"The Cost of Our Redemption: Mary -- Family"

Easter Sunday, March 31/02

John 20:1-18

             Easter morning: early hours cloaked in excitement and fear, mystery and wonder. Darkness scattered by dawn's rays, glimpses of shattered tombs and empty grave-

clothes raising questions in the fresh morning fog. Did you hear the news? The body's gone! where could they have taken him? What d'you make of what Peter and John saw? And Mary Magdalene - could it have been a vision, or her imagination? What happened to the guards and the seal on the stone?

             In this atmosphere of wonder and intrigue we wrap up our murder mystery investigation of the past few weeks. We've been examining the suspects to determine who killed Jesus - "whodunnit" and why? What motives pushed those involved to hand over the Saviour to death on a cross; what did they choose instead of Him? No matter what the motive, we've realized that Jesus offers something infinitely better than religious tradition, riches, security, or power and control. He offers eternal life. The suspects chose lesser treasures, trading in Christ for these other values, but wound up disappointed in the end. They weren't prepared to pay the cost to save Him from execution. Looking back, we can see that Jesus' redemption or "buying back" of us from evil is more precious than any of these counterfeits Satan would tempt us with instead. Oh, the marvelous worth of what our Lord did at the cross!

             So, the murder trial's just about concluded. But wait - who's this? In a surprise move, the crown attorney is calling the victim's own mother to the stand! Could Mary, Jesus' mother, possibly be guilty? Was she a threat to Jesus' ministry? Not to the extent of killing Him, of course, but preventing Him from carrying out His mission. The motive for Mary must have been "family": as we'll see, at times it appears this parent's determination to guard her family would have interfered with Jesus' ministry. And in order for us to experience Jesus as Saviour, we too must be ready to relinquish "family" as an idol.

A) "Out of His Mind": the Sword pierces Mary's Soul

             John writes (1:11) that Jesus "came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him." We know the Jewish nation as a whole did not receive Him, but could John also be referring to Jesus' own family? Certainly his hometown of Nazareth took offense at Him and the majority did not believe; they were ready to throw Him over a cliff (Lk.4:28f). As for Jesus' siblings, it sounds like there must have been at least 8 kids in the family; Matthew (13:55) lists four brothers and refers to "all" his sisters, likely three or more. John records that even Jesus' own brothers did not believe in Him (7:5). Perhaps to Mary it seemed like Jesus had always been on a different wavelength: when He stayed behind in Jerusalem at age 12, it took her and Joseph 3 days to find Him - engaging in religious discussion with the leaders in the temple (Lk.2:45ff).

             By the time Jesus was at the height of His ministry, with crowds flocking to hear Him from all over the countryside, Jesus' family were wondering whether He'd gone crazy. Mark 3(20f) says, "Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat.When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, 'He is out of his mind.'" In other words, if His family'd had their way, Jesus might have spent the rest of His life locked in a padded room wearing a straitjacket (or whatever they did back then). What would that have meant? No ministry; no cross; no eternal life for humankind.

             Some of you who are believers may already experience this from your own relatives. They're not into Jesus, but into "making it", or "getting the most", or into booze or drugs, into sports live or on the tube, or the party scene. They just can't understand how Christ would turn anyone's crank. When you head off to church or a small group Bible study, or are just sitting there reading your Bible minding your own business, they tease and mock you, if not worse. "Reading your fairy tales again?" "Betcha think you're better than us, don't you, miss goody-two-shoes?" "What are you doing wasting your time with that stuff -- you don't really believe that junk, do ya?" And so on. Peer pressure to conform, to be like everybody else, operates just as strongly in a family as out of it. God does call us to be holy, to be "set apart" for Him, but that makes us different - and not popular in some circles. Let's reflect on our holiday family get-togethers this Easter and note which gets higher profile - the Rabbit or the Resurrection.

             It must have been hard for Jesus, too. He didn't yield to the pressure from His family to let them take over. Mark tells what happened when they caught up with Him (3:31-35): "Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived.Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him.A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, "Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you." "Who are my mother and my brothers?" he asked.Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother."" Alienated from His siblings, Jesus proposed a radically new kind of family unit: the family of faith, those united by seeking and obeying God.

             So came true what was prophesied when Mary and Joseph presented Jesus as a baby in Jerusalem. Simeon had come up to them, blessed them, and said to Mary in particular that her baby would cause the rising and falling of many, and be a sign that would be spoken against. Then he added in a grave tone, "And a sword will pierce your own soul too." (Lk.2:35) The differences between Jesus and the rest of His family must have caused Mary grief long before His arrest and trial.

             Parents, some of you may be experiencing a similar sword piercing your soul because of unbelieving, wayward children. It's impossible for us to "force" someone to be a Christian, even our own offspring, however much we might wish that. All you can do is provide the best possible foundation then set the free to be dealt with by God individually. Their rebellion will cause you pain, but though you have to let them go, you don't have to quit praying for them. Nicky Gumbel tells of one Christian mother who was having problems with her rebellious teenage son. "He was lazy, bad-tempered, a cheat, a liar, and a thief. Later on, though outwardly respected as a lawyer, his life was dominated by worldly ambition and a desire to make money. His morals were loose.He lived with several different women and had a son by one of them.At one stage he joined a weird religious sect and adopted all kinds of strange practices. Throughout this time his mother continued to pray for him. One day, the Lord gave her a vision and she wept as she prayed, because she saw the light of Jesus Christ in her son and his face transformed. She had to wait another nine years before her son gave his life to Jesus...at the age of 32. That man's name was Augustine. He went on to become one of the greatest theologians in the church. He always attributed his conversion to the prayers of his mother." So, moms and dads, keep trusting and praying even when your son or daughter willfully investigate enemy territory, and your soul aches.

