46 While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him.
47 Someone told him, "Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you."
48 He replied to him,"Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?"
49 Pointing to his disciples, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers.
50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."
What a bad son he is when we think in general. He's saying his mother is not his mother and his brothers are not his brothers either. It's not natural for us and it's even weird. What we do is loving my family and being closer to them than to anyone elses. But Jesus says that the spiritual relation between him and us is closer than the one between blood ties. When I have any problem with someone in my family or with the closest, I really care it, think a lot of it, and try to fix it. But I'm not that desparate when I get far from Jesus, who is supposed to be the closest.
We are the people who's living for God's will, which makes us Jesus's brother and sister and mother. If we live without even knowing his will, he will say "I do not know you." at the end.
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7 comments:
(How's everybody doing anyway? :D)
Missing you!
I wonder if this is from where the phrase 'brothers and sisters in Christ' was coined. As Sungeun mentioned, Jesus put a higher priority to Spiritual relationship than to blood ties. What great affection He has for those that obey God! That also means that fellow believers that don't have any blood ties will get connected as if they do by having the same purpose or lifestyle of doing the will of God. In my own life, I have 4 blood sisters with whom I connect with on different levels. While I cannot deny the bond I have with them as blood sisters, there is a also a bond I have with other believers that allow me to say that they are indeed my brothers and sisters as well. A commonality in Christ is just as strong as having the same biological or traditional traits. I guess you can also say that about deep friendships but I do think there is something more in the relationship between those who do the will of God. That being said, I hope and pray that I would indeed be counted as one that does the will of God. So, what is the will of God and am I living it? As I was reflecting on this, I remembered the verse "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." I pray for all my sisters in Christ that we will have the wisdom and the determination to keep from conforming to the pattern of this world; that we would be transformed and renewed from all our worldly ties; and that we will be faithful to the call of doing the will of God.
...when i travel, i love to visit churches i've never been to to meet brothers and sisters in Christ i've never met... thank you Lord for the sisters who "Love The God of Truth!"
hi sungeun, miss you!!! thanks for your reflection. i think it is a wonderful explanation of this passage. our relationship to Jesus and to our brothers and sisters in Him is even more binding than to our actual families (unless they too are believers) for the very reason that it is eternal. we are reminded of this truth when we meet other christians for the first time and have an immediate kinship and fellowship with them. we find that we can share with them and they understand our heart even though we've just met.
these "family" ties through Christ are both eternal and universal. wherever we go in this life, it is a comfort to know that we have "family" everywhere and that we need never be alone.
I'm sorry it's been awhile since I've last commented, but it's always encouraging to read all of yours :)
Although we're not blood related, the fact that we can call each other sisters in Christ because we are all believers shows the strength of our God. Our God can connects of all us together as one family simply through one common thread.
When I meet another believer, may it be at work or somewhere random, I do feel that instant connection/bond to that person. May we continue to grow our family in numbers, as we strive to faithfully live and serve our God.
You're right Esther, sometimes I feel that connection too with another believer, that is because we are all brothers and sister in Christ!
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