Jesus answered, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” Then he pointed to
his disciples and said, “Look! Here are my mother and my brothers. Whoever does the
will of my Father in heaven is my brother, sister, and mother.”
Reflection:
In this extraordinary passage, we catch a glimpse of Jesus’ dynamics
with His family. First, His mother and most of His
relatives do not follow Him around in His ministry. They
do not try to amplify their own influence by associating
with their more famous relative. They even have
to seek audience with Him because of the many people
occupying Jesus’ time. Hence the request to see Him is
conveyed. What is surprising is Jesus’ answer. It seemed
at first glance that He downplays the importance
of His mother and relatives. But on deeper reading of the
passage we come to realize that He points not to blood
relations that binds Him with His mother and relatives. It
is their deep capacity to listen and follow God’s
word. Hence Mary and His brothers and sisters are the
first among His extensive family because they are the
hearers and doers of God’s word par excellence.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2021