Sunday School Lesson 3 - Mark 3:23-35 - A DIVIDED HOUSE
LAST WEEK: Last week in Mark 2:1-12 we studied the first of five "controversies," which is commonly titled the healing of the paralytic. You'll remember that the house in Capernaum where the event took place was so crowded, the crippled man's friends had to cut a hole in the roof and lower him into the room in order to get him in front of Jesus. When the paralytic was lowered, Jesus, after seeing the faith of the paralytic and his friends said, to the surprise of everyone, "your sins are forgiven" (2:5). The scribes present rightly claimed the only God can forgive sin and wrongly accused Jesus of blasphemy, a crime punishable by death. In order to prove His divine authority as the Son of God, Jesus told the paralyzed man to, "get up, pick up your pallet and go home" (2:11), and the man immediately did just that. The central theme of the lesson text was that the most important thing for anyone to know about Jesus is that He is God. The three main points of personal application we learned were: (1) Forgiveness of sin is the highest need of every person; (2) Because forgiveness is such an imperative need, we should do everything possible to bring our friends to Jesus; and (3) Jesus alone has the authority to forgive sins.
THIS WEEK: In the background of today's story, we find Jesus again at the house of Peter's family in Capernaum after He returned from a preaching tour in Galilee, where he received an overwhelmingly positive response from the crowds who saw and heard Him. I will briefly summarize vv. 20-22 of Chapter 3 to illustrate some of the tensions His ministry was generating: In v. 20, when He returned to the house, it was already surrounded by a huge crowd; in v. 21, His own family (His mother and His half-siblings) came from Nazareth with the intention of forcing him to return home because "He has lost His senses" (not based on what they had seen but on hearsay-gossip); then in v. 22, scribes from Jerusalem accused Jesus of being possessed by "Beelzebul" (a name for Satan), and claimed that Satan had given Him the power to cast out demons. By this time, Jesus has come to the attention of the religious authorities in Jerusalem. While they are forced to admit that he has inexplicable powers, they label them as satanic in origin. This is where we come into today's lesson text.
Read Mark 2:23-27 - HOW CAN SATAN CAST OUT SATAN?
23 And He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in parables, "How can Satan cast out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 If Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but he is finished! 27 But no one can enter the strong man's house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house.
v. 23a: "And He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in parables" - The "them" are the Jerusalem scribes making the accusations. In this context, Jesus is using "parables" in the general sense of making comparisons, rather than his more familiar analogies (e.g., sower, prodigal son). Most of us would be completely taken aback by this kind of official attack, yet here, we see Jesus respond to them very calmly and under control with a parable that demonstrates a logical fallacy. And the fallacy is:
v. 23b: "How can Satan cast out Satan?" This is a question stating a major premise, not a parable.
vv. 24-25: "If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand." The first two parables: (1) an earthly kingdom and (2) a house (human family). The Jews of Jesus' day would certainly understand this: after their kingdom became divided, it became a vassal to foreign powers. When a human family divides-after a separation or a divorce, a split between siblings-it ceases to exist as a unit. All logical outcomes. While running for a U.S. Senate seat in Illinois in 1858, Abraham Lincoln made the famous "house divided" statement in relation to a nation divided between free states and slave states. Three years later this division resulted in the costliest war (620,000+ deaths) this nation has ever experienced.
v. 26a: "If Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand" - Now Jesus applies these two comparisons to Satan. In the first phrase of this verse, Jesus is saying that if Satan's opposes himself, that is, divides his power, he's in effect committing an act of self-destruction.
v. 26b: "but he is finished!" - And if Satan did this, he would cease to exist-commit spiritual suicide.
v. 27: But no one can enter the strong man's house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house. This is common sense parable: In order to break into a strong man's house and steal his property, you will first need to overpower and immobilize him, yes? Now, in another context, with Satan represented as a strong man defending his property, how could Jesus cleanse a man of an unclean spirit (a demon) in Capernaum (see Mk. 1:21-28)? He could only so do so by having spiritual powers that overcame the ruler of the demons.
