November 11, 2012
“While Jesus was
still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told him,
"Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to
you." He replied to him, "Who is my mother,
and who are my brothers?" Pointing to his disciples, he
said, "Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the
will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and
mother."
Matthew
12: 46-50
Today I experienced an indescribable
joy, a glimpse of Heaven, and a small piece of a prayer that I have been
praying for months over: that God would help me get over my intellectual walls
and experience His unconditional love.
Today I observed the baptism of three people who mean so much to me, and then
had the opportunity to share in their joy by singing and dancing and praying
with them.
The story of my baptism, to be as
humble as I can, is remarkable in its own right. But there was a sadness in me
this morning, almost turned to quickness in deciding myself to be baptized this
morning as well, in the sense that I was baptized in Honduras with a community
of believers that I love dearly, but with whom I so minimally interact. Though
I carry the reminder of my baptism as a tattoo on my right forearm, a
proclamation to myself and to others of my public commitment to follow Jesus,
there was a brief moment of sorrow in me, where my heart was racing frantically
at the thought that maybe I too should be baptized this morning, in the
presence of the family that has adopted me as their own, my brothers and
sisters.
I remember when I first read the verse
above, I heard Jesus saying these words with an almost angry arrogance, as
though he were trying to make a point that he was too busy with his “work” of
saving souls to care for his blood family. But as I reflected on my experience
this morning, the tears I cried in watching each person be baptized, the
clapping and singing and joyful celebration from the rest of the congregation,
I realized that Jesus was trying to speak so much deeper through these words.
These are my brothers and my sisters.
While I have two amazing younger sisters, a brother-in-law, and two great
parents, there is a connection to my family of believers that seems, well,
unique and special. I don’t think Jesus was carelessly casting off his mother
and his brothers. I think He was pointing out that family is not exclusive to
bloodline.
As the Apostle Paul wandered the known
world, reaching out to the often confused and forsaken Gentiles, he had to
spend a lot of time trying to reconcile the hurt and misunderstanding they
experienced by not being included as God’s “chosen,” Israel. There was
confusion at times as to whether they must follow the Law of Israel, or whether
there was a new way, the “Jesus way.” Yet in Galatians alone Paul refers dozens
of times to these people of non-Jewish bloodline as “brothers,” or fellow Christians.
He does not delineate between Jews and Gentiles in his instruction. Rather, he
speaks to his family of believers, his brothers.
I poured my eyes out today as I watched
each brother and sister become baptized. And I don’t know why I cried so much,
except that I kept hearing this voice in my head: these are my brothers and these
are my sisters and these are my
mothers and these are my fathers. These are the family that I now share,
here and forevermore.
And when that joy infiltrated my heart,
truly surpassing the anxieties and worries I carried with me into the service
today, I was left with nothing but tears. Today my brothers and my sisters were
brought forth in new life. Today we recognized a glimpse of the eternity we
will spend together. Today we cast aside our notions and understandings of a
temporary, passing world and all of the relationships that we form here and
now, in order to see a greater vision of our united family.
Today I felt the calling in my heart to
share this joy. And it came as a single teardrop as I looked across the room of
my fellow brothers and sisters.
Today it made sense that I should
persevere through my trials and struggles, and should place hope in Jesus
entirely.
Today I felt the need to pray for God’s
blessings in the lives of each of my brothers and sisters, to take us into the
world to share His love, and to share again in the joy of seeing our family
grow.
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