The FaithOfJesus2 Daily Devotional

Focus:

kjv@Revelation:14:12 @ Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

( FaithOfJesus thread begun by rRandyP )

Today's Verse:

kjv@Mark:3:31-35

kjv@Mark:3:31 @ There came then his brethren and his mother, and, standing without, sent unto him, calling him.

kjv@Mark:3:32 @ And the multitude sat about him, and they said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren without seek for thee.

kjv@Mark:3:33 @ And he answered them, saying, Who is my mother, or my brethren?

kjv@Mark:3:34 @ And he looked round about on them which sat about him, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren!

kjv@Mark:3:35 @ For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother.

Today's notes:

Context:

Before - kingdom divided
After - Parable of the Sower

Key Concepts:

slide:kjv@Will+of+God

What is God's righteousness observed doing?:

Infront of a multitude calls Jesus' earthly family to obedience to the will of God

What does this tell us about God's righteousness?:

It is of eternal importance that even Jesus' brothers and sisters get on board with the plan of salvation. This suggests that at least some of them were not yet there.
The will of God is not always just to be safe and secure and free from opposition, it is often to turn alone completely against the tide and be at opposition to all that is flowing towards it towards sin and death. The will of God is not always that it will make so much sense and be so evident that all will immediately climb on board, it is often evident to no one else and perceived as hostile or injurious to commonly perceived sense.
Jesus was tempted by familial relations just as all the rest of us!

How is man reacting?:

The family is wanting to talk with Jesus. It is thought by many that like the friends in the previous passage, that they were coming to talk Him into coming back home, that He was stirring up more trouble than He ought to be. In one sense they would be looking out for His welfare, in a greater sense they would be looking out for theirs.

Notes:

What is first and foremost the will of God? To believe on the Son whom HE sent! How difficult might that be when He is also your half brother? When His words and actions are putting you and your mother in such perilous straits?

kjv@Luke:8:19 family was without because of the press.

If our theory is on the right track, it does not mean that say Mary was not doing the will of God, it could mean that for His brothers' ear she was included into the overall concept that all souls must do the will, even that the will that they were currently trying to convince their mom of in retrieving Him home disobeyed the greater will of God. Just as disobedience has a corporate inclusiveness, so to does obedience as their disobedience could place a negative light on her obedience.

Might there have been a better time for the brothers to call for Jesus? Perhaps, but when? Jesus seemingly was always (except when He snuck away to pray) followed by a crowd.

It is of interest that at Jesus' death care for His mother Mary was given to one of His disciples instead of His next oldest brother. Brothers James and Jude did eventually come to do the will of God and were influential early church figures, James leading the Church in Jerusalem for some time, both commonly held to be authors of canonized epistles. We would be speculating as far as I am aware about the fate of the other two or His sisters.

Key Messages:

What does this say about our present condition?

There are many examples of men/women believing that they are acting on the will of God doing something actually deranged or insane, murdering, sacrificing a child, flogging themselves, leaving one godly wife for another, jumping in front of a train, ritually drinking poisons or provoking serpents, breaking up entire churches by rebellious insistence to something otherwise unimportant... What is felt to be God's Will must always be checked against what is directly stated in God's written Word, stated in more than one verse or questionable context. Typically there is a flood of verses and complimentary contexts confirming such feelings to be of the true will of God. Typically these occurrences stretch ones faith just enough to know that it will not be by ones resource or present ability, but by God's.
The will of God is often difficult to find because it is looked for amongst our huge grandiose ideas. It is likely to be first found in much smaller here and now motions/directions/conversations that if faithfully performed might lead to further trust towards a slightly larger engagement the next time. There is almost always an element of personal sacrifice required to perform it and spiritual reproof and correction are likely to result between/during obediences.

Further Resources:

Comment Board:Mark:3:31-35
index:FAITHOFJESUSDEVOTION - Devotional Index
strkjv@Mark:3:31-35 rwp@Mark:3:31-35 mhcc@Mark:3:31-35
FaithOfJesus2 - Devotion Index

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