David Bahn – Reflections

Soon afterward Jesus went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, ² and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, ³ and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.

⁴ And when a great crowd was gathering and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable, ⁵ “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it. ⁶ And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. ⁷ And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it. ⁸ And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

⁹ And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant, ¹⁰ he said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’ ¹¹ Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. ¹² The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. ¹³ And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away. ¹⁴ And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. ¹⁵ As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.

¹⁶ “No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light. ¹⁷ For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light. ¹⁸ Take care then how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.”

¹⁹ Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. ²⁰ And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.” ²¹ But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”

At one point Jesus’ family thought he had lost his mind. Mark recounts: “Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, ‘He is out of his mind.’” (Mark 3:20-21) John 7:5 has, “not even his brothers believed in him.” Luke’s record here may the the same event, or another incident recorded in this context. If it is two different occasions, his family may yet be concerned that Jesus was going too far. in is ministry. He had gotten carried away with his ministry and taken on too large of a challenge.

Then he dismisses his family and makes the point that his true mother and brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it. He seems to dismiss his family, which might also explain how his brothers dismissed him and his mission. Maybe he has gone too far.

And what about the women traveling with Jesus? They are accompanying him and supporting him from their own means. I wonder if whether their friends and family thought they had gone too far. They may have thought that these women had gotten carried away.

Were these women and Jesus like the seed sown on the path that the birds carried away?

Do you ever get carried away with Jesus?

When I was in college I got very serious about sharing my faith. I took my Bible to my philosophy class and shared from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. When I told a girl who I had interest in dating (she was also a Lutheran but totally not interested in me), she said, “Don’t get carried away, Dave.”

Sometimes our faithful witness can make us seem fanatical. People might feel as though we’re getting carried away with Jesus. Maybe so. But Jesus carried away our sins to the cross, and then he was carried away from his cross to a borrowed tomb. Now he reigns at the right hand of God. He did that to secure our eternal salvation and give us hope and a future.

For that I’m thankful. And I may get carried away once in a while in praise and witness to his perfect grace, goodness, and love.