Sibling Rivalry
“for whoever does the will of God, this one is My brother, and My sister and mother.” Mark 3:35
Does – Where do your loyalties lie? Who do you treat as blood-relatives? Who is in your family? According to the Master, everyone who does the will of the Father is kin to you. Oh, and by the way, those who do not do the will of the Father are not related to you, no matter what that DNA says.
This is about as serious a statement of God’s view of family as you will ever find in the Bible. It is serious because it cuts across all of our natural relationships. It tells me that the boys that I grew up with through my childhood, the ones whose birthdays I celebrate and who come to the Christmas dinner and share family photos are not my brothers – unless they have the same Father that I have – unless they have been born from above through the one true Son. My true brothers are men like Anthony, who was born to a Black family in Winter Garden, and John, who is an Indian living in Singapore, and Bill, who comes from Dutch stock, and Terry, who is a citizen of another country (and many more, thank you, Lord). These men share my spiritual DNA. We have the same Father. They are more important to me than the ones I grew up with, because they are doing the will of the Father and I will enjoy their companionship for all eternity.
Jesus slices right through our human bonds. If poieo (to do, to make, to cause) is not resident in the relationship you have with sisters and brothers and mother, and if poieo is not focused on the will of God, then your natural family is a divided house, a real mess. Like mine. God’s family ties are the real family ties. The rest are sibling rivalries. Those who have a shared name on a birth certificate are too often not in my real family. Jesus knew exactly what that meant. His own brothers refused to believe that He was any different than just a slightly crazy egotist with a strain of religious fervor. It took a miracle for them to see the truth, and, as far as we know, only one (James) ever determined to become a follower. It’s quite revealing that James never claims any special status on the basis of having the same mother. In fact, James introduces himself as a slave of Jesus. I wonder if we would be so humble. James took this verse to heart. He was no brother of Jesus until he discovered that the older brother in his natural family was God in the flesh.
Whoever does the will of the God. That is a sweeping statement of exclusion. I have hundreds of brothers, sisters and mothers because there are many who have chosen to do the Father’s will. What heartache it is to know that the ones I share so many memories with are not among this eternal family. There is still time, of course. God is merciful. If my natural family could only be gathered into the family of God’s chosen, how I would rejoice. I have so many relatives to introduce to them. You are one of those relatives. I can’t wait for the day when you can meet my brothers by human birth.
