Mark 3
But Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea. And a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan; and those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things He was doing, came to Him. So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him. For He healed many, so that as many as had afflictions pressed about Him to touch Him. And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, “You are the Son of God.” Mark 3:7-11 NKJV
Jesus had large crowds of people following Him, but some of them were following for the wrong reasons. Some people came to hear His teachings and learn from Him, while others came to see miracles or get a miracle performed on their behalf. We need to examine our own motives for following Jesus. Are we following Him because we are truly thankful for what He has done for us, or are we following Him in order to get something from Him? Simply believing that Jesus is God’s son is not sufficient to attain salvation, as even the evil spirits knew this about Him. The difference is that while the evil spirits acknowledged who Jesus was, they had no intention of following or obeying His ways. As true believers in Christ we should not only know that Jesus died for us on the cross, but we should also have a strong desire to live our lives according to His teachings and actually want to obey His ways. As a result of our faith and obedience, all of our sins will be forgiven and we will receive the precious gift of eternal life.
And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him. Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons: Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, “Sons of Thunder”; Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. And they went into a house. Mark 3:13-19 NKJV
Here Jesus appoints the 12 disciples. The number 12 is symbolic and is representative of the 12 tribes of Israel. In the old covenant, God worked through the 12 sons of Jacob and 12 tribes of Israel to establish a relationship with His people. In the new covenant He works through the 12 disciples who were called by Jesus. Who were these men? Did they have any special qualifications that would make them well suited to be the chosen ones to spread the news about God’s kingdom? As far as we can tell from what is written about them, they had no special abilities or leadership qualities. The most important quality they all possessed was a willingness to obey and follow Jesus. They were far from perfect; they all made mistakes just as you and I do. God delights in taking ordinary, imperfect people and doing extraordinary things through them. In order for us to be used to do great works for God’s kingdom, we need to have faith and a willingness to obey what God is teaching us. We also need to be ready to act if we feel God’s prompting in our hearts, guiding us towards something or someone.
”Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation” Mark 3:28-29 NKJV
At first glance, these verses are alarming and appear to contradict 1 John 1:9, which states “But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” But, we have to remember that the key to forgiveness is confession and repentance. The unforgivable sin described here is a continual, ongoing, present tense rejection of the Holy Spirit, His work, and therefore God Himself. Those of us believers that commit a sin and then are remorseful and pray for forgiveness will most certainly have it granted.
But He answered them, saying, “Who is My mother, or My brothers?” And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother.” Mark 3:33-35 NKJV
Jesus’ point is not to publicly disown His family in these verses. Instead, He demonstrates the importance of His spiritual family, which is a relationship that lasts for all eternity. He also shows that anyone who follows and obeys God’s will can become a member of His spiritual family. There are many other Bible verses that confirm this, such as: “But to all who believed Jesus and accepted Him, He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). While earthly families are important and require our daily attention, do not forget to nurture the relationship with your Heavenly Father as well.