066. Chapter 7 - Interruptions

Chapter 7 - Interruptions Matthew 12:38-50;Mark 3:21,Mark 3:31-35;Luke 8:19-21 The Immense Crowds The enormous multitudes that thronged Jesus at this period of His ministry were so great that He had to take measures to prevent them from pressing upon Him:“…that a little boat should wait on him because of the crowd, lest they should throng him” (Mark 3:9). From such a pulpit He could preach and teach more effectively. These enthusiastic crowds were so demanding that Jesus and His apostles did not even have opportunity to eat: “And the multitude cometh together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread” (Mark 3:20). The mysterious sermon in parables was Jesus’ method of reducing the crowd to a more spiritual assembly.

Misguided Concern

Before Jesus began the sermon in parables, His mother and half brothers, the sons of Joseph and Mary, attempted to interrupt the ministry of Jesus and take Him home for a rest. These half brothers were named James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas (Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3). We are not told whether the sisters of Jesus also came in this attempt to interrupt His ministry. The translation his friends does not make clear the identity of these who were trying to save Jesus from destroying Himself. The Greek text is hoi par autou, “the (…....) from the side of him.” The noun is omitted in the Greek and must be supplied by the reader. Obviously the choice is between “relatives” and “friends.” The word friends is an interpretation. “And when his friends heard it, they went out to lay hold on him: for they said, He is beside himself” (Mark 3:21). This records the start of this well-meant expedition. In Mark 3:31-35 Mark describes their arrival and the outcome. “And there come his mother and his brethren; and, standing without, they sent unto him, calling him.” It seems strange that Mary should have allowed the unbelieving brethren (John 7:5) to persuade her to join in such an ill-advised effort as this. But the brethren evidently used her very devotion to Christ to stir her alarm: John the Baptist facing death in prison; the national leaders plotting the death of Jesus; the ever-increasing pressure of His ministry that allowed not even time to eat or rest, threatening the very limit of any endurance. “Zeal for thy house shall eat me up” was being fulfilled. He was “beside himself” with zeal. When they arrived, they found the crowd so immense and so dense that they could not even approach Jesus. It had been one thing to plan “to lay hold on him”; it was something else to carry out the program, which immediately evaporated in the presence of Jesus. Probably by making signs to some friends in the forefront of the crowd, they were able to get word to Jesus that they wanted to speak to Him. The Rebuff The refusal of the Lord to grant their request was the most humane method of thwarting their plan. His deity shines out in the simple question, “Who is my mother and my brethren?” The universality of the redemption Jesus brought to earth finds sublime expression in His final word, “And looking round on them that sat around about him, he saith, Behold, my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother” (Mark 3:33-35).

Each of the narrators adds a vivid, revealing touch to his record at the dramatic close of this scene. Mark records a searching look with which Jesus probed the hearts of these consecrated disciples before Him: “And looking round on them that sat round about him, he saith, Behold my mother and my brethren.” Matthew describes a gesture which must have been so tender as to include all the divine yearning and mercy of heaven: “And he stretched forth his hand towards his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren!”

Challenge of the Pharisees

Between the start and the close of this friendly expedition to rescue Jesus from His overzealous evangelistic efforts is the record of a hostile effort of His enemies to undermine and upset His ministry. The scribes undertook to spread around a whispering attack that Jesus was in league with the devil and was casting out demons by the power of Satan. Jesus brought their attack into the open and revealed its falsity (Mark 3:22-30). Matthew records that at this time scribes and Pharisees came demanding a sign. This was a clever method of seeking to block the growing influence of Jesus. Their demand of a sign (“a sign from heaven” in the later attempt — Matthew 16:1) carried the insulting implication that the miracles of Jesus had not really been actual. They probably had in mind such a miracle as the parting of the Red Sea with a wall of water on either side of Israel escaping from Egypt or the fire that came down on Mount Carmel to consume the sacrifice at the call of Elijah. The demand for a sign probably carried a sneer at Jesus’ humble spiritual campaign in light of the Old Testament predictions that the Messiah would come on the clouds of heaven and execute judgment on the wicked. This was the sort of temptation the devil had urged on the pinnacle of the temple. The Sign of Jonah

Jesus’ answer to this challenge was a blunt refusal based on the character of “the evil and adulterous generation” and thrilling prediction that such a tremendous miracle would indeed climax His ministry. “The sign of Jonah” would be the all-sufficient evidence as God raised His Son from the dead. The men of Nineveh who repented into a state of harmony with the preaching of Jonah and the Queen of Sheba who came from afar to investigate the incredible reports of Solomon’s wisdom and glory, would rise up in judgment to condemn this rebellious generation which refused to see or hear One greater than Jonah or Solomon.