Jesus’ friends and family thought He was crazy. Following the selection of His 12 disciples, the crowds returned. Jesus was so involved in the needs of people that His time was completely occupied with ministry needs. His closest friends, and likely His family ‘went to take charge of him.’ The Greek text uses a very strong expression which means ‘to arrest.’ It was an intervention.
And the multitude cometh together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread. And when his friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold on him: for they said, He is beside himself. (Mark 3:20-21)
Why did his family react this way? Jesus had left home and the carpenter’s business at Nazareth. He was obviously on the way to a head-on collision with the orthodox leaders of his day. And He had newly started a little society of disown – a very strange group of 12. They loved him and were afraid his religious fervor was going to ruin his health. He was so busy he couldn’t eat. His religious zeal was simply too radical. They just did not understand Jesus.
Some people don’t understand a totally committed Christian. The more committed you are to Jesus Christ and His church, the more some people think you’re nuts. Most people are okay with a little religion. But God is looking for people who are 100% surrendered to Jesus Christ.
Dr. Robert Morehead tells the story a young man from Rwanda who was forced by his tribe in 1980 to renounce Christ or face death. He refused to renounce Christ, and he was murdered on the spot. The night before he had written the following commitment which was found in his room: Can you make this kind of commitment for the Gospel of Christ and become a member of the Fellowship of the Unashamed?
“I am a part of the fellowship of the Unashamed. I have the Holy Spirit Power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions, mundane talking, chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals.
“I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don’t have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by presence, learn by faith, love by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.
“My pace is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few, my Guide is reliable, my mission is clear.
I cannot be bought, compromised, deterred, lured away, turned back, diluted, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.
“I won’t give up, back up, let up, or shut up until I’ve preached up, prayed up, paid up, stored up, and stayed up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I must go until He returns, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes.
“And when He comes to get His own, He will have no problem recognizing me. My colors will be clear for “I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes..” (Romans 1:16).