The Nazareth Trust

17/08/2026

Commissioned as ambassadors

2 Corinthians 5 v20-21
20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin[b] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

If the Corinthians have been ‘given the ministry of reconciliation’; then how will they now see themselves in view of this commission? You can almost anticipate Paul ruminating over the right metaphor for how the Corinthians should now imagine themselves.

Are the Corinthians to be messengers who announce reconciliation? No, angels can do that. Are they to be practitioners of reconciliation? No, the court mediators can do that. Are they to only be evangelists? No, the street preachers can do that. Instead, Paul chooses a word which encompasses all of the above.

The Corinthians are to be ‘Ambassadors’.
In the Roman Empire, the ambassador, the presbeutēs, was an official envoy representing the interests of a city or ruler. Corinth, as a Roman colony and a major trade hub, was familiar with diplomatic missions sent from Rome or other cities to negotiate treaties, request favours, or maintain alliances. Ambassadors acted under the authority of the sender.

Their status was deferred by the one who sent them, not by virtue of their own credentials.

It is another missionary master stroke from Paul; the Corinthians, forever obsessed with status and patronage, are awarded a title and a commission they are happy to embrace! Instead of representing Caesar or a wealthy patron, the church in Corinth will instead represent the crucified Nazarene. It is the death of Christ that qualifies them.

Despite being the hometown of Jesus, Nazareth is surprisingly low-key. In Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, Nazareth is considered the ‘periphery’. Its most famous former resident has appointed billions of ambassadors as his representatives on earth, but no embassies, consulates or High Commissions exist in Nazareth.

As a starting point for history’s biggest and most influential diplomatic movement, this is perhaps surprising. However, within the Nazareth Trust we invite the ambassadors of Christ from every nation to come and share in a ministry of reconciliation in Jesus home town through the SERVE programme.

All ambassadors are very welcome to visit, both those appointed by monarchs and Presidents and those whose authority is given by the King of Kings!

As you walk in the footsteps of Jesus this week, you will set out into a foreign land. You are charged with the authority of God to be an ambassador of Christ. That will mean being a representative, not of your own self-interests, but of the constitution of the Kingdom itself.

You will be a representative of love, compassion, Godly wisdom and truth, holiness and justice.

You will encounter moments to honour the Lord’s name and promote the interests of the Kingdom.

You are commissioned, Ambassador; go into this week with his authority to accomplish his purposes.

14/08/2026

Ambassador Huckabee highlights the vital role of Christians in Nazareth. On 8th July, the United States Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, made a timely visit to Nazareth. Joining the Nazareth Trust’s CEO, Waseem Dibbini, were several respected Christian leaders from the city. The meeting provided an opportunity to introduce the Ambassador to the challenges faced by the people of Nazareth and the significant role that the local Christian community continues to play in serving the region. Together with Jerusalem and Bethlehem, Nazareth is one of the most important cities in Christian history. Yet unlike many places in the Holy Land, Nazareth offers a unique opportunity to demonstrate how communities can work together, serve one another, and build a future rooted in dignity, compassion, and hope. During the meeting with Ambassador Huckabee, the delegation shared the realities facing the people of Nazareth, and particularly its Christian community. They also highlighted the extraordinary contribution that Christian churches and institutions make every day. Some of these institutions have become lifelines for healing, hope, and opportunity within Nazareth’s largely Arab community. The delegation also shared its own Christian vision: that of being peacemakers. In a region often defined by division, Nazareth’s Christian community is remarkable in its track record of building bridges across religious and ethnic divides, fostering understanding, and encouraging reconciliation among the city’s diverse communities. Looking ahead, the discussions with Ambassador Huckabee emphasized the importance of building stronger partnerships with churches, ministries, foundations, and friends of Nazareth around the world. Such partnerships have the potential to strengthen the city’s infrastructure, invest in opportunities for its people, and further establish Nazareth as a heartland of blessing for Christians from every nation. Following the meeting, Ambassador Huckabee publicly recognized Nazareth’s significance and expressed his desire to promote greater awareness of the city’s remarkable community. For the Nazareth Trust, however, this meeting was more than a diplomatic engagement. It was another reminder that God continues to open doors for His people in Nazareth to advance His Kingdom of love, hope, and reconciliation.

