Let's take our Bibles now and
turn with me to Mark chapter 3. We're going to be looking at verses
31 through 35. And the lesson is centered on the family
of Christ. do something a little different
today. I'll be dealing with these things as I go through the message,
but let's just read these verses. Mark 3, verse 31. There came
then his brethren and his mother, and standing without, there was
a huge multitude gathered, and standing without, they sent unto
him calling him. And the multitude said about
him, said about Christ, and they said unto him, behold thy mother
and thy brethren without seek for thee. And he answered them saying,
who is my mother? Or my brethren? And he looked about on them which
sat about him and he said, he just, with his eyes, he scanned
over that multitude and he picked one or two people out and he
said, this is my mother. Behold my mother and my brethren. For whosoever shall do the will
of God, the same is my brother and my sister and my mother. Now something I learned early
in my conversion was this. We use that word brother too flippantly. And I'm talking
about in religion where I was raised. Everybody was brother
this, brother, we'd meet a stranger on the street and call him brother.
We use that word brother too flippantly. And his own parents,
his own brothers and sisters show up. And I'll get to this
in a minute. They didn't really do anything
wrong. They were sincerely concerned with Christ because they'd gotten
some news probably about the scribes or the Pharisees or whatever.
They felt like there was an urgency that they talked to him, but
it was the multitude who was using the word flippantly. Thy
mother and thy brethren, they seek for you. It's my desire that the Lord
will bless His Word and enable me to expound on this in the
power of God's Spirit who inspired me to write it. The family of Christ is called
his house. This is his house. You remember
they, the Philippian jailer believed and his whole house. The family of Christ is called
his house and in Hebrews 3.6 it says, but Christ as a son
over his own house, whose house are we if we hold fast to confidence
and rejoicing of the hope, firm unto the end. And then he says
this, he said, whosoever shall do the will of God. Well, what
does that mean? Whosoever shall do the will of
God. Well, in John 6, 40, it said,
this is the will of him that sent me. This is the will of
God. that everyone which seeth the Son and believeth on him
may have everlasting life, and I'll raise him up at the last
day. Again, it says in Galatians 3.26,
for you are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. And there's all sorts of relationships
in this world. So let's begin with that. There's
fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, husbands, wives, and kings, and
servants, and on and on and on it goes. There's all kinds of
relationships in this world. And nearly all of these relationships
are used in one form or another in the Word of God to teach us
something about our relationship with God. And that's what they're
for, I'm convinced of that. That's what they're for. That's
why we have them in this world. But it's a mistake to hold these
earthly relationships. I want you to listen to me. I've
taught on this before in the church here, but I wonder sometimes
after I say it, and then I watch and listen to how people talk
and what they do, and I wonder if they heard anything I said.
It's a mistake to hold these earthly relationships higher
than our relationship with other believers in the kingdom of God. We say I shouldn't be, I've got
a brother. He's dying. He lives over in
Augusta, Georgia. I went over not too long ago
to see him. And I love him. But I don't hold our relationship
higher than I do our relationship. He's not a believer. And he's getting ready to go
out and meet God in judgment. These are the people, according
to the Word of God, if I'm a saved man, these are the people right
here, and I'm talking to those of you whom God has saved. This is who I'm going to spend
eternity with, not my natural family. So shouldn't I, shouldn't our
relationship be a tad closer than it is to our own blood,
kin? Well, the Lord said it is. And I don't see any reason to
give Mary the mother of Jesus or his sisters or brethren who
came to him any kind of bad motive in their coming. They might have
gotten word that the Pharisees and the Rhodians who had purposed
to kill him That's probably what brought him there. Or the Sadducees
coming down from Jerusalem to entangle him in his speech. There
was all sorts of things that they may have been concerned
with because they loved him and came to talk to him. But there
was a great misunderstanding about his mission and about his
person and about those he truly loved. Now I can't even fathom
a perfect man's love for his mother. I love my mother. She
took care of me, and I learned later on just how much sacrifice
and things there was involved in that, but I loved her. But
what about the love of a perfect man for his mother? I can't even
fathom. And yet, he said, this is my
mother. I love you as much as I love
her. And I love you for the same reason. Who's gonna separate us from
the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord? Nothing. Nothing. And in one place in the scripture,
I believe it's in John 17, he said that the Lord, I mean that
the Father, loves us as he loved him. That's pure love, isn't it? That's
pure love. That's a flawless love. And yet, that's how he loves
us. You remember, and this all comes
from a misunderstanding. You remember the Sadducees trying
to trip up the Lord about having a, and they said, boy, there
was a certain woman, she married a man, he died, and his brother
come along, according to the law, and become her husband,
and then he died. And then another brother came
along under the same law, took her under him as his wife, And
now they're all dead and they all went to heaven. Whose wife
is she gonna be in heaven? What did he tell them? You do
err not knowing the scriptures. There's not gonna be any marrying
and giving and marriage in heaven. And I've lost my wife, so I know
what I'm talking about. I'm not speculating about this.
