They Thought Jesus Was Crazy

And They'll Think You Are Too

"And when his friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold on him: for they said, He is beside himself." Mark 3:21

When word reached Jesus' family and friends about the great works He was doing in the name of God, they didn't rejoice, sing praises, or seek to join Him.  They immediately went to stop Him.  Why?  They assumed that He had gone crazy.

"Lay hold on" is the word krateō which means: to rule or be master over; to be in possession of, to seize; to retain or restrain.

"Beside himself" is existēmi which means: to be out of one's mind, insane

There is nothing passive in their response to Jesus' ministry.  They intended to overpower Jesus and subdue Him.

What had Jesus been doing to warrant such a reaction?  He had healed the sick, cast out devils, and taught the people the word of God.  More significant perhaps, Jesus had come against the established religious traditions of His day.  By simply manifesting the power of God's Kingdom (in His words and actions), Jesus showed that the religious leaders were not the holy men of God they proclaimed to be.

Yet, it is not just the religious hypocrites who wanted to stop Jesus, it was even those in His own household.

"There came then his brethren and his mother, and, standing without, sent unto him, calling him." Mark 3:31

When the individuals who desired to apprehend Jesus finally arrived, Scripture gives more detail about who they were: Jesus' brethren and His mother.

Jesus gives us the same warning.  We should not be surprised when opposition to the Gospel raises up against us from within our very household.  Anyone who is blind to the truth will think that the truth is nonsensical and will fight against it (II Corinthians 2:15-16, 4:3-4; II Timothy 2:25).

It is often those who have 'known us' who have the hardest time receiving God's work in us and fight us on the journey to know Him more.  They will try to pull you back with words and deeds.  "It doesn't take all of that to serve God", they say.  "You are going too far."  "Nothing is more important than your [earthly] family."   "Blood is thicker than water."  Yet this is not what Jesus said (Luke 14:26).

And if they cannot keep you soulishly tied to them, then they will try to hold you hostage to some representation of yourself before you came to Christ.  "Who are you to preach about Jesus with all that you have done?"  "You are not perfect!"  "I remember when you used to..."  But remember that in Christ we are made new (II Corinthians 5:17)!  You are no longer who you were before and all of your sins have been forgiven.  We don't need to be perfect to stand for Christ and His truths, we simply need to be in Him.

In such situations, we must be mindful of how Jesus responded in such situations; understanding that what was most significant in God's eyes was being a member of the Body of Christ (Mark 3:33-35).

"But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house." Mark 6:4 (Also, Matthew 13:57; Luke 4:24; John 4:44)

There is a show which comes on Animal Planet called "Fatal Attractions" which chronicles stories of men & women who take in and befriend wild animals...often to tragic results.  My daughter once said, "Why is it people think they can make a wild animal not be wild?"

Humans are prone to such blind spots.  When God tells us that we will be betrayed by mother, father, sister, brother...He is coming against that blind spot.  He is telling us that the fallen nature cannot be trusted...no matter who it is.

Think it not strange when you face opposition for the faith, even from those closest to you.  Neither expect that such persons will appreciate your testimony and receive from you the word of God due to some earthly relationship or affection. 

In Christ, we have been adopted into the family of God.  When mother or father forsake us, we must remember that Christ has taken us up (Psalm 27:10).  Serve God with your whole heart and do not compromise, not even for the sake of earthly relationships.  Do not be subdued.  Do not be restrained.  Cry aloud and spare not.  Who knows whether such a witness may eventually help bring those you love into the faith as happened with Jesus' mother and His brethren?  But even should it not, you must decide to go on in Christ if we are to be His disciples.

"Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me." Matthew 10:34-37