Jesus is still preaching in
Matthew 12:46-50
46 While He was
still speaking to the crowds, behold, His mother and brothers were standing
outside, seeking to speak to Him.
Notice a couple of things. He was teaching inside, and His family was OUTSIDE! They weren’t listening to Him. In addition, not only did they not listen to His teaching, they INTERRUPTED!
47 Someone said to
Him, "Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are
standing outside seeking to speak to You."
They want Him to quit teaching, and come out and talk to them. Remember, they think He has lost His mind. (Mark 3:21) One other thing to know as far as background – family ties were extremely important to the Israelites.
48 But Jesus answered
the one who was telling Him and said, "Who is My
mother and who are My brothers?"
49 And stretching out
His hand toward His disciples, He said, "Behold My mother and My brothers!
Jesus is simply saying that one’s spiritual family is of higher priority than one’s earthly family. We know His mother Mary is a believer at this time, but His brothers (or half-brothers, actually) are not:
John 7:5
5 For not even His
brothers were believing in Him.
Matthew 12:
50 "For whoever
does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My
brother and sister and mother."
The will of His Father was simply that everyone believe in the Son! Jesus is trying to teach them that their relationship with God, and the family of God, must take precedence over one’s earthly family.
Your family, whether believers OR unbelievers, can be a distraction to fulfilling God’s plan for your life! Jesus’ mother was a believer, but didn’t understand what Jesus was doing. His brothers were unbelievers; they are probably the ones who told Mary her Son was out of His mind!
When family members serve as a distraction, you must subordinate them to your spiritual family. Jesus warned them about this earlier:
Matthew 10:34-35
34 "Do not think
that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace,
but a sword.
35 "For I came
to SET A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A
DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW;
Just as a sword splits open a body, faith in Christ will divide family members. Your loyalty to Him and His Word must be maintained despite attacks from family members. As Jesus teaches, it really comes down to a question of priorities:
Luke 14:26
26 "If anyone
comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children
and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.
Don’t think this is a free ride to hate your family members! The word translated hate above is the word MISEO, and it actually means to “love less.” It’s simply a matter of priorities. This also does not relieve you of your family responsibilities. For example, if your parents are unbelievers, you still have to honor them.
Isn’t this an especially relevant lesson for the holiday season?