John 4:43-45, Welcoming Jesus

43 After the two days he departed for Galilee.  44 (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.)  45 So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast. 

The Samaritans declared Jesus as the Savior of the world, foreshadowing how he would later be received by the Gentiles in the missionary work of Peter and Paul. In Galilee, among his fellow Jews, he is welcomed as a miracle worker. Many had been in Jerusalem for the Passover and had either seen or heard of his miraculous works. However, Savior of the world and miracle worker are two very different titles. Hence John editorializes, saying, “a prophet has no honor in his own hometown,” hinting that Jesus would be rejected even there. 

One of the major themes in John is how people respond to Jesus. Andrew, Peter, Philip, and Nathanael see him as the Messiah, the Son of God, and the King of Israel. The woman at the well and her friends call him the Savior of the world. Nicodemus appears totally confused yet somehow drawn to him. Not everyone, however, will be as positive, leading to his arrest, illegal trial, and passion in Jerusalem.