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Father-son relationship (Mk 3:7-12, 31-35)
Jesus’ fame drew multitudes of people to him for “great things he did” (v8), such as healing and driving out demons. People not only came from Galilee, but from all over Judea and even from Jerusalem, the religious and political centre of the Jews. The multitude of Jews came to Jesus to be his followers (v7), as well as the sick and the demon-possessed who came for his healing (v10-11). Even the unclean spirits fell down before him and “cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.” (v11) It is natural for us to understand that his popularity is due to the fact that he is the Son of God and he can perform supernatural things that no one can do. If I were the Son of God and I could perform miracles of healing and driving out demons, I would be as popular nowadays as he was then. But aren’t we who have believed in Jesus the children of God now? Can we do miracles as Jesus did?
In the passage of Mark 3:31-35, we are told that Jesus’ mother and brothers also came to him but could not reach him because of the crowd in the house. When the people sent him the message of his family’s arrival, he responded, “Who is my mother, or my brethren?” (v33). He looked around and said, “Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother.” (v34-35) In other words, he sees all of us the same family of his under the guardian of God. This picture presents to us a very spectacular look of our own selves—we are no different from Jesus since we are of the same family. We are all the children of God, at least in the eyes of God. Jesus told us not to look at his family circle in such a narrow view, only limiting to his fleshly family, but in a wider perspective—his spiritual family. Besides, he didn’t say that “whoever shall do miracles like me, he is my brother and my sister.” What did he say? He said that “whoever shall do the will of God…” (v35)
We believers all know that we are the children of God. But if we ask ourselves such question, “Can we do miracles as Jesus did?” we probably say no to ourselves. We still admit that there is huge difference between us and Jesus. We tend to look down on ourselves and our heavenly status even though we say to ourselves and others that we are the sons of God. But look at what Jesus said in John 14:12, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.” Before he departed us and returned to heaven, he predicted that we would do greater works than the works he has done on earth. Is that true? Is it happening to us nowadays that we are doing greater works than he did on earth? How? Look at what he said afterward in John 14:13-14, “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.” The answer is by prayer. And he has greater works for us to carry on after he left this world. The Great Commission in Matt 28:19-20 is the greater work or ministry that he instructed us to carry on and finish before his return.
The Great Commission is for God’s family to finish. But do we care about our participation in God’s work? Or we care more of our earthly family than our heavenly family? Yes, we tend to care more of our earthly family than our heavenly family. Why? Because we tend to have stronger sense of responsibility with our earthly family than with our heavenly family. Again, why? Because we do not identify with our heavenly status or citizenship as much as with our earthly status or citizenship. Jesus always takes God’s will to heart because his heavenly identity overrides his earthly identity. His son-and-father relationship is so intimate that it is natural for him to share God’s will and tasks for him on earth.
The Son is pleased by God not because he has done many miracles on earth. It is basically because he has submitted to God’s will all his life and served mankind, and sacrificed himself on the cross toward the end of life on earth. Listen to what he said in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me, nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.” (Mark 14:36) He believed that God could do miracles at that time to save him from the enemies’ hands. However, this is not God’s will. God’s will is to let His Son die. This way he allowed God to do another great miracle on him—to bring him to life from death. Henceforth, we should not simply admire that Jesus can do all kinds of miracles before his people. We should deem ourselves as part of Jesus’ family, so long as we can submit to God’s will as Jesus did. Then we can all be honoured by the Father and hear Him proclaim, “Thou art my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mark 1:11), granted that we can always do as we say to our Heavenly Father, “Not what I will, but what thou wilt” (Mark 14:36b).
Jesus clearly distinguishes his heavenly and earthly family relationship and always puts his heavenly duties on first priority. Several incidents in the Scripture prove this point outright. When his parents anxiously found the teenager Jesus in the Temple, “his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? Behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?” (Luke 2:48-49) In a marriage feast when there was no wine to serve the guests, “the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. Jesus said unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come.” (John 2:3-4) The most shocking response of Jesus toward his mother was what we read above in Mark 2:33-35 when his mother and brothers called him outside the room, “Who is my mother, or my brethren?” (v33). He has a strong sense of heavenly identity with the Heavenly Father and His family. How about us? Do we have such a strong sense of heavenly son-and-father relationship in the family of God while we are living on earth as sons of man? Do we have a relationship with the Father as close as Jesus with Him? If not, we should not cease developing a more intimate relationship with the Father as part of the Heavenly family.
(Father-and-son relationship in the Gospel of John)
Let’s examine how intimate Jesus relates himself to the Heavenly Father and see if we can learn to build and feel this kind of intimate relationship. Among the Four Gospels, the Book of John reveals best such close son-and-father relationship between Jesus and God.
Recognize His Root
- The Son knows where he comes from and where he will return
“Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.” (John 5:18)
“I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me.” (John 8:18)
“O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.” (John 17:25)
“Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.” (John 14:28)
Submission out of love
- The Son does whatever the Father commands him
“But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.” (John 5:17)
“Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.” (John 5:19)
“For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.” (John 5:20)
“But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me.” (John 5:36)
“But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do.” (John 14:31)
“I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.” (John 17:4)
- The Son speaks whatever the Father speaks to him
“For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.” (John 12:49)
“And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.” (John 12:50)
“Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.” (John 14:10)
“He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.” (John 14:24)
- The Son loves and glorifies the Father
“Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.” (John 12:28)
“These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee.” (John 17:1)
The Son relates us to the Father
“Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.” (John 20:17)
- Do the Lord’s work for the glory of the Father
“If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.” (John 12:26)
“Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.” (John 20:21)
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.” (John 14:12)
“And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” (John 14:13)
“Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.” (John 15:8)
- We are loved by the Father and the Son
“My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.” (John 10:29)
“He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” (John 14:21)
“As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.” (John 15:9)
“If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.” (John 15:10)
(Our spiritual root)
Do we really recognize our root? In his dialogue with Nicodemus about the born-again experience, Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” (John 3:5-6) Our physical nature tells us plainly that we are born of flesh. We have no problem to chase our fleshly root or “blood source” back to our earthly parents. We thereby relate our lives deeply to our parents. On the other hand, as born-again Christians, do we really have a strong sense of the existence of our spiritual bodies? If we have a strong sense like Jesus did, we should also have a strong sense to relate our lives to our spiritual Father.
II Cor 5:17 says, “if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” Our spiritual body is born as a new being by the Spirit. Therefore, by spiritual nature we call our God “Abba, Father” (Rom 8:15). We can naturally chase our root to our Heavenly Father. In Ephe 4:21-23, Paul entreats us to put off our old man, be renewed in the spirit of our mind, and “put on the new man, which after God is created (照著神的形像造的) in righteousness and true holiness.” We are no longer living like an old man. We should live like a new man! Our new spiritual mind tells us to relate our regenerated lives to our Heavenly Father, who is our spiritual root. In that case, we should have no problem sharing the feeling of Jesus who constantly has an intimate relationship with his Father.
Now we understand more why Jesus said in Mark 3:35, “whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother.” As we enter into an intimate relationship with our Father, we will share the same feeling as Jesus did when he was sent to the world. And we know that we are sent by him to do the will of the Father. And the Father will let us (His children) see miracles performed in our daily lives, because “The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.” (John 5:19-20) These words of Jesus are for us too as spoken by our Heavenly Father.