When I meet someone new one of the first questionst that I ask them is, “Where are you from?” Where someone is from tells you a lot about them. It provides a context for you to understand at least a little about how they might move through the world or the kinds of experiences that they may have. 

One of the saddest things I’ve experienced was during a service trip to Eastern Kentucky. We were in Menifee County which is one of the poorest countries in the United States. The people there are kind and loving but they do not have much. I was talking with a mother and daughter. I had asked where they lived. Their faces fell, “Well the government just took our post office, they say where we live doesn’t exist anymore. Just like that where we’ve lived our whole lives just no longer exists. Cause, we can tell you that where they say we live, we sure as heck don’t.”

There is something about where we live that is part of our identity. Where we are from in so many ways helps us understand who we are. 

In Matthew we read, 

When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:

“Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”

From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” Matthew 4:12-17

We get very caught up on the “to fulfill” bit and many preachers have spent many hours talking about that. Or, we focus on the “Jesus began to preach…” bit and again, many have spilt much ink and many words on that bit. 

But, did you catch the little detail that Matthew dropped about Jesus? “He went and lived in Capernaum.” 

A lot of mileage has been traveled talking about Jesus being a traveling preacher. Which he was in many ways, but, he was from somewhere. He had a home. He lived in Capernaum. I am guessing if someone were to ask, “where are you from?” Capernaum would have been the answer. 

Being from Capernaum turns out to be mission critical. It sets up everything else in the passage, the way more interesting bits that people like to dwell on. But, if he’s not from Capernaum then it doesn’t matter. Jesus set down some roots. He lived some place. Jesus lived in Capernaum.

As we consider what it means to be the church, we have to keep returning to the reality that we are to be from some place. Where we live shapes us. 

I think a lot of churches need to think long and hard about what it means to be from some place. Do the people we worship alongside participate in the life of the broader community or do they largely only participate in the programs of the local congregation? Just because we have a church building in particular zip code doesn’t mean that we are putting down roots there. It doesn’t meant that we are part fo the community. 

To say this another way, we must be present in our neighborhoods and towns and cities. If we are going to follow the way of Jesus, we must really live in these places. 

Here is a way to discover if your are living in your community: Are there any places where you know the names of people who work there and they know yours? When I go to our local school, my golf course, my bowling alley, my coffee shop, and my pub there are people who know me and I know them. We have had real conversations. When I am there, I am present.

Do you live somewhere or you just passing through?

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