[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.”
(Mark 3:13-21 ESV)
The apostles were special.
They were:
- Simon (named Peter)
- James the son of Zebedee
- John the brother of James (named Boanerges - Sons of Thunder)
- Andrew
- Philip
- Bartholomew
- Matthew
- Thomas
- James the son of Allpheaus
- Thaddeus
- Simon the Zealot
- Judas iscariot - who betrayed him
These were the 12. From different walks of life. Fishermen, tax collector, and more. These men would be trained, and then sent to preach and cast out demons.
I have to admit, I am not that familiar with Thaddeus. It's like...what did he do? But most of the others I know them fairly well. What disciples are you most familiar with?
Anyways, I find the end of this section odd.
Jesus after choosing the 12, went home. The crowd gathered round them so thickly that they couldn't even eat. When his family heard about it, they thought he was crazy and wanted to seize him.
It's like HUH?
First off...what does one have to do with the other?
And second... why did they think Jesus was crazy?
Makes no sense to me.
So I went to the commentaries to find out what was up.
The general consensus is that his family knew he was being watched and wanted to protect him by declaring him crazy. Odd eh?
Help someone out, because I'm assuming they love him (they are his family), by declaring them a lunatic. :) Makes me laugh and shake my head. The things folks want to do out of love.
I wonder if Jesus understood that.
It doesn't say how he handled it. They TRIED to seize him, doesn't say that they managed to. AND we know that Jesus kept on ministering to folks for the next three years, so they failed. It makes me think of how they must have worried on him. Thinking,... that boy of ours...he's so religious and he's so odd and he's in so much danger....
But Jesus just kept on about the work of his father.
And eventually they believed him.
What work does Jesus want me to continue doing? What about you?