10/08/2026

One for the accountants

2 Corinthians 5 v16-19
‘16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.’

No Greek or Jew, no man or woman, no Arab or European, no rich or poor, no slave or free, Paul reminds the Corinthians that the old identifiers have gone. Instead, there is only one identity that really matters. If anyone is in Christ, the old has gone, and the new has come. Forget how the world labels people. Why? Because the single most important thing that will ever happen to a person, argues Paul, is not where they’re born, the education they receive, the title they hold, the colour of their skin, the castle or the hovel that they live in, instead, of supreme importance is that people find reconciliation with God through Christ.

The consequence is that every other marker which seeks to distinguish one person from another collapses under the seismic power of God reclaiming his creation through Christ. Therefore, freed from the many trappings of race, privilege, prejudice, wealth, history and status. Those many barriers that separate people and disrupt relationship, Paul twice reminds the Corinthians that they have been given the message of reconciliation.

The Greek word Katallagē is often translated as reconciliation. It is a word from which we have derived the word catalogue in English, meaning a long list of things. Katallagē suggests a balanced exchange. It is really the language of accountancy. We have the same related terminologies; ‘a balance sheet’ or a ‘bank reconciliation’ both give a sense of what Paul was trying to convey to the Corinthians.

I will further unpack the metaphor that Paul infers. In the world with all of its sin, corruption, darkness, prejudice, displacement, anxiety, violence, lust, human rights abuses, immorality and betrayal, the cosmic balance sheet suggests that humanity is in a profoundly debt-ridden relationship to God. In fact, it is in a totally parlous situation. The catalogue of human debt seems impossibly lengthy; it burdens us; we are literally drowning in a debt of sin. However, on the credit side of the balance sheet there is one entry; it simply reads ‘Jesus Christ’.

The payment of Christ for the sin of the world has proven sufficient and the unbalanced cosmic balance sheet finds miraculous reconciliation. Therefore, Paul commands, if we are to be like Christ then we are to own this same ministry of reconciliation.

Within the Nazareth Trust, we fully embrace the ministry of reconciliation. After all, Christians in the Holy Land are a minority, often hard-pressed on every side.

However, it is from that very position of being neither Muslim or Jew that allows followers of Jesus in Nazareth to play a vital role as agents of reconciliation. They have no political power; they carry no threat. Instead, their assignment is the ministry of reconciliation. A task that is so important that Jesus himself died to accomplish it.

As we walk in the footsteps of Jesus in the week to come, we are thankful that our debt has been paid by Jesus. Reconciliation is an extremely costly business.

Unfortunately, Paul doesn’t encourage a wilderness retreat to uncover God’s desire for our lives. This God-given imperative is non-negotiable. ‘He has committed us to the ministry of reconciliation’. In the week to come, let’s pray for opportunities to be agents of healing within fractured relationships.

Pray for the courage to be peacemakers by being the first to say sorry, by being willing to expend time, ego and money to enable reconciliation to occur.

Pray for the courage to surface hard truths even if it's personally costly to do it. Pray for the courage to be more like Jesus in the week that lies ahead.

07/08/2026

Addressing critical gaps in healthcare starts with investing in people.

Through a unique residency programme at The Nazareth Hospital, doctors from the West Bank are receiving advanced specialist training that will ultimately benefit patients and communities across the region. Congratulations to Dr Tareq Shabaneh and Dr Khalawi Abu Harshek on reaching this important milestone in their medical careers.

https://conta.cc/3TyzMJA

Email from The Nazareth Trust   Investing in West Bank Doctors, Transforming Communities Two Palestinian doctors from the West Bank have recently achieved an important milestone in their medical care

03/08/2026

Out of our minds?

2 Corinthians 5 v11-15
11 Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. 12 We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart. 13 If we are “out of our mind,” as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

The so-called ‘Super-Apostles’ opposed Paul’s teaching in Corinth. They claimed far superior rhetorical credentials as they sought to establish themselves as those with elevated theological authority. They were intent on trashing Paul’s standing among believers in Corinth.

For example, they criticized Paul for his suffering and weakness (2 Cor 11:23–30), his lack of polished speech (2 Cor 11:6) and his refusal to accept the Corinthians payments to him (2 Cor 11:7–9). Only a fool would operate this way, therefore the message was clear- don’t listen to what Paul tells you!

