Sermon Title: SO CLOSE… YET STILL MISSING IT
Sermon Text: MARK 3:20-35 (ESV)
Sermon Series: EXPANDING THE MISSION: THE KINGDOM UNFOLDS
By: PTR NESTOR SY
Sermon Notes:
MARK 3:20-35 ESV
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.”
22 And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.”
23 And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end.
27 But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.
28 “Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”--
30 for they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
31 And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him.
32 And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.”
33 And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?”
34 And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”
We often assume that closeness equals connection.
Proximity to Jesus does not equal intimacy with Jesus.
MARK 3:35 ESV
35 Whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”
I. THE CONCERNED BUT CONFUSED
He is out of his mind | Greek existémi
“to amaze, to astonish, to be beside oneself, to be out of one’s mind.”
Love without understanding can still resist God’s will.
This isn’t a call to reckless, performative faith; it is a call to discerned obedience.
Discernment is good—but don’t let fear or comfort keep you from saying “yes” to God.
II. THE RELIGIOUS BUT RESISTANT
blaspheme | Greek blasphémeó
“to speak evil against, to slander, to revile.”
MARK 3:29 ESV
29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”--
against | Greek eis
“into, to, towards, for, in order to”
guilty | Greek enochos
“liable to, held responsible for”
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is a persistent resistance to the Spirit’s testimony about Jesus.
Religion can make you resistant to God.
III. THE OBEDIENT AND EMBRACED
MARK 3:31-35 ESV
31 And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him.
32 And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.”
33 And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?”
34 And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”
JOHN 5:24 ESV
24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
JOHN 6:29 ESV
29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
EPHESIANS 2:8-9 ESV
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
1 JOHN 1:8-9 ESV
8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
PHILIPPIANS 3:12-14 ESV
12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Commitment is not just being around Jesus, but aligning our will to his will.
Jesus invites us not just to be near him, but to belong to him.