But men and women both who have lost loved ones, they say things like they're
going to be in heaven and that relationship's going to continue
in heaven. No, it ain't. No, it ain't. She's going to
be your sister in heaven. And the Lord said, you do err
not knowing the scriptures. And this is where all of our
error comes from, our ignorance of the scriptures. We shall be
like the angels, he said. Like the angels in heaven. He goes on to tell them that
Abraham will still be Abraham. God's not the God of the dead,
he's the God of the living. Isaac will still be Isaac, Jacob
will still be Jacob, but no mention of any relationships. You won't
find it in the scriptures. And our unbelieving families,
he said, shall be our enemies on the earth, stumbling blocks,
hazards to our calling. You have to be careful. And we
always have good intentions. We always have the intention
of going over there and influencing them. But you had no influence
on them because they'd never been born again. And so what
happens is you get influenced by them. It's really not unknown strangers
that pose a threat to us, but those that we know best and love
the most. He said, your foes shall be they
of your own household. So beware. And he said this,
he that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of
me. And he that loveth son or daughter
more than me, he's not worthy of me. And all unbelieving men
and women shall be cast into hell forever and ever. And according
to the book of God, God's saints will stand beside him in judgment,
and when they watch their unbelieving relatives being cast into hell
and judged forever, they're gonna say amen. True and righteous
are his judgments. They're gonna justify God. And
I'll tell you why. Because in their conversion like
David, they're gonna get on God's side with their own condemnation. He said that you might be clear
when you judge, clear when you speak, clear of
all wrongdoing. He righteous, perfectly righteous,
perfectly holy. And the sinner, he's gonna get
on God's side in his own condemnation. And then I, You know, we're talking
about God's elect here. That's his family. God's elect. And it's for his elect that Christ
died, and for his elect that he was raised from the dead,
and for his elect his spirit was given, and for his elect
that ambassadors are sent, and a regeneration manifested in
their hearts, and for his elect that the world be cut off before
it's time. Those days shall not be shortened
except for what? The elect's sake. Isn't that
what it says? And for his elect, he shall return
and gather them unto himself. And I love my family, but I know
what they are. And I know how they are. And
I refuse to give them the preeminence of my time and affection. I'm
just not gonna do it. I want to do it. I pray for their conversion.
We can go to them like Philip went to Nathanael and tell them
about the Christ. We can give them honor due to
their stations as parents or brothers or sisters or mothers
or fathers. He said, honor your father and
mother. Well, what about their unbelievers? Honor your father
and mother. But we don't give them the preeminence
of our affections. In 1 Peter 2, 17, he said, honor
all men. What's he talking about there?
He's talking about men of all stations. Presidents, and governors,
and soldiers, and policemen, and parents, and teachers, and
on and on the list goes. Honor them. Honor them. Because these things were ordained
of God. These relationships. So you honor
them. Honor all men, give honor where honor is due. But now listen
to this. Love the brotherhood. You love them. You love them. And you fear God. In Galatians
6.10, Paul tells us, as we have therefore opportunity, let us
do good unto all men. Somebody in your neighborhood,
their house burns down, they didn't have insurance, they don't
have anything, give to them. Give them clothes and food and
a helping hand. Give them whatever that circumstance
requires. Do good unto all men, but especially
unto them who are of the household of faith. You especially watch
them for their needs. Those who truly believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ are our true family. It's their company that
we need to seek, their welfare we need to be concerned with,
and their fellowship that we ought to desire. We ought to
desire to be with them. Even when our relatives are believers. Now you listen to this. Even
when our relatives are believers, they shouldn't get more attention
than those believers who are not relatives. That's right. This was our Lord's
mother and his sisters and his brethren. But he didn't give
them any more priority than he did this company that was gathered
around him. Now you think about that. You
think about that. Mary was a believer. The scripture
seemed to indicate that his brothers and sisters were believers, but
their blood ties and their spiritual ties did not give them preeminence
with his love and affection. He looked about and he said,
behold, this is my mother. And these are my brethren, and
these are my sisters. What love our Lord has for His
people. What love to give His attention
where it's needed without discrimination. So comforting is the words of
the Holy Ghost who says, nor height, nor depth, nor any other
creature. shall be able to separate us
from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. And I want to say a few things
here about Mary because I think they need to be said. Mary was
a sinner. She was a sinner saved by grace. And the words of our Lord in
this passage, which may speak of Mary's spotlessness or ignorance is
intended by God, the author of it, to prevent the idolatrous
worship of Mary. I believe that's why he did what
he did. He wasn't trying to cut them
down, but it was for the sake of the multitude gathered around
him that he said these things so that they might not worship
her. If they worshiped him, Well, it almost seems a rational thing
that they would worship her. She had him. And God alone is to be worshipped.
