Jesus grew up in Nazareth and he was forever known as being “Jesus of Nazareth”. But what was it about that little village that would have formed his teachings and what can we learn from this region?
Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but his family had to flee from Herod the Great to Egypt. When Herod died… they returned to Nazareth where Joseph plied his trade as a carpenter.
For about the next 25 years or so, Jesus played and worked and lived in Nazareth and was forever identified (even after leaving Nazareth) as “Jesus of Nazareth”.
In Mark we read that when “a blind man in Jericho” heard that “Jesus of Nazareth” was there – he cried out for Jesus to heal him. Thus Nazareth was a pivotal town in the life of Jesus.
Back in the 1990s, a Doctor in a Nazareth Hospital began to be distressed that the city of Nazareth that Jesus’ knew – was quickly being buried by the present day construction. With a discovery of “an ancient winepress” on the hospital land Dr. Bishara developed the idea of creating “a visitor’s center” reflecting the village in Jesus’ day. He spoke with wealthy and well-connected donors and arranged for funds to build a visitors’ center that would reflect how life might- have-been back then.
They built a synagogue, an olive press building, a couple of houses and employed actors to represent carpenters, women making yarn, weavers of tapestries, and shepherds.
In the process of “developing the land,” they have uncovered “an ancient terraced farm” from the days of Jesus with “a watch tower” in one corner, just like Jesus spoke of in Matthew’s gospel.
Each of these terraced plots of land was farmed by different farmers.
There would have been a path running down the hillside so that each farmer could reach his plot without treading on his neighbors “field”.
But these terraced lands were filled with “partially submerged rocks” where the soil would only be a couple inches deep. There would also be “thistles” that would grow up along with the crop.
This was the type of farming Jesus described in his Parable of the Sower.” A farmer would have scattered his seed and some of it would have fallen on the “path,” some on the “thin cover of soil” above the rocks and others amongst “thistles.” But some would have fallen on “good ground.”
Jesus had played on this land as a child and that it would be logical to assume Jesus had played there in his youth as well.
The Olive Press that was discovered consisted of a huge circular bowl with a huge round rock sitting on its edge resting inside that bowl. The round rock had a beam through it that could be hooked up to a donkey. The donkey would roll the rock around the bowl and the olives would be crushed.
Then the worker would gather the crushed olives into a basket. Several of these baskets would then be stacked in a “press” where a huge beam would be weighted with various stones to press the oil out of the olives.
A “lighter weight” would be used for the first pressing. This would be “pur” (or virgin) oil that would be used in the Temple.
A second pressing would use “a heavier weight” to press out more and “lesser quality oil” from the olives. This would be the type of oil used in “cooking.”
A 3rd pressing – using “even heavier weight” – would result in the “least quality of oil” and this oil would be used “in their lamps.” This is the type of lamp Jesus spoke of when He said “You are the light of the world.”
Remember when Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane before he was betrayed? “Gethsemane” means… “Olive press.”
Jesus prayed that night three separate times.
Three times for emphasis sake.
As Jesus grew up in Nazareth he “probably” learned the trade of his father, and one of the major employers of the trades in the area might have been from the capital of Galilee called Sepphoris. It was a thriving “Roman city” with a great demand for builders and day laborers.
This was the seat Roman power in Galilee. Wealthy people lived there and built elaborate homes with mosaic tiles for their floors. They also had a strong group of Jewish leaders there with their own synagogue and with northern representatives of a body of rulers like the Sanhedrin.
After his baptism by John…in the Jordan River…Jesus immediately went into the desert for 40 days/nights. It appears that after his temptation Jesus moved his ministry to the area of Capernaum and was known (back home) for doing many miracles in the city Capernaum. The people of Nazareth wanted to see some for themselves.
When Jesus returned to Nazareth to teach there, the people expected MORE!
After this teaching/preaching event, Jesus left Nazareth and apparently never returned. The majority of his ministry from that day on was centered around Capernaum and the Sea of Galilee and it was from there that Jesus chose most of His disciples.
So what was it that Jesus learned growing up in Nazareth?