Man of Peace A
contemporary adaptation of the classic work on Jesus' life The Desire of
the Ages Chapter 33 (This chapter is based on Matt. 12:22-50; Mark
3:20-35)
Family Problems
“My true brother, sister and mother are those who do what my Father in heaven wants.” (Matthew 12:50)
Jesus’ family & friends were worried about Him. They heard that He stayed up all night praying, then spent all day in the crush of crowds, teaching & healing without even taking time to eat. They thought He was wearing Himself out. And since they didn’t understand His attitude toward the Pharisees and leaders, they were afraid that Jesus might have become mentally unbalanced.
Jesus’ brothers - the sons of Joseph - did not support His mission They had never understood Him. Now they were angry because they were being blamed for some of the things He said against the Pharisees. They decided to go and convince Jesus to stop that kind of talk and the and the kind of work that made the Pharisees angry. They persuaded Mary to go w/ them. Hoping that His love for His mother might be enough to make Him stop, they headed to the place where Jesus was teaching.
Using the devil to drive out devils.
One of the things that stirred up the brothers was the Pharisees’ claim that Jesus was using the power of satan to drive demons out of people. Now, the Pharisees didn’t really believe this. They had felt the stirring of the Holy Spirit in their own hearts when Jesus shared His teachings about God. When they stood in His presence, they could feel His holiness and their lack of it.
After announcing their rejection of His claim to be the Messiah, it would be too humiliating to admit that they were wrong. Instead, they argued w/ everything He taught. Since they couldn’t prevent His miracles, they did everything in their power to make Him look bad. Still, the Holy Spirit - the strongest force known to the human heart - worked to draw them to the truth.
When the Pharisees claimed that the work of the Holy Spirit in driving out demons was actually the work of the devil, there were walking on dangerous ground. Jesus warned that they were close to committing an “unforgivable sin.” Every since can be forgiven, but it is the Holy Spirit that touches our hearts and leads us to want forgiveness. When the Pharisees rejected the Holy Spirit’s work they were cutting off the channel that God could use to touch their hearts.
God doesn’t blind peoples eyes or turn their hearts against Him. He sends them light, or truth, to show them the true way. Each time a human rejects this light, he is blinded just a little, and the next ray of light is easier to reject. It’s the slippery slope that leads a person away from God. The jewish leaders were becoming more & more controlled by satan.
Jesus also warned against using careless and evil words. Sometimes w/ satan’s influence we say things we don’t really believe. Yet, when we hear the words they seem more reasonable, more believable. Like the jewish leaders, we may be too proud to admit that we were wrong & find ourselves trapped in sin. This is why it can be so dangerous to carelessly criticize the truth of God. From there it can be a short path to criticizing & rejecting the Holy Spirit, the power that draws us to God.
Jesus added a warning to those who had been freed from a demon. If they did not fill their hearts w/ God’s love, that demon & others might return to possess them again. The same thing can happen to us today. If we find freedom from Satan by accepting God’s love, but do not surrender ourselves daily to His will, we may find ourselves controlled by satan again.
Our only defense against evil is Jesus living in our hearts. We might have the will power to stop bad habits for a short time, but without a real connection to God, we cannot resist selfishness & temptation. In the end, satan will claim us as his own.
By rejecting Jesus, the Jewish people committed an unforgivable sin. By refusing to accept Jesus and His truth, we could be making the same mistake. We dishonor Jesus before the whole universe when we refuse to listen to His messengers & listen to satan’s agents instead. If we keep doing this, we can’t hope to be forgiven. Eventually, we will completely lose interest in God.
Jesus’ Real Family
While Jesus was teaching, His disciples brought Him a message - His mother & brothers were outside & they wanted to see Him. But Jesus didn’t go out to see them. Instead He asked, “Who is My mother & who are My brothers?” He pointed to His disciples. “Here is My Family. Whoever does as My Father wishes is a brother, a sister, & a mother to Me.”
When people accept Jesus by faith, that relationship is closer than if they were related to Him by family ties. Mary was more closely related to Jesus by her faith in His mission than she was by being His mother.
Of all the rejection Jesus felt from humans, the most painful was the rejection of His own home. His brothers didn’t understand Him or His mission. They thought they could teach Jesus about God, not realizing that Jesus was God. They wanted Him to stop disagreeing w/ the Pharisees, & to stop claiming that God had given Him the right to do & say what He did. To them, it sounded crazy. They knew the Pharisees were looking for reasons to have Jesus arrested & killed - & it didn’t surprise them.
Instead of a family that protected & comforted Him, Jesus had a family that criticized & hurt Him. It was so painful that often He was glad to be somewhere else. He loved visiting the home of Lazarus, Mary & Martha. The atmosphere of faith & love there made it a place where He felt comfortable. But many times He could find true rest only when He was alone communicating w/ His Father.
Those who suffer through criticism & anger in their homes because of their faith can find comfort in the thought that Jesus faced the same thing. They can know that they don’t face their pain alone; they are not orphans. Jesus invites them to call His Father their Father. He loves them more than any human parent could love a child.
In the Jewish society, if a person had to sell himself or herself as a servant to pay his debts, his closest relative could save him by buying back his freedom. To save us, Jesus became our closest Relative -0 closer than any father, mother, brother, sister or lover. We can’t understand His kind of love but we can know that it is real & we can reveal it by loving others.