And I have no doubt that Mary had an honorable reputation,
had an honorable character, but she was no more holy or righteous
than Rahab was, and saved the same way. She was no more righteous
than Ruth the Moabitess or Bathsheba the adulteress, and they were
all saved the same way. In fact, Mary said herself that
she rejoiced in Christ her Savior. Huh? God her Savior. She was
a sinner saved by grace, and she rejoiced in Christ. The papists
believed she was sinless. And as a virgin, the mother of
Christ, her virginity was perpetual. They teach that. But here we're told plainly that
she had other sons and daughters by her husband Joseph. There's no religious practice
or doctrine so destitute of biblical foundation than the worship of
Mary and praying to Mary as an intercessor. And that might just
be the reason why he said what he said when they gathered there.
Christ is our intercessor. Job said, behold, he putteth
no trust in his saints. He doesn't put his trust in his
saints. God puts his trust in his son.
And that's where his saints put their trust too. And I don't have any doubt that
Mary and her believing offspring are with Christ right now, perfectly
sinless and wholly beloved of God. She's got no more clout
with God right now than she had when she was standing outside
that multitude. She's a sinner saved by grace. And we pray to God, we don't
pray to dead saints, and especially dead saints whose sainthood is
questionable at best. John said this in his first general
epistle. First John chapter three and
verse one. He said, behold, what manner
of love the Father hath bestowed upon us that we should be called,
now listen, the sons of God. Therefore the world knoweth us
not, because it knew him not. The world has no concept of the
love of God for his people. A love that chose them. Chose
them. Boy, I used to look at that word
and just shake all over. I love it now. He loved them and chose them before there was even an earth
or a man to walk on. A love to predestinate them unto
an eternal adoption and an unfathomable inheritance. A love so great
that He sent His Son to suffer and die for our sins, to subject
Himself to such humility as no man is ever born, as a manservant
to provide us with a righteousness and to put himself as the surety
of an everlasting covenant of grace and to accomplish all the
demands and secure all the promises of God. Listen to this. He said, now
to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not
unto seeds as of many, but as of thy seed, which is
Christ. Unto Abraham, Christ, were these
promises made. Here is a love so great that
all providence is arranged in accordance with it. And his love for his people cannot
be broken, nor can the objects of his love ever be separated
from it. His love is the standard of all
love. And the greatest love that we
have is for a husband toward his wife. And listen to what
he says. Husbands, love your wives as
Christ loved the church and gave himself for it. Huh? Oh, my soul. His love is the standard of all
love. Paul said, let all bitterness
and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away
from you with all malice, and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted,
forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ's sake, hath
forgiven you. And the more I read this passage,
the more I believe it's subject to be the love of God in Christ. And if these things be so, And
I don't think there can be any doubt that they are. Where does
that leave those who despise him? Where does that leave them? Matthew 18, verse 6. It says, who shall offend one
of these little ones? One of his sons, one of his mothers,
One of his sisters. Whoso shall offend one of these
little ones which believe in me, it were better for him than
a millstone. Have you ever seen a millstone?
That's a big, gigantic stone. I've seen one that was wore out
and it was bigger than my car. He said, it'd be better for them
that a millstone was hanged about their neck and that they were
drowned in the depth of the sea than to offend one of my little
ones. He said, woe unto the world because
of offences, for it must needs be that offences come. But woe
to that man by whom the offence cometh. Here's a picture of those whose
sins shall never be forgiven. Not in this world, not in the
world to come. And here's a picture of those
beloved of God and forgiven in Christ and loved equally from
the least to the greatest. Oh, what a Savior we have. This hymn came to mind as I was
reading this. It says, Christ hath for sin
atonement made. What a wonderful Savior. What
a wonderful Savior. We are redeemed. The price is
paid. What a wonderful Savior. This
is a man who, he was a preacher of the Gospel. He was an old
Pennsylvania German. and he preached the gospel, Elisha
Albright Hoffman, and he wrote this song down, and I just picture
him sitting there going over what Christ had done for him,
and that's how he penned this hymn. He said, I praise him for
the cleansing blood that reconciled my soul to God. What a wonderful
Savior. And then he said, what a wonderful
Savior is Jesus, my Jesus. What a wonderful Savior is Jesus,
my Lord. We have a family, and it's the
family of Christ. It's the family of Christ. Give
consideration to it, give your time to it, Give your energy
and affection to it. Don't hold anything back. Christ
didn't hold anything back from us. Don't hold anything, oh,
you just don't know what that fella did one time. It don't
matter. What'd you do one time? What's
God forgiven you of? Let's get that list out. Paul
said about old, was it Onesimus? He said, if he owes you anything,
He said, I'm not even going to mention what you owe me. But
if he owes you anything and you're insisting, you put it on my bill.
And they couldn't do it. They couldn't do it. They owed
him too much. How much do we owe him? Oh, my soul. Just don't hold anything back.
Just love one another. Love one another, for Christ's
sake. Thank you.