Preached: 6 June 2021 at Christ Church, Billericay
Reading: Mark 3:20-35
Celebrity
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Jesus is already a celebrity. Here he is having healed a man who was mute, if you read the
similar passage in Luke. News of these events travels fast, and people are curious. More than
that, in a time when medical science doesn’t exist and doctors can offer no cure for such
ailments, miracles, are the only hope. It’s not surprising then that Jesus has become well
known really quickly.
Celebrity Pressures
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Everyone wants something from him, so crowds gather in no time at all, and He can
hardly move around to perform his ministry. There’s also the expectations to consider. “Is this the messiah?” they will be asking. After all, he’s doing and saying the things that the messiah would do and say. Normally, if you entered a house, the host would provide food and drink, but here there
are so many people, normal hospitality is impossible.
Family and Authorities
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His family soon get wind of what is going on, as do the authorities.
Family
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From the family’s point of view, this is not how it is supposed to go. Sons, particularly eldest
sons, are supposed to grow up and join the family business. That’s how you honour your
family, and become a good Jew. They are not supposed to abandon their home and start an
itinerant preaching ministry.
Mary
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Mary’s reaction is particularly interesting, after all she knows that Jesus’s birth was
miraculous, and she knows where his interests lie. Remember, when he was twelve the family
had to stop its journey home and return to Jerusalem because Jesus was missing. They
found him debating with the scholars in the temple, and He was surprised that they didn’t
know where he was. Perhaps difficult teenagers are not such a recent invention and she had just assumed that it was all a passing fad.
Genuine Concerns
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What ever her beliefs about her son were, the news she hears convinces the family that Jesus
is really in trouble and needs their care. They believe He is having some sort of mental
breakdown, so they decide to go and get him and take him home.
Walk of Witness
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Sudden religious activity can have that effect on families. I remember when I told my mum
I was going on a walk of witness on Good Friday, sometime back in the early 1980s I was
met with a very suspicious response – something along the lines of “Are you sure you
haven’t joined a cult?” This is from someone who was considering becoming a missionary in
her youth. A walk of witness is nothing compared to what Jesus is doing.
Authorities
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The authorities are also concerned about what Jesus is doing. Here is an unknown man going
around, apparently healing people and picking up a large following. What is he teaching
about God? Is what He is doing true to the faith? He certainly hasn’t been trained by them, that much they do know. How would we react if something like that were to occur now? Miraculous healings occur, and a large gathering of people going to hear someone teaching about Jesus. We’d want to be sure that they were really from God, and really had the Holy Spirit, wouldn’t we. No
doubt the Archbishop would send some of his experts to review what is going on and report
back. That is what the authorities in the temple in Jerusalem did, they dispatched some teachers
of the law to go and take a look.
Authorities threatened
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What they see is the chaos around Jesus and an unauthorised preacher. He’s not one of us,
so he must belong to Beelzebub. So, “He is possessed by Beelzebub. By the prince of
demons, he is driving out demons.” Hopefully that will make the crowd disperse.
Now he’s identified as the enemy, they can do whatever is needed to shut him down.
Response
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Their statement, like so many political statements throughout the ages, defies logic.
Jesus is quick to pick up on this. He knows why He has come, He’s well aware of His
mission. A kingdom or a family divided against itself cannot stand. Civil war is not the way to
advance a cause. So Jesus concludes that Satan’s end has come. It’s a clever response.
Jesus is saying that, even by their own flawed logic, He is still achieving His mission. Satan’s
end is coming.
Strong Man
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Jesus’s next words give a hint of His mission. The strong man has arrived and is reclaiming
his possessions, robbed from Him by Satan. The healings and the exorcisms that people are
seeing is a sign that the Kingdom of God has arrived and Satan’s reign is coming to an end.
V28-30
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When Jesus says, “I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them.” He is addressing the surrounding crowd, teaching them what the Kingdom of God is like.
The condemnation that follows “But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never
be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin.” is addressed to those who see the good He is
doing – healing and releasing the possessed, and instantly attribute it to Satan, as the
teachers of the law have. With their attitude and their outlook on life, they are never going
to be able to see Jesus for who He is and ask for forgiveness anyway. Mark makes sure we
understand this with the comment in v30 ‘He said this because they were saying, “He has an
evil spirit.”’
Family Arrives
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After the ‘discussion’ with the teachers of the law, Jesus’s family arrive. The house is now so
full they are not able to all go in, so someone is sent. “Your mother and brothers are outside
looking for you.” they tell Jesus. He is not impressed, instead He uses their visit as an
opportunity to teach the crowd that is now sat in front of Him.
Spiritual Family
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Part of Jesus’s mission is to build a spiritual family, that will look after each other as well or
better than a biological family. His spiritual family will be made up of those who do God’s
will.
Breaking Traditions
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This is groundbreaking stuff. Family in the first century was everything. Breaking free
from family was dis-honourable and very much frowned upon. Yet here He is putting people
together to make up a new type of family – those who do God’s will.
WWJD
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This is one of the circumstances where asking "What Would Jesus Do?" Will not get us the best,
or even the correct answer. Jesus is NOT trying to break up earthly families. Remember
His birth was miraculous, so He’s really only a half brother to His brothers. Jesus is here on a
mission, by claiming to be the strong man, He is already giving clues to who He is. That
question “Is this the Messiah?” will get louder and more urgent for the crowd that follows Him
around, and specially, His disciples.
A calling on our life
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When we experience God’s call on our lives as a young person with few attachments, we can
simply go – however great or small, that call is. As I did, despite my mum’s reservations, to attend the walk of witness. In this small thing, I obeyed the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
Later in life, with a wife and children to support, any call – which must still be obeyed,
cannot be seen as just for me and I cannot go without first understanding how that call
affects those I owe responsibilities to. God will make provision for that.
We just need to be sure that our lifestyle and our callings are within God's will, and that we
continue to obey Him. Then we will be members of that spiritual Family.
