Mark 3:13–21 (ESV) —
13 And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. 14 And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach 15 and have authority to cast out demons. 16 He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); 18 Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot, 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
20 Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. 21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”
NOTE: I wondered who in the family went out to him, was it Mary his mother, or James and Jude, or his sister, or other brothers that we are unaware of? It is hard to believe that Mary might doubt him or think she needed to rescue him, since he could turn water into wine. I can believe that his brothers thought he was out of his mind, and was not doing their lives any good, since they were probably constantly being challenged by the curiosity seekers of the time. Maybe even the religious leaders were asking questions to determine the type of family that raised him. There is so much more to the story that we just don't know. But it does show that over-familiarity can be dangerous, because it prevents us from stepping back and taking a deeper look.
PONDER:
- What are the things that I am too familiar with that I don't stop and think about them?
- What am I missing because I think I am familiar with the person or subject?
- What biases have I developed because of over-familiarity?
PRAYER: Father, help me to listen and learn, and not to assume. Protect me from myself and my pride. Again, help me to listen.
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