Upon hearing or reading Christ’s warning to God-seekers in Luke 14:26 all within the worldly church, along with some within God’s church, refuse to accept the Truth in His statement. According to those unbelievers, God would never tell His people to have nothing to do with family members, certainly not one’s own spouse, children or parents. But that is exactly what Jesus was saying. Notice in the Matthew 12:46-50 passage discussed in the previous postings that He did not go to where His mother and siblings were waiting for Him. Rather He stated to His congregation that Mary and His siblings merely His biological brethren–which meant nothing, not His spiritual brethren–which meant everything. The question regarding His rejection of Mary is: Why?

It was not that Mary did not believe that He was the Son of God. She knew this because 1) the angel Gabriel had told her so, 2) Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit of God, 3) an angel told Joseph that Mary was pregnant of the Holy Spiril, told him what to call the boy that would save His people Israel from their sins, 3) her cousin Elizabeth knew supernaturally that Mary was pregnant, that the child would be a male, that the mother of her Savior had entered the room, at which time 4) Elizabeth’s unborn child (John) was filled with the Holy Spirit and leaped in her womb, causing her to proclaim that Mary’s unborn child was her Savior. MARY KNEW WHO AND WHAT JESUS WAS. So why did she and her other children come against Him, prompting Him to declare that they were not His spiritual brethren. The answer is that JESUS DID NOT SAY AND DO WHAT THEY WANTED HIM TO SAY AND DO. AND BECAUSE OF THEIR ASSOCIATION WITH HIM, THEIR STATUS IN THE COMMUNITY WAS SUFFERING (Jn. 7:3-5). Those who no longer (since the beginning of His ministry) wanted to be associated with Jesus were not limited to His family. When crowds began to gather around Him in order to see His miracles and hear His worlds, His former friends, also suffering socially,  “went out to lay hold on Him (to take Him into custody) because, they said, ‘He is beside Himself,'”–He had lost His mind. Also, scribes from Jerusalem were speaking out against Him, proclaiming that He was possessed by the devil.

God commands that those who claim to be His people “all speak the same thing” (1 Cor. 1:30). This is absolutely necessary in order to preserve the unity within His church and among His people. Those who would disturb that unity must be put out, regardless of who they are or how eloquently they speak. We are commanded to “have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16/ Phil. 2:5) because, as Isaiah told the rebellious Israelites of his day and this day, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways” (55:8). When He tells us that we must all speak the same thing, that “same thing” is His Word. In order to be His people we must “walk together” with Him. Can two walk together unless they agree” (Amos 3:3)? Jesus tells us in John 17:17 that God’s Word is Truth. Therefore, the one walking with the Lord must agree with His Holy Bible.

Obviously, Jesus’ family, friends and the scribes did not walk with Him. Therefore He cut them off and had no relationship with them until the end of His life when some within His family came to Him and were part of the 120 on the Day of Pentecost. Bible students know that “peace” was not a word that would characterize the ministerial life of Jesus. And as He promised, peace will not characterize the life of those who walk with Him today. L.J.