Read Mark 3:28-30 - WHOEVER BLASPHEMES AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT
28 "Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter; 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin"- 30 because they were saying, "He has an unclean spirit."
v. 28a "Truly I say to you" - This is the first of many such solemn affirmations that Jesus makes to add strength and emphasis to what He is about to say.
v. 28b: "all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter" - This pronouncement foresees the substitutionary atonement that Jesus will eventually make on the cross: that those who follow Him-"sons of men," i.e., Christians saved by grace-will be forgiven of not only sins against other people, but even for blasphemy, a sin against God.
v. 29: "but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin" - This is one of the most often misunderstood verses in the Bible. The scribes from Jerusalem claimed that Jesus used the power and authority of Satan to cast out demons, rather than the power and authority of the Holy Spirit, and Jesus responded by saying that this was the very essence of the one sin that God will not forgive. In the specific context of this conversation, it refers to a particular act. But as applied to us-believing Christians-today, it has a more general meaning: For example, if ever in your past you sinned by using God's (or Jesus') name in vain in violation of the third commandment, it is a sin against God, but not an unforgivable sin against the Holy Spirit if you repent; if however, a person in the end rejects (i.e., blasphemes against) the saving power of God's Holy Spirit, he or she will suffer condemnation, the second death, at the final judgment (Rev.21:8ff).
v. 30: "because they were saying, "He has an unclean spirit" - This forms an addendum to v. 29: this is a person who claims that the Holy Spirit's testimony (i.e., authentication) of Jesus is satanic, which in saying that Jesus is a demon, not God in the flesh. This is absolutely beyond contempt.
Read Mark 3:31-35 - WHOEVER DOES THE WILL OF GOD
31 Then His mother and His brothers *arrived, and standing outside they sent word to Him and called Him. 32 A crowd was sitting around Him, and they *said to Him, "Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are outside looking for You." 33 Answering them, He *said, "Who are My mother and My brothers?" 34 Looking about at those who were sitting around Him, He *said, "Behold My mother and My brothers! 35 For whoever does the will of God, he is My brother and sister and mother."
v. 31: "Then His mother and His brothers *arrived, and standing outside they sent word to Him and called Him" - It's significant that Jesus' mother (Mary) and His (half) brothers (James, Joseph, Jude, and Simon) are not only standing outside but are standing alongside Jesus' opponents. This relates back to v. 21, where they declared, "He has lost His senses." But we also need to notice that Jesus' family isn't siding with the scribes. They are very perplexed by the stories they've heard (hearsay) about Him performing miraculous healings and casting out demons, and His pronouncements about Himself as the Son of God, but in contrast to the hateful unbelief of the scribes, they are motivated by their concern for Jesus, and their unbelief is based upon ignorance. We should also note that Scholars believe Jesus' earthly father, Joseph, must have been deceased by this time.
v. 32: "A crowd was sitting around Him, and they *said to Him, "Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are outside looking for You." The key word here is "outside." They are not only physically separated-outside the house-but are also "outside" of Jesus' influence. While they believe they're doing what's best for Jesus, their primary concern was to avoid further embarrassment. The bottom line is that they are seeking Jesus for the wrong reasons: Instead of being interested in whether or not His message is true, they're focused on stopping the trouble He was causing for the family.
v. 33: "Answering them, He *said, "Who are My mother and My brothers?" - This may seem to be a shocking, even heartless statement on its face, but it demonstrates Jesus' understanding of Himself and the radical nature of Biblical faith that can only be understood in terms of a new birth and a new family. As born-again believers, we now related to God as the Father, to Jesus as the Son and Savior, which, together, now makes us the "children of God" (John 1:12-13).
v. 34: "Looking about at those who were sitting around Him, He *said, "Behold My mother and My brothers!" - This statement could be rephrased to say: My "family" now consists of those who are related to me by Spirit, not by flesh. Do you see that? What this statement tells us is that following Jesus can result in divisions in our earthly families, His own mother and brothers being a case in point.
