Daily Devotions
Luke
Luke 8 : 19-25 (Matthew 12:46-50 ; Mark 3:31-35) "LEARNING MANY IMPORTANT LESSONS"
Day 98 – Luke 8
Text: Luke 8 : 19-25 (Matthew 12:46-50 ; Mark 3:31-35)
LEARNING MANY IMPORTANT LESSONS
Did the Lord Jesus have a typical day? What was it like? We can well imagine what it must have been like. He would begin His day before dawn in meditation and prayer. When His disciples begin to stir, His teaching ministry would begin. Throughout the long day, there would be multitudes to teach, people to heal, and quite possibly, “battles” with the Pharisees and Scribes.
The Disciples would of course be learning all they can. Sometimes they would ask Him questions concerning what He taught. At other times, they would be busy keeping in touch with the multitudes that flocked to Jesus. Without too much of a stretch of the imagination, the Disciples of the Lord Jesus would most likely be looking after the multitudes, and making sure that they would not crowd Jesus, and thus affecting His ministry. “Crowd control” would be one of the things that the Disciples would have to do. This work would arise naturally from the kind of circumstances they would find themselves in.
Discipleship wasn’t just about asking Jesus to explain His parables. It was to be involved in every aspect of the Lord’s life and ministry. The best way to learn how to minister would be “hands on”.
A DELICATE SITUATION
You can imagine how the Disciples must have arranged for the sick and the demonized to come and see Jesus. There had to be some kind of order, otherwise the ministry of the Lord would be even more difficult and demanding.
It would be quite natural for the people to spot the Disciples of the Lord Jesus and to approach them. Of course, some would be desperate enough to cry out to Jesus directly, like some of the lepers who came to Jesus. Fearing that they might be turned away, they would single out the Lord Jesus and prostrate themselves before Him, pleading His mercy and His grace.
A delicate situation arose one day. The mother of the Lord Jesus, and His brothers arrived and asked to see Him. In Mark’s account, the family sent word to Jesus, that they wanted to see Him. In Matthew’s account, there is a hint that they were insistent on seeing Him, even though He was in the midst of a busy day of ministry.
What should the Disciples do? Should the family be given special considerations? Should they defer to the family members? What about the teaching ministry of the Lord Jesus? What about all the people who were listening to the Master explaining the Word of God?
The ministry of the Lord Jesus was interrupted momentarily…
“Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside,
desiring to see You.”
Luke 8:20
Those words seem to be quite natural. Surely, there was nothing wrong with a family wanting to see a family member?
THE RESPONSE OF THE LORD JESUS
The insistence of the family to see their kin, Jesus, met with an interesting and rather “unusual” reply. The Lord Jesus said,
“My mother and My brothers
Are these who hear the Word of God
And do it.”
Luke 8:21
What did the Lord Jesus mean by this remark? What was He seeking to teach His Disciples? What was He communicating to the crowds, and yes, to His own natural family members? Let us consider the following things:-
1. We need to remember that Luke was writing about the day and age of the Lord Jesus – in the first century. In those days (and it hasn’t changed all that much even today), “spending time with the family” wasn’t just a matter of taking time out to say a few words of greeting. Family get-togethers took time – lots of it! It would mean “catching up” with each other and that could take DAYS!
2. The Lord Jesus had to help His family to understand a very important FACT. He was not just one of the members of Joseph’s family. The mother of all people should have known this! He was JESUS – the Anointed of God. There was a time when He had to fulfil all earthly commitments. He was the Eldest in the family and thus had certain obligations to fulfil. However, as His brothers had already grown up, they should shoulder all family responsibilities. Besides, ever since He was consecrated to the Ministry at His Baptism, He did not “belong” to His natural, earthly family anymore. The natural family had no more “claims” on His time! He was Messiah. He belonged to all Israel. He belonged to all who had faith in Him, and who desired to be taught by Him.
3. The Lord Jesus went on to make an astounding statement. He looked around Him, and as He looked, He saw people who loved the Lord and His Word. He saw keen and eager faces, desiring to learn God’s Word, and seeking to learn how to apply the Word of God in their lives. These, who belonged to the Family of God – these were real family too! Thus Jesus uttered words that must have brought great joy to the hearts of all who heard Him, (and hurt to those who did not fully understand Him)… “My mother, and my brothers are these…” (Luke 8:21).
4. We must not misunderstand what Jesus said. He was not disowning His mother and brothers. He was expanding the concept of “family”. The spiritual family is as important to Him as His natural family – that was the main thought He wanted His hearers to understand.
5. He also sought to prevent misconceptions. Neither the crowds, nor His natural family members must go away thinking that “family had its privileges”. This is certainly not true where spiritual matters are concerned! The natural family cannot dictate to Jesus their wishes. The natural family cannot disrupt or even interrupt His ministry of teaching God’s Word.
It must have been a hard truth to teach, and to learn. However, it was a very necessary thing to clarify and to emphasize. Family (natural) is NOT EVERYTHING. God Is!