Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”
And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”
So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house. Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”
He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”
Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”
“Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.
Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”
Most of us have seen clips of filmmaking... everything is in seeming chaos, and the director yells “QUIET”!
In today's passage we read about:
- Crowds of overwhelming proportions, verse 20.
- Confrontation with the religious of the day, verses 22-30.
- Confusion from his family, verses 21, 31-35
You might expect to read Jesus yelling, “Quiet!” But he doesn’t.
There are also no words where Jesus healed, or consoled, or comforted. I expect he did. But Mark does not record any of that. I wonder why? Why their absence? What is the point of this section of the Gospel
Many people struggle with this text because, it seems at first reading, as if Jesus is disowning his family.
Clearly, he loves his mother, and she him. Fast forward to the scene at the foot of Cross.
But rather than eliminating people from his family circle, he is widening it. He is inviting more people in as brother and sister.
Jesus spells out what a member of his family looks like. It is someone who has made a commitment, a commitment to do the will of God, verse 35.
Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”
This text is about more than Jesus’ reaction to his family. It is, in many ways, a picture of how people in the world often react.
- For those who want something FROM Jesus, they turn up in droves.
- For those who feel THREATENED by his challenging words, they seek to discredit him or worse.
- For those who THINK THEY KNOW HIM, but are confused by his total engagement in the world, they struggle to stay with him.
This is how many react. Jesus, however, does not react, instead, he invites. “Come, follow me”, he says. “Come sisters, come brothers, let’s do the Father’s will together”.
Today, as in Jesus’ day, the confrontation with him and his followers continues. In 2026 the persecution of Christians has reached new levels.
Today, as in Jesus’ day, there is much noise about him and his followers. Do a Google search on "Jesus" and you find so much noise around his name and who he is.
Today, there is callousness around the person of Jesus. And some of that comes from where we, as his followers, have failed to let people see Jesus.
But today, as in Jesus' day, the path with Jesus is the same, to follow him is to commit.
Have you silenced the noise, especially on social media, pushed through the chaos, endured the confrontation, so that you are committed to Jesus? If not, can you identify what is holding you back?
Comments