Thursday, October 27, 2011

Jesus chose you over family.

Mark 3:31-35 (ESV) And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. [32] And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, "Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you." [33] And he answered them, "Who are my mother and my brothers?" [34] And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! [35] Whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother." So often we encounter those who are given the hard choice of Jesus or their family. There are many ways in which this might come about for a person. I often do see it with those who want to leave the Mormon faith. Those who do, often loose friends and family. I can’t quite imagine what that would be like. But Jesus knows. Jesus chose you over his family. There they are the Virgin Mary, not so virgin at this point, but I’ll give her the title being she gave birth as a virgin. There she is the Theotokus, God bearer, chosen and most blessed among women, and she is giving Jesus an ultimatum. Them or me. She won’t joint the crowd, Joseph doesn’t even bother to take the day off work, James and his other brothers they hang outside aloof. There brother has finally gone insane. They are embarrassed, they want to take him away, silence him. If he goes with them, it means leaving us, leaving his destiny. He won’t do it. He chooses us, we become his family. His family can join too, they will later, but they never would have had he gone with them. The same is true for our families. Choosing excommunication from your family, choosing Christ over family, that can have a lasting impact, it can bring others along, maybe not right away, and maybe not ever, but it can. But not choosing Jesus, it leaves you and them high and dry. Jesus chooses you. “Whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.” And the will of God is that we listen to Jesus, his beloved Son, who says to you, “Your sins are forgiven.”

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