Teachings of Jesus 5: Jesus Family - How Did He Identify His "Mother," "Sisters," and "Brothers?"



For a list of all free video teachings and transcripts in this series, go HERE.

Get the book or e-book to go along with the study. We will be covering 18 teachings this summer by video.  The book, however, has nearly all Jesus's teachings in Mark and into Matthew.  Get the book or e-book at Amazon by clicking HERE.


HERE is the full video for Teaching 5 titled  Jesus's Family - How He Identified His "Mother," "Sisters," and "Brothers."  A written transcript is right below the video again, if you prefer reading through it.  Enjoy...and I would love to hear any feedback/discussion you have by commenting here, on facebook, or by sending me a message on facebook.




--------------Transcript -------------------------


Welcome Back to....what has become...."Summer with Willa [indicating towards the dog, a yorkie] and the Teachings of Jesus." We're Back! I'm really excited today. This is one of my favorite scenes in all of the gospels. It's a really short scene. Not too much is happening in this scene. The focus is on what Jesus said. And I am just so happy – I often wonder, “Why did they even put this scene in?” And I am so happy that the gospel writers felt that what happened here was significant enough to write down and to remember and to share with us.

We are still in He Called: 56 DailyStudies and Reflections with the Words of Christ. We have jumped ahead to Day 13 in the ebook. If you have the paperback it is page 82. We are in Mark 3. I am going to read from verse 31 to 35.

“And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside, they sent to him and called him.--”

Ok, a little background. So Jesus once again, he is having to go into homes (to get a break from the crowds), and he went into a home with his disciples, and he was continuing to teach in there. And his mother and his brothers came, and they were outside the home. In Matthew it tells us they couldn't quite get into the home because of the crowd.

“And a crowd was sitting around him. And they said to him, 'Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.' And he answered them, 'Who are my mother and brothers?' And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, 'Here are my mother and brothers! For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother, and sister, and mother.'” (Mark 3:33-36)

In one of the other videos, I was talking about that the will of God is listening to him and following him, and letting him lead. That is the will. And Jesus exemplifies this right here. Just in case you don't believe me, let's see what Jesus said. He said, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around him –

Now his disciples were there. But there was a crowd there. He said, “Here are my mother and sisters and brothers!” And he was pointing to the people that were listening to him, who were staying close to him, who were learning from him, and following him. And then he says, “Whoever does the will of God; he is my brother and sister and mother.”


So Jesus just said himself – “these people are doing the will of God. They are here. They are my brothers and sisters and mothers.”

And I love this, because it is Jesus himself explaining who he considers to be his. And what are these people doing? This is still early on in the ministry. These people aren't going out and proclaiming him yet. They're not working to build new churches yet.

Once again, it starts with doing the will of God which is...

being with him,

learning what he has to say, and

allowing that to change you, and

allowing that to prompt you in the ways you go about your days.



Just one reflection today.....

How would you describe your relationship with Jesus today?

Are you his sister, or his brother?

Or is he just someone that you know about or that you learned about?

Or is he just someone you learned about – maybe when you were much younger, but you let a whole lot of distance creep in.


I just want to say....he's still near. He's still near. He doesn't leave; we do. He doesn't forget about us; we forget about him. And all it takes, all it takes if there is distance growing in your relationship with the Lord. All it takes is, turning back....listening to him again, knowing what he wants you to know, and allowing that to change us.


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Get the book or e-book to go along with the study. We will be covering 18 teachings this summer by video. The book, however, has nearly all Jesus's teachings in Mark and into Matthew. Get the book or e-book at Amazon by clicking HERE.

For a list of all free video teachings and transcripts in this series, go HERE.