THERE IS MORE SAID IN THE PODCAST AUDIO THAN IN THE NOTES BELOW
TEXT: Matthew 12:46-50:
46 While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him.
47 Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee.
48 But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?
49 And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren!
50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.
Matthew Henry said, “Under no pretence of religion may we be disrespectful to parents or unkind to relations; but the lesser duty must stand by while the greater is done. Let us cease from men, and cleave to Christ; let us look upon every Christian, in whatever condition of life, as the brother, sister, or mother of the Lord of glory; let us love, respect, and be kind to them, for his sake, and after his example.”
In our few messages in this series, we saw we must look beyond our earthly family to the family of God Even when our earthly family rejects us for our faith or for some other reason, we have another family, one that will never forsake us. This is the true family of Jesus, the spiritual family of God, whom we are bonded to by the blood of Jesus..
Third, we must redefine the family around Jesus. In these verses, and in many other passages regarding the family, Jesus redefines the family around Himself, and He wants us to do the same. The central figure in our lives is not our father, mother, sister, or brother. Neither are our children, spouses, or other family members. The central figure must be Jesus. In Luke 9:59-60, Jesus told another would-be disciple to follow Him, “But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.” In Luke 14:26, Jesus said, “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.” When Jesus came down to earth, He inaugurated a new family, a family of disciples who follow Jesus with all their hearts. The family of Christianity does not destroy the biological family, but rather transcends and supersedes it. Because the focus of the family of God is not on sinful human beings, but rather on the perfect God-man Jesus Christ, Christians should be better husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, sons, and daughters. We can do this because we are not working to please a family member, but rather to please Jesus by doing the will of Father God. Ray Fowler said, “We all have a physical family here on earth. But there is an even more important family we can belong to, and that is the family of God. Jesus said something similar in the gospel of Luke. We read in Luke 11:27-28: “As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, ‘Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you.’ He replied, ‘Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.’” Yes, Jesus’ mother Mary was blessed to be the mother of Jesus. That was an amazing blessing. But Jesus says there is an even greater blessing for those who hear the word of God and obey it, that is, those who believe the good news about Jesus and become a part of the family of God. Being a part of God’s family has nothing to do with your physical birth. It has everything to do with faith in Jesus and obedience to God’s word. Loving your family and taking care of your family is all part of following Jesus. It is part of hearing the word of God and obeying it. It is part of doing the will of God in your life. But your spiritual ties in the family of God are more important than the blood ties of your physical family here on earth. Blood is thicker than water, but the Spirit is thicker than blood. Your physical family is for this life only, but your spiritual family is for all of eternity. Doing the will of God means believing in Jesus and following Jesus. And when you do that you become a part of the family of God.” Ephesians 2:19 says that because through Christ Jesus we have access by the Holy Spirit to God the Father, we are “fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;” When we do the will of God the Father by believing in Jesus Christ as our Saviour, we now belong to the family of God. Although our earthly families are important, the family of God, which is focused on Jesus rather than on physical bonds, is far more important. In the family of God, we are all loved and accepted, not based on our bloodlines, but by the blood of Jesus. And by faithfully following Jesus, by His grace and example, we can serve our fellow Christians, our family members, and the world, as Jesus did.
Shirley Erena Murray wrote:
Who is my mother, who is my brother?
All those who gather around Jesus Christ:
Spirit-filled people, born from the Gospel
sit at the table, around Jesus Christ.
Bound by one vision, met for one mission
we claim each other, around Jesus Christ:
here is my mother, here is my brother,
kindred in Spirit, through Jesus Christ.
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Now, if you are with us today and you do not know Jesus Christ as your Savior, allow me to show you how you can place your faith and trust in Him for Salvation from sin and Hell.
First, accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 18:8: “Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
Now that is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.
Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your Salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. I am sorry for my sins, and today I choose to turn from my sins. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. I trust Jesus Christ as my Savior and I choose to follow Him as Lord from this day forward. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.
If you believed in your heart that Jesus Christ died on the Cross, was buried, and rose again, allow me to say, congratulations on doing the most important thing in life and that is accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour! For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”
If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior today, please email me at dw3@gospellightsociety.com and let us know. There is some free material that we want to send you. If you have a prayer request, please e-mail that to us as well, and we will pray for you until you tell us to stop.
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.
Daniel Whyte III has spoken in meetings across the United States and in over twenty-five foreign countries. He is the author of over forty books including the Essence Magazine, Dallas Morning News, and Amazon.com national bestseller, Letters to Young Black Men. He is also the president of Gospel Light Society International, a worldwide evangelistic ministry that reaches thousands with the Gospel each week, as well as president of Torch Ministries International, a Christian literature ministry.
He is heard by thousands each week on his radio broadcasts/podcasts, which include: The Prayer Motivator Devotional, The Prayer Motivator Minute, as well as Gospel Light Minute X, the Gospel Light Minute, the Sunday Evening Evangelistic Message, the Prophet Daniel’s Report, the Second Coming Watch Update and the Soul-Winning Motivator, among others.
He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Theology from Bethany Divinity College, a Bachelor’s degree in Religion from Texas Wesleyan University, a Master’s degree in Religion, a Master of Divinity degree, and a Master of Theology degree from Liberty University’s Rawlings School of Divinity (formerly Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary). He is currently a candidate for the Doctor of Ministry degree.
He has been married to the former Meriqua Althea Dixon, of Christiana, Jamaica since 1987. God has blessed their union with seven children.
BCNN1 WP 