The ’Super Apostles’ were fully ‘bought into’ Greco-Roman ideals of status and eloquence, which made Paul’s humility and suffering seem woefully unimpressive by comparison. Corinth was wealthy, diverse, and highly competitive; full of merchants, philosophers, and travelling teachers. Public recognition and reputation were valuable currency as people traded in patronage and prestige. Leaders were judged by outward success, charisma, and education.

Paul hardly matches up, and he knows it! He refers to ‘we’ need to commend ‘ourselves’ again, and of course he is referring to a long list of authentic apostles. Paul stands alongside fellow apostles Silas, Timothy, Apollos, Priscilla and Aquilla. The Corinthians know the heart of these authentic apostles and their total devotion to both the truth of the Gospel and to them as a church in Corinth. Yes, Paul and the apostles are out of their mind-their head has been overruled by the heart. The Corinthian church was so precious to Christ and to them and these apostles were not about to walk away.

Madness as far as the world was concerned but in the economy of heaven, the apostles are ‘compelled’- what else can they do?

I recently met Dr Bob Martin who served as a missionary in the EMMS Nazareth hospital on three separate seasons over a 30-year period. He is something of a legend in the Nazareth Trust. Bob tells the story of how on his final invitation to Nazareth, he really didn’t want to go. He had established his medical practice in the US, his pension was looking rosy, and life was comfortable.

Reluctantly, he travelled with the intention of telling his former colleagues at the hospital that enough was enough; he was done. Somehow, his heart overcame his mind as he saw the need. Bob found himself saying yes when his logical self was working overtime to utter the simple word ‘no’.

To the world with its values of wealth and comfort, Bob’s actions were madness. Bob’s story is just one of many down the generations. Each one tells of how Christ’s love has compelled them to share the life giving message of Jesus through word and deed in his hometown.

Compelled by the love of Christ? Well, we are told by the world that this is madness. It makes no sense, right? Instead, be compelled to acquire things that don’t last, be compelled to establish a professional reputation which disappears once you retire and be compelled to stamp your transient authority on people who don’t respect you. Actually, no thanks. I am Ok with the logic that says trust is Jesus; he is the better bet! After all, we no longer live for ourselves with all of its disappointments and redundancies, but instead we live for him who died for us and was raised again.

Therefore, as we walk in the footsteps of Jesus this week, in all things, we are compelled not by the values of the world but by the overwhelming love of Jesus.

31/07/2026

Ready for a life-changing adventure? 🌍✨ Join us in Nazareth for 10 days of faith, hope, and culture!

Email from The Nazareth Trust Embark on a Transformative 10-day Journey - Don't Miss Out!   Introducing SERVE: Footsteps of Faith As part of our longstanding mission and ministry to everyone inside a

27/07/2026

We welcome you to the podium

2 Corinthians 5 v 10
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”

We have already seen how Paul assures believers in Corinth that they will eschew the vulnerabilities of their earthly existence and instead inherit an eternal dwelling place. The Holy Spirit is a deposit, the guarantee of what is to come. In light of this, it is intriguing to ask why Paul takes the Corinthian Church back to a place of uncertainty by telling them that all will stand before the ‘judgement seat of Christ’ and ‘receive what is due for things done in the body, whether good or bad’ (v10)? Paul obviously believes in the principle of divine judgment.

However, he also clearly believes in the promise of grace, suggesting assured and certain salvation for those who are in Christ.

Instead, 2 Corinthians 5 refers to the ‘bema’ seat, drawing on the Greek word for the raised platform used by adjudicators and those making public announcements.

The ‘bema’ seat is a place of accountability and evaluation rather than a site of condemnation. A place where struggling and flourishing Christians alike will form a line to receive embrace and congratulations.

Some will have used up their full measure of grace, but there will also be a roll call of champions of the Faith. Paul wants the Corinthians to look forward to the day when Jesus will catch their gaze and declare, ‘well done good and faithful servant’.

Nazarene Christians want to bear witness to Jesus. Despite being a tiny minority group, they don’t go unnoticed. Christian schools and hospitals predominate in Nazareth despite it being a Muslim-majority city in a Jewish-majority country.

Christians excel in various leadership positions within the city and promote peace and reconciliation across the boundaries of political and religious tension. In many ways, they model what might be possible in a very broken land. I look forward to these Nazarene believers finishing the race well.

