Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - Being Near Jesus vs. Being In Jesus | New Testament | Mark 3

Episode Date: October 3, 2023

There is only one way to know God and come to him: through Jesus. So how do you know if you are truly in Jesus? Can anyone be saved by Jesus? Is anyone too far gone? In today's episode, Tanya breaks down a scene in Mark 3. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Join the TMBT community in reading the entire New Testament in one year. Get your FREE reading plan here. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it with others, so others can find it too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter@TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passages: Mark 3

Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life and the time it takes to get to work. I'm Tanya Wilmuth. There's a part of Mark's gospel that might not sit well with us if we don't understand what it means. It doesn't belong with the way we view Jesus. We read it, we try to think it through or think it away, but we don't really get it until we look at the bigger story. When we read chapter 3, there are things that Mark tells us that have been going on. Jesus had a long day in Kumpurna, Sabbath day that started with. healing a man's hand and then facing ridicule from the Pharisees for healing the man's hand.

He has all kinds of people following him, wanting to be healed. He has people who are accusing him of being with Beaselbub. Maybe Jesus was just tired and tired of people. Well, that would only be the case if we inserted ourselves into this story and made ourselves the Messiah because that's how we would respond. But Jesus is without sin, without grumbling, without lack of love. So what does it mean? and what is Jesus saying when we get to this scene at the end of the chapter? Mark 3.31. Jesus' mother and brothers came to see him. They stood outside and sent word for him to come and talk with them.

There was a crowd sitting around Jesus and someone said, Your mother and your brothers are outside asking for you. Jesus replied, Who is my mother? Who are my brothers? Then he looked at those around him and said, Look, these are my mother and brothers. Anyone who does God's will is my brother and sister and mother.

We read this and we wonder, why did Jesus say that about his family? We think, what if Jesus said this about me? What if he said that about my kids, about my mom and dad? In one sense, it's okay to ask those questions because Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me. So there is only one way to come to God and be right with him, and that is by knowing Jesus.

And even though Jesus' mother and brother knew him in one sense as the person they shared a home with. He was saying the people who knew him as the son of God were his true family. Now, when Mark describes Jesus' mother and brother standing on the outside and sending someone in, he's giving us a word picture of something that was going on within them. What Jesus was doing, it didn't belong with the way they viewed Jesus. What were they missing? And why had they come to Jesus now? Were they embarrassed for Jesus? Because what he was doing was causing all kinds of accusations. Were they embarrassed for themselves? Did they possibly want to warn him of the Pharisees plot to kill him and save him? Maybe they were worried. The Gospel of John mentions a time

his brothers confronted him. Maybe they were just worried. We don't know exactly what was going on, but we know that somehow they had a limited view of who Jesus really was. Now, the Gospel of John also mentions another time when his brothers confronted him, and John says in Chapter 7, verse 5. Not even his brothers believed in him. But this passage, it's not about a man dishonoring or disowning his family. It's a passage of hope, especially for those of us who have people we love who are on the outside spiritually. So often, when we look at the physical evidence around us, it seems hopeless that someone will come to know Jesus. But in Jesus, there is always hope. We don't know how the story ends, but there is nothing that Jesus cannot do.

Jesus' mother. Well, she was at the foot of the cross when he was crucified. And that isn't the last time that we see her in Scripture. In the Book of Acts, we get a picture of what the first Christians were doing after the resurrection and after the day of Pentecost. That's the day that the Holy Spirit came to dwell with them. And in this picture, there's an upper room where the disciples and the earliest followers were gathered together, and it says, including Mary. The scripture says, all these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and his brothers. And then, have you heard of the book of James? It's full of wisdom on how to live out your new identity in Jesus. And guess who wrote it? Jesus' brother, James. The book begins like this.

James, a servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ. The brother who might have wanted to hide under a rug when Jesus was driving out demons, self-identifies as a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, and becomes the head of the church in Jerusalem. See how hopeful that is? The people that were described as being on the outside definitely knew Jesus. What about you? What about the people you've given up on? There are two things for us to consider today.

First, just because we are near Jesus doesn't mean we are in Jesus. What I mean by that is that doing things for Jesus, even going to church and being around Jesus people and Jesus things, that doesn't make us part of his family. Earlier in Mark 3, the writer describes the calling of the 12 disciples. And it says, and he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired. And they came to him. Through faith, those whom Jesus calls come to him and they become part of his family. Have you come to Jesus as the only way to have your sins for

and be right with God. Romans 10 says anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame. But there is no difference between Jew and Gentile. The same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Another thing for us to consider. Have you given up hope for someone who seems beyond the call of Jesus? The transforming power of Jesus means those who mock and ridicule him

can become people who believe and serve him. people who even become pillars of faith to share the truth of Jesus with others, like James. We shouldn't give up on anyone because Jesus didn't. He went to the cross for people who were mocking him. He went to the cross for you and me. The same power of Jesus that turned my stubborn, prideful, cold heart toward him, can set anyone's heart on fire for the gospel. There's a quote by Smith Wigglesworth.

Yeah, that's his real name, that understands our lack of hope and reminds us what is true. It goes like this. I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am moved by what I believe. If you're a mama or a dad or grandma or sister or brother or if you have a parent who seems beyond hope, be not moved by what you see or feel but what you believe. And by your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and His power that has no limits, find your hope in His true word.