Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother

"When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation."

While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him. Then one said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak with You." But He answered and said to the one who told Him, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?" And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and 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 12:43-50

In yesterday's reading, Jesus was speaking to those who have accused Him of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub. He said, "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." Then some scribes and Pharisees demanded of Him a sign -- when so many have already been seen. He then pointed out the men of Ninevah who listened to the prophet Jonah, and the queen of the South who listened to Solomon. At the Judgment, they will condemn the ones who now blaspheme the work of the Spirit in Christ's ministry: for indeed, "a greater than Jonah" and "a greater than Solomon is here."

"When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation." My study bible has a note here, which is interesting to think about: "When, by the mercy of God, the Israelites were delivered out of Egypt, they did not repent of their impure ways, and unclean spirits again took up residence in them. The same happens here. Unless their is full-hearted repentance and the Holy Spirit dwells in a person, the expelled demon will return with many others and reoccupy its abode." Christ's term "dry places" seems to indicate those places where there is no "home" for such an unclean spirit, no place it can take up an abode. But the overall message here, taken in context, relates to a stony heart, one that does not allow in spiritual transformation and energy, the enlightenment the Spirit seeks to bring. Hardness of heart, then, only assures us that as each step in the way allows us an opportunity to repent, there is an important choice to be made. The importance of the choice is what is highlighted here, it seems to me. Denial of grace, no matter what the issue concerned, will result in a more hardened heart, a worse spiritual state than before, ground that is good only for that which is "unclean," harmful, not conducive to true gifts of the Spirit but rather to that which works against it. An opportunity for grace in one's life, then, becomes a truly pivotal turning point, a crisis of great importance. Refusal to change, to reconsider, to let in a little love in the Way of God, becomes a pivotal choice -- one that may only lead to a worse state than before when the choice is made for refusal, a stony heart, one that refuses to reconsider at all. Christ is likening such a situation to those who now stand before Him demanding a sign so that they will believe. This is only a way to refuse to open one's heart, a demand for proof as another way to condemn and criticize.

While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him. Then one said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak with You." But He answered and said to the one who told Him, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?" And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and 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." My study bible says, "Jesus' relatives have not yet understood His identity and mission. He points to a spiritual family based on obedience to 'the will of My Father.' In Jewish usage, 'brother' may also signify a stepbrother or other relative." This isn't really a putdown of family relations, but a statement of the importance of our reliance on God's will, the perception of the work of the Spirit in the world. It is such a central pillar to our lives that family relationships come second; the more important relationships come through a perception of the work of God or the kingdom in the world; or more specifically, the will of "My Father in heaven." It's related to the paragraph above in the sense of its stressing of the importance of seeking this will. A stony, hardened heart can't do this: at each offering of grace or mercy, each prompting of the Spirit, turning away can result in a worse state than before, refusal of grace making room for a worse condition. Here, the emphasis turns positive: those who do welcome this will in their hearts, who seek it and seek to do the will of "My Father in heaven" are indeed His family, His mother and brother and sister.

Throughout the recent readings there has been a thread, centered on the work of the Spirit in the world. We began with Monday's reading, in which Jesus said: "I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come." In today's reading, He gives us two opposite conditions: the one in which the will of the Father, in the grace of the Spirit, is refused -- leading to a worse spiritual condition than before. And in the other, the condition in which those who seek to know and do the will of His Father in heaven are His mother and brother and sister, true family in true, deep relationship. So we have a spiritual dichotomy, in which the choice to find this grace, to seek to know and do the will of the Father in heaven, becomes a place of testing and of judgment, even in the age to come. Everything seems to fall on how we come down to the spiritual choices we are asked to make within ourselves and in our lives, what we seek, what we love, what we cherish. So, taken into context with all the readings, we find the importance of the power of what is in the heart, what we trust and what we treasure. Our choices are more important than we think. They can't be underestimated. The refusal of grace results not merely in a continued poor state of spiritual health, but rather a much worse one, more vulnerable to the bad effects in a fallen world in which evil is present. What will it be? Christ says here our refusal to find and do that will results in a seven-times-worse state than before. That is quite a dire warning indeed. So, who are His mother and brother and sister? He invites us all to this family. What will your choices be today? Prayer comes to the Father in heaven in the secret place. What will your prayer of the heart be today?