11.15.08
Rejection of the Nation by Christ
Rejection of the Nation by Christ (Matt. 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35; Luke 8:19-21)
While Jesus was addressing the multitude that had come to hear His words (and perhaps catch a glimpse of His works), a portion of His family comes to speak to Him. The problem is the crowds were so great that they could not get close enough to actually meet Him. Word was passed through the crowd that His mother and brothers were on the fringes of the crowd and would like to speak to Him. The reply Christ gave may seem a bit odd or even rude, but it is very important. He asked the question ‘Who is my mother, and who are my brothers’. Now, the obvious response would be… your family, you know, the one that gave birth to you and raised you, along with those other folks that had been given life and were growing up with you… in the same house… every day… those people. The blood relationship thing.
But rather than recognizing blood ties as constituting a true relationship, Jesus pointed to His disciples – the people that had accepted His person by faith. This was a relationship that was not instituted by natural birth but was instead brought about by a supernatural birth. The relationship was wrought by faith in a person – the person of Jesus Christ.
So what does this mean? Is it that the only persons that Jesus would accept as being spiritually related to Him were those who had this faith relationship? Absolutely! Keep in mind that the nation of Israel put huge amounts of effort in showing that they were blood-related to Abraham. This common relationship allowed them to claim a relationship with the Messiah when the time was right for His appearance. But here, Jesus rejects this basis (blood ties) as constituting a spiritual relationship.
If someone wants to enter into the kingdom of the Messiah, the criteria was the blood tie to Abraham. The crowd probably had quite a few persons that would say ‘Amen’ to this and make the claim. Christ rejected this at this time – in other words, the relationship with Abraham was not the determining factor, it was not because of the act of that physical birth.
It was no mistake that this comes after the conclusion of the Pharisee’s (see verse 24) that Jesus was demon possessed. The nation that rejected the Messiah was now rejected by the Messiah. This passage of scripture anticipates God’s setting aside of the nation of Israel and prepares the way for the revealing of a new form of God’s program for the kingdom.
What practical things come out of this? Well, it would be convenient if I was allowed into God’s kingdom and heaven based on my birth – my blood ties. With Dad being a long time servant of the Lord, chairman of deacons, and coming from a family of believers himself (not to mention my mom, her faith and service, and the believing family she came from), this should be a slam dunk for me! But it doesn’t depend on that.
It doesn’t depend on the church I attend / am a member of either. It is independent of the denomination I am affiliated with. It does not hinge on the street I live on, my neighborhood, the city, state or even the country I claim. It’s separate from my socio-economic standing, me level of education, my shade of melanin, or my gender. It’s about my relationship with Jesus Christ. Have you accepted His offer of salvation? He extends it to you today!
