Is He Crazy or What?
This is the reflection on this Sunday's gospel that was sent out to the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church.
Mark 3:20-35
Mark 3:20-35
[Jesus went home;] 20and the crowd came together again, so that [Jesus and the disciples]could not even eat. 21When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, “He has gone out of his mind.” 22And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has Beelzebul, and by the ruler of the demons he casts out demons.” 23And he called them to him, and spoke to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? 24If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but his end has come. 27But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his property without first tying up the strong man; then indeed the house can be plundered.
28“Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for their sins and whatever blasphemies they utter; 29but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”—30for they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
31Then his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside, they sent to him and called him. 32A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking for you.” 33And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” 34And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
28“Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for their sins and whatever blasphemies they utter; 29but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”—30for they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
31Then his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside, they sent to him and called him. 32A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking for you.” 33And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” 34And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
What in the world was going on that drove Jesus’ family to attempt to restrain him? We’re obviously missing something here. In last week’s gospel, which precedes this week’s, Jesus healed on the Sabbath. He got in trouble for that. When demons saw Jesus, they cried out that he was the son of God. There was a whole lot of hoopla. Then Jesus comes home, and all kinds of people are following him. It would be too much for most families. We’ll talk about this more on Sunday.
Another issue in this passage that troubles people is that of blaspheming the Holy Spirit. What is that about? Pastors always come across someone that is afraid they’ve committed this sin. The gist of it is attributing God’s work to the devil. Jesus only did that which the Father wanted him to do, but the Jewish religious leaders declared it was the devil’s work. That is the issue.
What strikes me most, however, in this passage is the part about being the family of God. Some of us have grown up in wonderful, healthy, loving families. Others of us lived in very dysfunctional families and found such love and peace when we became part of the family of God. We found in our brothers and sisters in the faith, that which we’d been looking for all of our lives.
When we work together, play together, and love God together, God’s people, God’s family, becomes a mighty force that the devil cannot defeat. Remember, you are not alone, but you have this great big family that loves you.
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