Sermon Tone Analysis

Welcome

New Life class begins today, and will be happening for several weeks, so I am going to be teaching during that time.

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The Foundation of God’s Family

God’s Family Members Share His Traits

All throughout Scripture, we are told what God’s characteristics are.

He is holy.

He is merciful.

He is truthful.

And so much more!

But also, we find that God’s children are HOLY, FAITHFUL, MERCIFUL, TRUTHFUL, as well!

Jesus once said that the children of God would be recognized and identified by the way they make peace (Matthew 5:9).

Paul said that the sons of God are distinguished by the fact that they are led by the Spirit.

Just like a little boy will start to take on his father’s traits over time, people who are born of God will increasingly take on the characteristics of God as they mature.

And this is Holiness!

I Want to Be a Member of God’s Family

And as we continue in obeying God, we are allowed to be part of His family!

In our day, we are not excluded because we can’t trace our lineage back to one of the tribes of Israel - we are included through our obedience!

We might just go ahead and say that obedience is the “DNA” of the kingdom of God.

It’s the tool by which we grow to resemble God.

I find it VERY INTERESTING that is Genesis 3, the serpent promised Eve she would be like God through disobedience.

Now look at this:

So Jesus was exalted to lordship through obedience.

And we, too, are elevated by obedience - all the way to a glorified body one day, in which we will rule with Christ!

Jesus’ Family and Friends Criticized Him

If you look at Mark chapter 3, we see Jesus in a house teaching His followers.

And while He’s teaching, His mother and brothers were outside, worried that He had lost His mind.

In Mark 3:21, they literally complained that He was “beside himself,” which even today is a claim that somebody has said goodbye to reason and common sense.

And so we have here what appears to be a division within the household of the Messiah.

Jesus’ Response to His Critics

Right after the claim about Jesus’ insanity, Mark gives another story about a division within a household.

The scribes accused Jesus of casting out devils by the power of Beelzebub (Satan).

And Jesus responded to them by saying that “a house divided against itself cannot stand.”

And here’s what Jesus was saying: If Satan was casting out his own demons, that would mean that his household had fallen and his power had really come to an end.

I mean, why in the world would Satan give Jesus power to cast out demons?!

Think about this for a moment...

IF Satan WAS giving Jesus that power to bind devils, then his kingdom was being destroyed from within, and Jesus was the one doing the destruction.

BUT, if Jesus was NOT using satanic power to cast out devils, Jesus must have been binding devils by a power higher than Satan’s, whose kingdom was then being destroyed from the outside!

IF Jesus was casting out demons by a higher power, that higher power WAS the Holy Ghost.

And if the Holy Ghost was casting out demons, the ruler of the house of demons had been tied up and his house was being ransacked!

BUT IN EITHER SCENARIO, THE RULE OF THE KINGDOM OF SATAN WAS OVER!!!

So, Jesus’ response exposed their blasphemy.

And it’s in this we find the reason for the stern warning Jesus gave for all time… If the scribes accused Jesus of casting out demons by the Spirit of God, they were saying God Himself was doing the work of Satan!

In their minds, the God of Israel had become the devil to their plans.

And Jesus called this blasphemy an unforgivable sin.

This was sort of a small example of what Jesus “brought out” of people.

Whatever was in men’s hearts, when Jesus came around, it was exposed.

And there was a long-standing hatred for God that was harbored in men’s hearts.

These scribes’ accusation to Jesus was just confirming what they thought of God all along.

So here is some truth, this morning: Fallen humanity is at war with God.

Our initial state as humanity in this world is at odds with the will of God.

My flesh, my intentions, my actions… until they submit, they are against God.

And humanity resists God.

When the scribes saw the evidence of the Spirit’s work, they knowingly and willfully sought to kill it.

In the end, they would push God off the edge of the world He made and onto the cross.

There is always a resistance to the work of the Spirit, even within the Church.

After all Jesus said there, the gospel of Mark shifts back to Jesus teaching His followers in the house.

The followers tell Him that His family would like to meet Him outside.

Jesus told them that whoever does the will of God, they are His mother and brothers.

What Jesus was doing was showing off His spoils from ransacking Satan’s house… because He was claiming as HIS people those who were once members of the devil’s household!

Jesus’ Previous Encounter with the Strong Man

Jesus had already had an encounter with the devil in Mark.

After Jesus defeated the devil in the wilderness, His first words were:

Jesus then went to Capernaum where He started gathering His disciples, cast demons out of a demoniac, and went to the house of Simon and Andrew.

And while Jesus was beginning His ministry, Herod threw John the Baptist in prison.

Jesus immediately began preaching John’s message and casting out devils as evidence that He was binding what He called the “strong man.”

These exorcisms he was doing had a long-term effect.

People started telling of Jesus as one who taught with authority, unlike the scribes.

And because those scribes were hearing this talk, the next time they encountered Jesus, they were ready with a slander even more vicious than before!

They couldn’t deny that Jesus taught with more authority than they did, so they tried to say that this authority was coming from Satan.

But that was in itself an admission that they themselves were powerless wherever the devil had set up shop.

They were admitting their lack of power against Satan.

Let me submit a little something to you today: for those that take issue with and oppose speaking in other tongues, claiming that it is “of the devil”, they are very similarly admitting the lack of power in their own religion and attempting to attack that true, biblical, spiritual authority!

DON’T BE ASHAMED OF THE SIGN OF THE SPIRIT THAT IS TONGUES!

THE SPIRIT IS THE POWER!

I Will Follow Jesus Alone Because He Bound the Strong Man

When Jesus was being tempted, He defined “whoever does the will of God” as a member of God’s family.

And interestingly, He didn’t call any disciples BEFORE His wilderness temptation.

But He called Peter, James, John, and Andrew right after.

And it shows that the foundation of His holy family is obedience: first His obedience to follow God and then His disciples’ obedience to follow Him.

So, for us, we can embrace our calling as sons and daughters of God, following Him and being free from whatever would bind us.

Jesus’ victory over temptation gives us power over temptation!

The Foundation of Jesus’ Family

So let’s talk about the start of Jesus’ family...

In Mark 3:13-19, we read of the twelve disciples that Jesus appointed to preach the gospel.

By appointing these twelve men, Jesus was making a clear statement that He was establishing a family - whose Father is God - for the redemption of the world.

And the twelve disciples then stood with jesus while leaders of Judea accused Him of high crimes, while devils confronted Him, and while Jesus’ earthly family would speak badly of Him.

After that claim of Him being “beside Himself,” they even attempted to arrest Him for it!

Being in Jesus’ Family Is Not Always Popular

And if you’re going to live for God and follow Jesus, it often means that we are joining the one that others view as “beside Himself.”

Following Jesus and being part of His family doesn’t always make sense to others watching our lives.

To join Him in His house is to go “outside,” to leave behind the safety and normality of our social world and follow Him.

But that’s often the call of God to us.

He doesn’t call us to understand it or even agree with it, just to follow.

Jesus’ Family Members Share His Traits

And in following, Jesus wants us to take on His characteristics.

I’ve always found it interesting and sometimes funny how kids will carry on characteristics of their parents.

A lot of times, it’s passed on through genes.

A man’s jawline, voice, or other things will often show up in his son.