Our Brother

In this text, it might seem like Jesus is insulting His family. Look at what He does; He doesn’t make room for them and He keeps on teaching. Some could even think this is a retaliation for verse 21 when His family sought to take Him away because they thought He was out of His mind.

But He is not lessening the significance of family, nor is He being rude. However, He is actually speaking and sharing a deep heavenly reality. He reveals that those in His presence are His heavenly family. Jesus teaches how there is a connection to Him that is superior to even being His brother or His mother.

Imagine being family with royalty, or a celebrity. This would change the way you think about yourself and spend your money and the way you walk down the street. You would become important and significant just by association. Infinitely better than that, there is an opportunity to be family with Jesus, in a way more real than even flesh and blood.

So, how can we become the family of Jesus? Jesus clearly says that those who do the will of God are family with Him. Those at His feet, listening to His teachings were called mothers, brothers, and sisters to Him. It seems safe to connect being in His presence and attentive to His words with doing the will of God. Jesus desires that we do the same—be attentive to His words and seek to be in His presence. Out of a desire to be with Him and study His words, we will know and be motivated to do the will of God. And what an amazing, and humbling blessing, to be called family with Jesus, in a status superior to His own mother and brothers!