The Third Sunday after Pentecost

Sermon Text: Mark 3:20-35

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Dearly beloved of the Lord,

As with the Lord, so with us. As with Jesus and what He faced… what He encountered here on earth… in many ways… so it is with us and with all the faithful. This was true for the apostles and the early church and for the Church Militant down throughout time, including now.

It is a reality that we oftentimes lose sight of or choose to ignore and then we start wondering why certain things are happening to us… why we face a lot of opposition and take a lot of flak.

And this, for the faith… for confessing Jesus Christ to be Lord… OUR Lord… OUR Savior… OUR King. And living accordingly. According, that is, to the Word of the God and in keeping with His holy will and ways.

By our doing and by our not doing, we… likewise… will at times be thought to be “out of our mind.” We will be considered “odd” at best… over the top… crazy… brain washed. And yes, even by some of our family members and friends who remain blinded by sin and duped by Satan.

They do not get it or get us because they do not get Jesus Christ, what his earthly ministry was about… what He said… what He did… what He allowed be done to Him that all the world might be saved. 

In so many ways, my friends, Christ is our example… He the pattern and the path… that which we gladly follow. Not that it is easy mind you, by any means. But to us, there is no other, none other, for He alone… Jesus alone… has the words of eternal life and in Him alone is that life.

There were those who were of His own line and lineage, fellow Jews and seemingly quite learned, who said that this rabbi, this Jesus, was in league with the devil. The absurdity of that thought our Lord makes quite clear in this text. 

Holy Scripture tells us that “He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.” (John 1:11)

They rejected Him. Disowned Him. Cast dispersions left and right. They bore false witness. They twisted the truth. They lied through their teeth.

Sound familiar? For Him... and at times, for us. As with the Lord so with us. But how do we mere mortals, while in this sinful flesh deal with it? How do we cope? How do we hold the line? How do we stay above the fray and not give up… not give in to the will, reasoning and requests of even family members and others close to us. How do we continue to fight the good fight of faith in an increasingly hostile world?

I mean, common on, it gets lonely and quite old being the “odd ones out”… considered weird and wacky, even by those whom we thought we could count on, look to, for acceptance and understanding.

In our Gospel text, we find our Lord addressing a crowd. There were people sitting all around Him… listening, learning… taking in His words… He who spoke like no other… with power and authority. 

As this takes place, He is told that His mother and brothers were outside seeking Him. It was the perfect teaching moment… the perfect opportunity for our Lord to put into perspective for the people then and now, for all of us, what constitutes “family.”

In the process, Christ clearly shows us that there is family and then there is family. There is a blood connection and then there is a blood connection. 

On one hand, we have our worldly family, biological family… our blood relatives. And in no way does our Lord here speak against the same. On the contrary, we are to love and cherish our own.

It is just that we also have and are part of a spiritual family in whom we are no less blood related and this in an infinitely greater way! Namely, through the blood of Jesus Christ.

Not denying His worldly family by any means, our Lord clearly points the crowd then, and the crowd gathered here this morning… you and me… to the greater family of which we are all part, of which we belong as, together, we carry out the will of God… as we follow Jesus.

It was all those gathered around Him. They were family… His family.  And such is the case to this very day… all those gathered around our Lord here in this sanctuary. A family… His family… our family… loved, comforted, sanctified, edified through Word and Sacrament. Our family joyfully blending our voices in prayer and praise.

Oh, how Satan would love for you to believe that you are alone, on your own… a lone sheep… when the glorious reality is you are part of God’s precious flock, among many brothers and sisters in the faith here in time, but also with those who are now part of the Church Triumphant, with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven. You are surrounded with love. 

What an incredible family of believers of which we are part and parcel. What an incredible flock with Christ Jesus as our Good Shepherd who leads us and feeds us throughout our sojourn here on earth… each and every day… in every way.

Indeed, the Holy Christian Church is precious to us. It is, after all, the very Body of Christ with Him as its head.

This congregation, Zion Lutheran Church, is precious to us along with every soul found therein… our true brothers and sisters. 

We are family… forged and founded as well as preserved in Word and Sacrament.

Behold, God’s gift to us, something we treasure more and more as time goes on. As clouds darken around us. As our eyes grow dim. We are nevertheless safe and secure in the Body of Christ, amongst our true family.

How important this revelation was to the crowd gathered in today’s text, which included the first of Christ’s followers starting down a road that will bring much trial and tribulation… a road that leads to a cross and an empty tomb… to joy beyond all measure.

How important this revelation is today for us, for which we give our Lord all glory and honor, praise and adoration. 

In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

And now may the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen.