Mark 3:20 – 27

²⁰ Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. ²¹ When his familyheard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.” ²² And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.” ²³ So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? ²⁴ If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵ If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. ²⁶ And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. ²⁷ In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house.

Families can be a source of great strength and joy – there is an unwritten expectation that family will stand by you no matter what. But just imagine if the ones you expect to stand by you, love you, and support you unconditionally suddenly turn against you – siding with the people who are trying to discredit and dishonour you.  

That’s what we see in this passage from Mark – Jesus’ earthly family turning against him, believing he was “out of his mind”.  

And while he never forsakes his earthly family, he does state at the end of Mark 3 “whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother”. It is the ones who obey God’s will, that he counts as his true family. 

As someone who believes and trusts in Jesus, it is a source of great strength and joy to know that Jesus counts me as his family. And the thing I need to remember is that other believers, both friends and strangers, are also His heavenly family – and as such, are part of my heavenly family. The challenge for us all is to treat the body of believers as family. 

Vicki Meehan, Creek Road Campus