that challenges and transforms our thinking on the topic. Thursdays we try to apply and live it out. Friday is a day for prayer and reflection before we take a rest on Saturday, and Sundays we meet together with others in community.

This week we’ll study a story in the Bible where Jesus coined the phrase, “Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown”.

When the church I grew up in was hiring a new pastor, I remember some people asking if I’d be applying. My response was to quote this line – “no prophet is welcome in his hometown.” No, I wasn’t claiming to be Jesus, or even a prophet! But it’s shorthand for recognizing something very real about human nature.

It comes up in casual conversation often – it’s a line that has made it into our everyday English language.

It’s hard for a young person to be taken too seriously by their family, and others who saw them grow up. It’s not a guaranteed failure – sometimes people can indeed learn great wisdom from those they remember as a cute kid in the neighbourhood. Sometimes people can indeed be led by those whose diapers they once changed. But not usually. Usually those kinds of memories get in the way. It’s human nature, and human nature includes things like pride and prejudice.

This is why so many young leaders travel far from home to grow into leaders and teachers – because they get a fair shake!

Question: Have you heard someone quote Jesus, by saying “no prophet is welcome in his hometown” or something similar? Have you said it? Share a story.