Lest we forget, before Jesus came to Earth in the flesh and was part of a family. He was a member of the Godhead. More precisely he was the Word (John 1:14). To him, Jesus, we owe everything.
So here he is on Earth. He’s thirty years old. John the Baptist has done his job, and it’s time for Jesus to begin his ministry. He leaves his earthly family and heads for Galilee (Mark 1:15) preaching as he goes.
Along the way, he asks twelve men to join him. They do. Three of them don’t have the best credentials—a thief, a rebel rouser, and a tax collector. But Jesus isn't checking credentials.
He makes the religious leaders, the Pharisees, so angry and jealous they could spit nails. Why are they angry? Jesus ignores their rules for the Sabbath. He forgave the sick with palsy of their sins (Mark 2:5), ate with low-lifes and sinners (Mark 2:16), and allowed his disciples to pick corn on the Sabbath (Mark 2:23). In short, he had blasphemed, violated religious rules, and broken the Sabbath by gathering corn.
All this gets back to his family and they are convinced he has gone off the deep end. This was the context of the Sunday sermon taken from Mark 3:20-35. They decide it’s time to go after their son/brother and bring him back home. Surely, he has lost his mind.
Only thing is, when they try to get to him, they’re blocked by all the people who follow him everywhere. The crush is so complete that it is hard for Jesus even to eat a meal. So, they get as close as they can and start yelling for him. They must have been yelling for him to come back home with them.
Imagine it. The family he shared DNA with wanted to stop his ministry. He couldn’t let that happen. All of us have families that we share DNA with. What we really need is spiritual DNA. The kind Jesus offers. “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ…(Romans 8:16-17).”
Jesus was no longer just theirs. He had become so much more. And he did it for all of us, not just a few. Pastor Josh said, “Today, I would that American would crowd around Jesus like that. The world has the same problem and the same need. He, and he alone, can meet the needs that the world has. Jesus can save the world if they’d just accept him.”
So here he is on Earth. He’s thirty years old. John the Baptist has done his job, and it’s time for Jesus to begin his ministry. He leaves his earthly family and heads for Galilee (Mark 1:15) preaching as he goes.
Along the way, he asks twelve men to join him. They do. Three of them don’t have the best credentials—a thief, a rebel rouser, and a tax collector. But Jesus isn't checking credentials.
He makes the religious leaders, the Pharisees, so angry and jealous they could spit nails. Why are they angry? Jesus ignores their rules for the Sabbath. He forgave the sick with palsy of their sins (Mark 2:5), ate with low-lifes and sinners (Mark 2:16), and allowed his disciples to pick corn on the Sabbath (Mark 2:23). In short, he had blasphemed, violated religious rules, and broken the Sabbath by gathering corn.
All this gets back to his family and they are convinced he has gone off the deep end. This was the context of the Sunday sermon taken from Mark 3:20-35. They decide it’s time to go after their son/brother and bring him back home. Surely, he has lost his mind.
Only thing is, when they try to get to him, they’re blocked by all the people who follow him everywhere. The crush is so complete that it is hard for Jesus even to eat a meal. So, they get as close as they can and start yelling for him. They must have been yelling for him to come back home with them.
Imagine it. The family he shared DNA with wanted to stop his ministry. He couldn’t let that happen. All of us have families that we share DNA with. What we really need is spiritual DNA. The kind Jesus offers. “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ…(Romans 8:16-17).”
Jesus was no longer just theirs. He had become so much more. And he did it for all of us, not just a few. Pastor Josh said, “Today, I would that American would crowd around Jesus like that. The world has the same problem and the same need. He, and he alone, can meet the needs that the world has. Jesus can save the world if they’d just accept him.”
