But there
are also some remarks of Jesus that seem cruel, and that seem to marginalize
family ties, as in his rude response to his mother and siblings on one
occasion: “Who are my mother and my brothers?” (Mark 3:33). We need to notice
the setting. Jesus’ family members arrived at a house where Jesus was preaching
and “they sent to him and called him” (Mark 3:31). Discussions of this passage
often overlook the fact that they were interrupting his preaching, seeking a
public salute of honor from him. They presumed that blood-relation gave them
status and that Jesus would stop his preaching and acknowledge them. Jesus
always responds to interruptions on the basis of their motivation; when one’s
motives are sincere, there is no danger in interrupting him. One can grab his
cloak if one needs healing. One can even tear open the roof above his head and
let down a man on a pallet. These are gospel-motives. But the quest for
adulation is a selfish motive, and it spurred Jesus’ indignation:
“Who are my
mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around him, he said,
“Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother
and sister and mother” (Mark 3:33–35).
A more
important bond than that of biology is the permanent bond among those who have
made the eternal commitment to God’s way. The selfish desire of his mother and
brothers to receive acknowledgement from Jesus while he was in the middle of
doing important work dramatizes the inferiority of earthly ties when people
allow their desire for honor to interfere with spiritual work. Jesus is showing
a higher loyalty, one that sets out to conquer the disease of selfishness in
individuals and in families.
There is no
denying the witness of the Synoptic Gospels that Jesus was in high tension with
his own kin, that he trained his apostles to “give his mission a higher
priority than the love of their family,” and that they went on to form
“alternate ‘kinship’ relations with fellow believers outside the family
circle.” Subsequent Christianity was “remarkably ambiguous” about the
traditional structures of family life31—but only when they
threatened to stand in the way of the work of spreading the larger “family”
message—the gospel.
Jesus is
really breaking “with the traditional role of children within the family” when
he uses “children as ‘role models.’ ” Jesus has an interest in real
families and real children, but his primary focus is on ultimate loyalty to the
kingdom of God, which is the responsibility of the individual: “go into your
room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret” (Matt 6:6).
Sincere individual devotion will empower one to judge truthfully: “Anyone who
resolves to do the will of God will know whether the teaching is from God”
(John 7:17).
Let us
notice this important clause “do the will of God,” which is virtually a summary
of Jesus’ teaching. It is to be noted that he considers people to have the capacity to not only make this
choice, but to fulfill it. Entrance to the kingdom of heaven depends upon doing
the will of God (Matt 7:21). Do we realize the faith that Jesus has in us, that he does not doubt that we
are capable of doing the will of God? There is nothing here about humans being
totally depraved or being unable to do the will of God (contra Augustine, Luther, Calvin). The God-receptive person can discern God’s will and way (John
1:46; 7:17; 8:47; Luke 8:15; Rom 12:2), and it will set him free (John
8:32–36). A good person has a good heart, and the pure in heart will see God
(Luke 6:45; Matt 5:8); if yours is not clean, then “First clean the inside of
the cup,” or “make the tree good” (Matt 23:26; 12:33). One ought to practice
“justice and the love of God” (Luke 11:42), to love God and neighbor (Mark
12:30–31). Jesus quotes the boldest OT passages that speak of people being
taught by God (John 6:45 [Isa 54:13]); being
gods, which probably means having divine qualities (John 10:34 [Ps 82:6]);
praying together with people of all nations (Mark 11:17 [Isa 56:7]); having
living waters in the heart (John 7:38 [Isa 12:3; 58:11]).
Having such
spiritual capacities, people ought not to dwell just on the level of
materiality and biology. We see him again pointing out the priority of the
spiritual over the biologic when a woman shouts out “Blessed is the womb that
bore you and the breasts that nursed you!” Jesus corrects her by saying
“Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it!” (Luke
11:27–28). Nothing can surpass the relationship to God, not even the pride and
joy of motherhood. Biologic ties will not confer any special status in the
kingdom of God. (Stephen Finlan, The Family Metaphor in
Jesus' Teaching: Gospel Imagery and Application [2d ed.; Eugene. Oreg.:
Cascade Books, 2013], 46-48)