Family Problems
“My true brother, sister and mother are those who do what my Father in heaven wants.” (Matthew 12:50)
Jesus’ family & friends were worried about Him. They heard that He stayed up all night praying, then spent all day in the crush of crowds, teaching & healing without even taking time to eat. They thought He was wearing Himself out. And since they didn’t understand His attitude toward the Pharisees and leaders, they were afraid that Jesus might have become mentally unbalanced.
Jesus’ brothers - the sons of Joseph - did not support His mission They had never understood Him. Now they were angry because they were being blamed for some of the things He said against the Pharisees. They decided to go and convince Jesus to stop that kind of talk and the and the kind of work that made the Pharisees angry. They persuaded Mary to go w/ them. Hoping that His love for His mother might be enough to make Him stop, they headed to the place where Jesus was teaching.
Using the devil to drive out devils.
One of the things that stirred up the brothers was the Pharisees’ claim that Jesus was using the power of satan to drive demons out of people. Now, the Pharisees didn’t really believe this. They had felt the stirring of the Holy Spirit in their own hearts when Jesus shared His teachings about God. When they stood in His presence, they could feel His holiness and their lack of it.
After announcing their rejection of His claim to be the Messiah, it would be too humiliating to admit that they were wrong. Instead, they argued w/ everything He taught. Since they couldn’t prevent His miracles, they did everything in their power to make Him look bad. Still, the Holy Spirit - the strongest force known to the human heart - worked to draw them to the truth.
When the Pharisees claimed that the work of the Holy Spirit in driving out demons was actually the work of the devil, there were walking on dangerous ground. Jesus warned that they were close to committing an “unforgivable sin.” Every since can be forgiven, but it is the Holy Spirit that touches our hearts and leads us to want forgiveness. When the Pharisees rejected the Holy Spirit’s work they were cutting off the channel that God could use to touch their hearts.
God doesn’t blind peoples eyes or turn their hearts against Him. He sends them light, or truth, to show them the true way. Each time a human rejects this light, he is blinded just a little, and the next ray of light is easier to reject. It’s the slippery slope that leads a person away from God. The jewish leaders were becoming more & more controlled by satan.
Jesus also warned against using careless and evil words. Sometimes w/ satan’s influence we say things we don’t really believe. Yet, when we hear the words they seem more reasonable, more believable. Like the jewish leaders, we may be too proud to admit that we were wrong & find ourselves trapped in sin. This is why it can be so dangerous to carelessly criticize the truth of God. From there it can be a short path to criticizing & rejecting the Holy Spirit, the power that draws us to God.
Jesus added a warning to those who had been freed from a demon. If they did not fill their hearts w/ God’s love, that demon & others might return to possess them again. The same thing can happen to us today. If we find freedom from Satan by accepting God’s love, but do not surrender ourselves daily to His will, we may find ourselves controlled by satan again.
Our only defense against evil is Jesus living in our hearts. We might have the will power to stop bad habits for a short time, but without a real connection to God, we cannot resist selfishness & temptation. In the end, satan will claim us as his own.
By rejecting Jesus, the Jewish people committed an unforgivable sin. By refusing to accept Jesus and His truth, we could be making the same mistake. We dishonor Jesus before the whole universe when we refuse to listen to His messengers & listen to satan’s agents instead. If we keep doing this, we can’t hope to be forgiven. Eventually, we will completely lose interest in God.
Jesus’ Real Family
While Jesus was teaching, His disciples brought Him a message - His mother & brothers were outside & they wanted to see Him. But Jesus didn’t go out to see them. Instead He asked, “Who is My mother & who are My brothers?” He pointed to His disciples. “Here is My Family. Whoever does as My Father wishes is a brother, a sister, & a mother to Me.”
When people accept Jesus by faith, that relationship is closer than if they were related to Him by family ties. Mary was more closely related to Jesus by her faith in His mission than she was by being His mother.
Of all the rejection Jesus felt from humans, the most painful was the rejection of His own home. His brothers didn’t understand Him or His mission. They thought they could teach Jesus about God, not realizing that Jesus was God. They wanted Him to stop disagreeing w/ the Pharisees, & to stop claiming that God had given Him the right to do & say what He did. To them, it sounded crazy. They knew the Pharisees were looking for reasons to have Jesus arrested & killed - & it didn’t surprise them.
Instead of a family that protected & comforted Him, Jesus had a family that criticized & hurt Him. It was so painful that often He was glad to be somewhere else. He loved visiting the home of Lazarus, Mary & Martha. The atmosphere of faith & love there made it a place where He felt comfortable. But many times He could find true rest only when He was alone communicating w/ His Father.
Those who suffer through criticism & anger in their homes because of their faith can find comfort in the thought that Jesus faced the same thing. They can know that they don’t face their pain alone; they are not orphans. Jesus invites them to call His Father their Father. He loves them more than any human parent could love a child.
In the Jewish society, if a person had to sell himself or herself as a servant to pay his debts, his closest relative could save him by buying back his freedom. To save us, Jesus became our closest Relative -0 closer than any father, mother, brother, sister or lover. We can’t understand His kind of love but we can know that it is real & we can reveal it by loving others.
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