I look forward to cheering with them as they pass beyond the ‘bema’ seat to receive a crown of glory and the congratulations of the Saviour.
This week, we want to be able to give a good account of ourselves.

Yes, we are saved by grace, but we also want to be effective ambassadors on behalf the Lord’s Kingdom whom we patriotically represent.

Pray for the week ahead and for opportunities to faithfully honour the name of Jesus in the midst of a world which is obsessed by lies, corruption, deceit, greed and ego.

25/07/2026

✨💌 The Wall of Hope is here! Together, we lift up Nazareth in love & prayer!
read here:

Email from The Nazareth Trust   Wall of Hope: A Visible Reminder that Nazareth is Not Alone In times of uncertainty and challenge, encouragement can be a powerful source of strength, and we wanted to

24/07/2026

🐑🏺 From shepherding sheep to mastering first-century pottery, Nathaniel Wiseman has spent the past 11 years helping visitors step into the world of the Bible at Nazareth Village.

Behind the authentic costumes and immersive experiences are scorching summer days, rainy winters, runaway lambs, and countless opportunities to see Scripture come alive.
Discover the story behind one of the faces bringing history, faith, and imagination together every day at Nazareth Village. ✨
Read more: https://nazarethtrust.org/behind-the-beard/

Email from The Nazareth Trust Ever Wondered What Happens Behind the Scenes? Find out Now!   Behind the Beard Behind the Scenes at Nazareth Village Many apologies, as last week's update arrived in a fo

20/07/2026

The Logos on a Cross

2 Corinthians 5 v6-9
6 Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. 7 For we live by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it.

Paul continues his theme of living in view of eternity in this section of 2 Corinthians 5. There is a contrast. Either be at home in the body and away from the Lord or, as Paul suggests, it may be better to be with the Lord but away from the body.

‘The body’ (sōma); its desires and impermanence, was a popular discourse in Greek philosophy. Plato famously called the body a “prison” for the soul, emphasizing its limitations and susceptibility to desires. Instead, the soul (psychē) was regarded as the immortal essence, our imperishable true self. Paul is keen to correct an obvious conclusion. I.e., that you are excused from accusations of immortality because your ‘imperfect body’ made you sin. Christ was fully human and fully God, but chose not to sin. He is both our saviour, and our model, therefore Paul concludes that the Corinthians should ‘make it their goal to please him’ (in body, mind and soul). Therefore, live by faith (in Christ) not by sight (the world’s conventional wisdom).

By capturing strands of Plato and Aristotle’s fashionable discourse, Paul seizes an opportunity to bring ultimate purpose and culmination (telios) to Greek philosophy. Christ is the ultimate reality. Who needs ‘super-Apostles’ when Paul’s Christ-centred rhetoric is this compelling?

As with Corinthians, so with the Nazarenes. To many in Nazareth, Jesus is a paradox in need of resolution. He is simultaneously the Logos of all eternity and just a guy from Nazareth hanging on a cross; the exalted firstborn over all creation yet also an upstart from the periphery who was ultimately crushed underfoot by the ‘centre’s’ ruling classes.

Just as Paul brings culmination to the Greek’s worldview through Christ, the paradox of the incarnation brings meaning in our modern world too. Jesus reflects the humic resonance of our everyday life and also the hope of eternity which resides somewhere in every human psyche. When Nazarenes walk through the Nazareth Village, climb the reconstructed vineyard and stand where Jesus crushed grapes between his calloused toes, they are in the footsteps of the Nazarene man. When they are challenged by the wisdom of the parables, and their hearts cry for divine revelation, they find themselves touched by the Logos of all eternity.

Both experiences are authentically Jesus, both are how the Father willed it to be, and both are an explicably profound blessing. Jesus of Nazareth is the author of a transcultural Gospel. He meets us as King, as Servant, as the one who is oppressed, shamed and broken, as the blistered labourer but also as the zenith of philosophical reason.

To those in his hometown today, he is helper, rescuer, comforter, healer, friend, Lord and Saviour of the whole world.
As we walk in the footsteps of Jesus this week, there will undoubtedly be some great things that occur but also hard stuff, boring and routine things, bruises and barbed comments. Our hope this week is not found in clever philosophy or on earthly importance, but in the lowly Nazarene who is the Word become flesh.

Our bodies may give way, but he is the one who secures our salvation and whom we seek to obey this week with wholehearted devotion.