             Whatever rift or friction there may have been between Jesus and others in his family, Mary did come to the cross. It was a heartbreaking scene, the grieving mother sobbing for her eldest son, innocent at that, gasping out his last breaths on a cruel rack of torture. Though His family may have written Him off, and He Himself is one aching mass close to death, Jesus still shows tender care. John records that when Jesus saw his mother there, not far from John, He said to Mary, "Dear woman, here is your son," and to John, "Here is your mother." From that moment on, John took Mary into his home to look after her (Jn.19:26f). For Jesus' sake, John adopted Mary as his own mother.

             That's a model of what Jesus does for all who believe: God's Spirit lovingly plants us into a new "family" as it were, the family of faith. As the Psalmist said, "Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will take me up" (Ps.27:10). Jesus promised: "I tell you the truth, no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields— and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life." (Mark 10:29-30 NIVUS)

B) Welcome to the Family -- of Faith!

             The Resurrection marks the start of a new order: the empty tomb rocks all our natural patterns like an earthquake. It's a trumpet blast announcing that there's more to life than just eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage. A spiritual reality transcends our earthly reality. God's kingdom intrudes upon the realm of "death and taxes" and offers us a breathtakingly different existence. Forgiven by trusting in Jesus, we can enjoy new life in the Spirit realm, a new birth. Jesus told Nicodemus, "No one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again...born of water and the Spirit.Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit." (Jn.3:3,5f)

             Remember John acknowledging that Jesus' own did not receive Him? He adds, "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God." (John 1:12-13 NIVUS) Contrary to New Age, the New Testament view is that humans are not all "children of God" in the truest sense just by the fact of their existence; unless we believe in God's Son, we are by nature "objects of wrath" (Jn.3:36; Rom.2:5; 9:22; Eph.2:3;5:6). Faith in Jesus Christ is the essential missing ingredient: faith that has at its core this morning's central event, Jesus rising from the dead in a glorified bodily form. The resurrection is the key stone in the supporting arch of Christianity: without it, everything falls apart. By the resurrection God placed His stamp of approval on Christ's sacrifice for our sins. By the resurrection Jesus comes and confronts us, asking whether we're prepared to live for Him as Lord.

             Believing is the entry-point to God's faith family. Paul told the Galatians (3:26), "You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus." John wrote, "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God...Anyone who does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because he has not believed the testimony God has given about his Son.And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life." (1 John 5:1,10-12 NIVUS) How could it be put more simply?!

             To become part of this faith-family is an unthinkable privilege. Think carefully about what Jesus said when He'd risen. Matthew (28:10) records: "Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee..." John has, "Go...to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" (20:17) By repetition Jesus is emphasizing a wonderful new beginning: by trust in Him we become His spiritual "siblings", we enjoy access directly to God as Jesus did.

             To become part of this faith-family is an inner spiritual experience. Paul describes it this way: "But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, <"Abba>, Father." (Galatians 4:4-6 NIVUS) With the Holy Spirit indwelling us, our Heavenly Father is closer than Ma Bell. You'll never get a busy signal! The Spirit takes the things of Scripture and plants them in our consciousness, by Him we detect God's communication to us of direction and assurance. Love, joy, peace, and purpose fill the empty places inside us.

             And to become part of this faith-family is an outward expression. A new equality and respect mark our relations; Jesus warned "You are not to be called Rabbi, for you have only one Master and you are all brothers" (today we'd add, "and sisters"). Paul cautions slaves who have believing masters not to show less respect for them, but to serve them even better, "because those who benefit from their service are believers, and dear to them." (1Tim.6:2) What's happening here? Slaves and masters being "dear", serving just for the joy of seeing someone benefit? You can start to see how the message of Jesus profoundly alters any social order it touches. The outward expression also touches those who are least. In the parable of the sheep and the goats the King declares, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." (Mt.25:40) How we treat those who are "less" - in position, size, or ability - Jesus takes personally because He identifies with them as brothers and sisters. He feels their pain; when early Christians were persecuted, Jesus felt it too (Acts 9:4). Talk about a close-knit family! Everybody needs a Big Brother like Jesus...pick on one of His little siblings, sooner or later you're going to have to deal with Him, too!

Conclusion: Cop Cover

             Now what's the verdict? Was family important to Mary? Unquestionably. Did this motive just about scuttle Jesus' ministry to the world? Very nearly, but He resisted their takeover tactics. Can Mary come down off the stand? Ultimately she did come to the cross and accept Jesus' new pattern of family-hood. Acts 1(14) tells us Jesus' followers "all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers." More than just being Jesus' physical mother, by faith Mary became a sister (spiritually speaking) of Christ - and you and me. She discovered a new kinship, a heavenly adoptive family.

             When police officer Phil Schultz found out his 3-year-old daughter had leukemia, he had to squeeze his limited time off from work to be with her. While the 7-year police veteran and his wife rotated nights at the hospital to be with his daughter, he watched his vacation and compensatory time melt away. Schultz said, "I was beginning to wonder what I would do when I ran out."

             But his police officer partners each donated 4 hours, and many offered to give much more compensatory time, which they earn by working overtime. Schultz was given at least 40 extra days. The director of staff services explained, "We wanted to make sure they knew we were here for them." Schultz says, "The day Lauren was diagnosed with leukemia, she was adopted by 100 people.They became like a second family for my family."

             That's the church at its best -- a second family, adopting those who are least, making sacrifices for our brothers and sisters in faith. Thanks to Jesus' sacrifice for us, when we commit ourselves to Him we discover we've been born over again from above. Easter celebrates a new close-knit relationship made possible with our Heavenly Father and everyone who is in Christ! Let's pray.