v. 35: "For whoever does the will of God, he is My brother and sister and mother" - In Jesus' day and time, biological families were at the foundation of the patriarchal, Jewish society. Order, safety, provision, and honor were all tied to this idea, and then Jesus comes along and turns this entire cultural presumption upside-down! As demonstrated by the NT church throughout the Book of Acts, where the terms "brothers" was widely used to refer to the church or spiritual family rather than biological relationships. This statement expresses two fundamental truths about what it means to do "the will of God": (1) Faith in Jesus Christ is God's will for all humans (John 1:12: 3:16; 6:40; and 14:6) and (2) the invitation to respond to faith in Jesus and His message are all-inclusive and universal. This means there are no barriers between God and humanity (e.g., gender, nationality, race, ethnicity, culture, social standing, wealth, etc.) to this invitation; all are invited.
OBSERVATION: In his book, Mere Christianity, famous Christian author C. S. Lewis said you cannot simply dismiss Jesus as a mere man who was a great moral teacher: based upon what He said about himself, you will be forced to choose whether He is either a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord and Savior He claimed to be. In today's lesson, the scribes rejected Him as a liar, his family considered Him to be a lunatic, but those who believed in Him by faith accepted Him as their Lord and Savior.
APPLICATION-comes down to three basic Biblical truths:
1. The ultimate and one unforgiveable sin is rejecting the saving work of the Holy Spirit. Any individual who sides with the scribes and ultimately rejects (i.e., blasphemes against) the saving power of God's Holy Spirit will suffer condemnation-the second death-at the final judgment (Rev. 21:8ff). At some point in their Christian walk, every Christian must wrestle with the confusion of what constitutes "unforgiveable sin" (Mk. 3:29). In the context of NT Christianity, it is the decisive and ultimate refusal to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, the one unforgiveable sin.
2. When we accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior by faith, we become members of God's family. In Jesus" day it was the biological family of His patriarchal Jewish society. In today's western culture, more importance is given to status in our work and careers and accumulating power and wealth. As much today as in Biblical times, Jesus turns the cultural presumptions upside-down. For believing Christians, this results in at least four broad ramifications: (a) Our identities are no longer identified with our biological families, jobs, status, or wealth;
(b) Our faith walk can cause strain or conflict in our relationships with our biological families, friends, and/or our professional or business associates;
(c) Our real identity is instead identified with the larger group, the family of God through shared faith in Jesus Christ, who give us purpose, mission, family, and fellowship; and
(d) Most importantly, decisive and final rejection of the One who gives us that identity leaves a person outside of our real family, the family of God. If these are people we care about, we must pray that our witness for Jesus Christ will convict them to believe and repent, so they will no longer be standing at the door, screaming that Jesus is either a liar or a lunatic.
3. Faith in Jesus Christ is "God's will" for all humans (John 1:12: 3:16; 6:40; and 14:6). The invitation to respond to faith in Jesus and His message are all-inclusive and universal. This means there are no barriers between God and humanity (e.g., gender, nationality, race, ethnicity, culture, social standing, wealth, etc.) to this invitation; all are invited.
PRAYER: Lord God, our Almighty Creator and Sustainer of all life, we come before You this morning with thankful hearts, praising You for your love, mercy, and underserved grace toward us. And Father, we especially thank You that You loved us enough to send Your only Son Jesus to die for us on a cross so that we can may be forgiven of our sins and spend eternity in heaven with You. We thank you, dear God, for this good church and the fact that we are now able to gather together again in person to study and learn the truth of Your Word. As we heard Pastor JR preach that truth from Genesis Chapter six last week, it's truly horrifying to learn how similar the corruption of the world at that time is to the world we live in today. It certainly forces us to us to wonder how long it might last. But even in the face of that reality, Jesus' words to us in this morning's lesson gives us hope: That the invitation to respond in faith to Jesus and His message is STILL OPEN. And even better, Jesus' invitation is all-inclusive, which means that everyone in the whole world in invited. It doesn't matter whether you're male or female, or rich or poor, or what language you speak, or the culture you come from, or the color of your skin-you are invited. This invitation is open right now, but none of us here today can be sure there will be a tomorrow. So, if you have not, the time to make this decision in RIGHT NOW. I ask these things in the Names above all names, Jesus Christ, AMEN.
