Our two previous lessons were both focused on the same sermon of Jesus. It was a longer sermon, so it was broken into two lessons. Today’s lesson happened at that same time, but it was not part of that sermon. It is an event which occurred while Jesus was giving that sermon.
We can read about this event in three different places in the Gospels. The Gospel of Matthew tells us of this event in a very straightforward manner after it tells us of the sermon. This event is also related to us in the Gospel of Mark. Here, it is the first time we see a literary tool Mark liked to use called bracketing where one story is started, another story is told, and then the first story is finished. The telling of this event is started, the sermon is related, and then the telling of this event is finished. Finally, we see this event told to us in the Gospel of Luke, three chapters prior (chap 8) to where the sermon is told to us (chap 11).
Today’s story involves Jesus’ mother and brothers (Matt 12:46) though we know that He also had sisters (Matt 13:55). Read Mark 3:20-21. (Important note – Though Mark 3:21 is translated friends in the KJV, it is translated family in the NIV, HCSB, and RSV as well as many others.) Why did Jesus’ family go to where He was? Jesus’ mother and brothers have not come to make a friendly visit. They have come to take charge of Him. Perhaps they feel like He is becoming an embarrassment to the family or maybe they think that He is doing crazy things and they must get Him under control.
We know from Scripture that Jesus’ brothers did not believe in Him (John 7:5). They probably thought He was making a fool of Himself and embarrassing the family and had come to confront Him. But what about Mary, His mother? Mary would have known, from the beginning, when the angel Gabriel came and announced her pending pregnancy to her, that Jesus was the Son of God (Luke 1:26-35). Mary, also, when she took Jesus as an infant to the Temple, heard the words of the prophets identifying who He was (Luke 2:33). I wonder whether Mary also was concerned about His behavior, was there due to family pressure, or whether she had come as a peacemaker to intervene between Jesus and His brothers. We are not told.
Read Mark 3:31-35. It had taken Jesus’ family time to arrive after they heard where He was (vs 21) and now they were there. Because of the crowd, they were not able to get to where He was. The crowd informed Jesus they were there and, of course, Jesus knew why. He asked the crowd, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” and then He identified His family as those who do God’s will. He had been teaching, up to this point, the need to hear and obey the Word of God, the need to accept God’s Word and become a part of the Kingdom of God.
Some of you may know the blessings of being part of a Christian family where everyone is a believer and God’s ways are practiced. This is a wonderful way to live. But many of you may know the struggles of not belonging to a family of believers. Christ’s brothers were not believers. He knew those struggles. His family did not support His ministry and His way of life. He understands those struggles you may be dealing with.
The Bible supports the idea of the church being a family. As Christians, we should see each other as brothers and sisters in Christ. Many of our church members have Christian family members that they fellowship with, but many do not. We must reach out to these church members and treat them as family members, supporting them in their ministries and way of life. They have struggles we may not understand and they need the support of family.
Record Luke 8:21 in your journal.
Responding to God: Worship God and thank Him for providing all of our needs. Commit to living a life of studying His Word and living in obedience to it. Ask for His help in loving other believers and seeing them as brothers and sisters in Christ, treating them always as family, and supporting them in their ministries and Christian way of life.
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