Jesus’ Obedience to the Father - Part Three

Posted 6/2/15 by Donald Barnhouse
Theme: Rumblings of Opposition
 
SCRIPTURE
Mark 3:31-35
 
And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.”And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”

LESSON

The religionists saw Jesus through eyes that had never submitted to God the Father, so they did not see that Christ’s mission was an expression of the Father’s will, and that in Him they could find the fellowship with the Father that they had vainly sought for so long.
 
Those who thought Him mad were living only on an earthly level. They lacked the spiritual discernment to see that what Jesus was doing extended far beyond their vision of free food and medical care; they were simply fearful when His ministry caused the religious establishment to rise up against Him. A man would have to be mad to risk such enmity! They too failed to see that Jesus’ mission was an expression of the Father’s will, extending far beyond their earthly visions of paradise. They had not sought to know Christ outside of their own preconceived notions, and thus they did not know Him or the Father.
 
That leaves us to ask ourselves the same question. Have you been so long with Christ and yet have not known him? Have you been a Christian for many years, and yet have never known Christ outside of your own preconceived notions, your own desires for what you want Jesus to be? Have you come to the point where you want to lay all that aside and simply be with Him, to see Him as the Father sees Him, and likewise to see the Father through Him? If you want to have spiritual insight, you must allow Him to lead you through His Word, through His people, through prayer and times alone with Him. May God protect us from seeing Christ in our own wisdom, instead of through the illumination of the Holy Spirit.

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • How is Christ’s mission an expression of the Father’s will?
  • How ought we take Christ’s mission and apply it to our currently ministries?
REFLECTION
  • Dr. Barnhouse refers to Christ’s mission as an expression of the Father’s will. Answer the question, How is Christ’s mission an expression of the Father’s will? Then return to the Scriptures and map through redemptive history how Christ’s mission was foreshadowed and how Christ was accomplish such a mission.
PRAYER
  • Take some time to reflect on the importance of Christ’s mission and pray for your own personal ministry, not that it would be “successful” as the world sees it but rather that it would be an expression of the Father’s will.
 

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