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David's Brother Critical of His Faith

Then David spoke to the men who stood by him, saying, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?”

And the people answered him in this manner, saying, “So shall it be done for the man who kills him.”

Now Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger was aroused against David, and he said, “Why did you come down here? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the insolence of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.”

And David said, “What have I done now? Is there not a cause?”

NOTE: Faith based confidence, derived from God, through personal obedience and His empowerment, can & will sometimes be perceived as PRIDE by onlookers, espec by those that are not right with God, have pride issues themselves, and think themselves superior to you.

Rejoice and let it fuel your confidence when you receive this type of persecution. Also pray for your persecuters & do good to them if and when possible

Asa Removes His Grandmother

Also he (Asa) removed Maachah, the mother of Asa the king (his grandmother) from being queen mother, because she had made an obscene image of Asherah; and Asa cut down her obscene image, then crushed and burned it by the Brook Kidron.

No Bloodline Favoritism w/ God

“If your brother, the son of your mother, your son or your daughter, the wife of your bosom, or your friend who is as your own soul, secretly entices you, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods,’ which you have not known, neither you nor your fathers,

Of the gods of the people which are all around you, near to you or far off from you, from one end of the earth to the other end of the earth,

You shall not consent to him or listen to him, nor shall your eye pity him, nor shall you spare him or conceal him;

But you shall surely kill him; your hand shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people.

And you shall stone him with stones until he dies, BECAUSE HE SOUGHT TO ENTICE YOU AWAY FROM THE LORD YOUR GOD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.

So all Israel shall hear and fear, and not again do such wickedness as this among you.

Levites Execute Brothers, Companions & Neighbors

Then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, “Whoever is on the Lord’s side—come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.

And he said to them, 'THUS SAYS THE LORD GOD OF ISRAEL', "Let every man put his sword on his side, and go in and out from entrance to entrance throughout the camp, and let every man kill his brother, every man his companion, and every man his neighbor.’ ”

So the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day.

Then Moses said, “Consecrate yourselves today to the Lord, that He may bestow on you a blessing this day, for every man has opposed his son and his brother.”

Marked Off by Boundaries

“But when it pleased God, who separated me (lit. mark off by boundaries or limits) from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood.”

Abraham's Call

Now the Lord had said to Abram:

“Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you.

I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great and you shall be a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

So Abram departed as the Lord had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.

Joseph Betrayed by His Brothers

So he (Joseph) said, “I am seeking my brothers. Please tell me where they are feeding their flocks.”

And the man said, “They have departed from here, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’ ” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them in Dothan.

Now when they saw him afar off, even before he came near them, they conspired against him to kill him.

Then they said to one another, “Look, this dreamer is coming! Come therefore, let us now kill him and cast him into some pit; and we shall say, ‘Some wild beast has devoured him.’ We shall see what will become of his dreams!”

Joseph’s brothers were coming against what God had revealed directly to Joseph through his dreams, which they despised him for and tried to overthrow. God’s intention in all of it was actually to preserve them and their descendants from the coming famine that hit the whole earth.

Also, to move them to Egypt, which was a fulfillment of what God had promised to Abraham, which would serve continually as an example of how God dealt with mankind and His chosen people.

Envy can be aroused in others that claim to be right with God and are not when they see or hear evidence of the promises & activity of God at work in your life. This can be especially true of relatives and those in spiritual leadership.

If a person, a work, a ministry, or a future event, is of God...you cannot overthrow it! Those who attempt to do so are actually fighting against God and will lose out in the end - Acts 5:39

Isaiah’s Calling From the Womb

“Listen, O coastlands, to Me,
And take heed, you peoples from afar!
The Lord has called Me from the womb;
From the matrix of My mother He has made mention of My name.

And He has made My mouth like a sharp sword; In the shadow of His hand He has hidden Me, And made Me a polished shaft; In His quiver He has hidden Me.”

Isaiah’s Calling

“Listen, O coastlands, to Me,
And take heed, you peoples from afar!
The Lord has called Me from the womb;
From the matrix of My mother He has made mention of My name.

And He has made My mouth like a sharp sword; In the shadow of His hand He has hidden Me, And made Me a polished shaft; In His quiver He has hidden Me.

“And He said to me,
‘You are My servant, O Israel, In whom I will be glorified.’

Then I said, ‘I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain;
Yet surely my just reward is with the Lord,
And my work with my God.’ ”

“And now the Lord says, Who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, To bring Jacob back to Him, so that Israel is gathered to Him (For I shall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, And My God shall be My strength),

Indeed He says,
‘Is it too small a thing that You should be My Servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, And to restore the preserved ones of Israel? I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”

Mary Tries to Control Jesus

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.

Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.

And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”

Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.”

His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”

Notice that Jesus doesnt even call her by name but rather...woman

Jesus Brothers Don't Believe

Now the Jews’ Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.

His brothers therefore said to Him, “Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing. For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.” For even His brothers did not believe in Him.

Then Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready. The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil. You go up to this feast. I am not yet going up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come.”

When He had said these things to them, He remained in Galilee. But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.

God has Gideon Destroy His Father’s Altar

Now it came to pass the same night that the Lord said to him,

“Take your father’s young bull, the second bull of seven years old, and tear down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the wooden image that is beside it; and build an altar to the Lord your God on top of this rock in the proper arrangement, and take the second bull and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the image which you shall cut down.”

So Gideon took ten men from among his servants and did as the Lord had said to him. But because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city too much to do it by day, he did it by night.

Obedience Outweighs Natural Relationships

27) And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!”

28) But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

Cost of Discipleship

Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them,

“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.

And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.

For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it— lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’?

Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace.

So likewise, whoever of you that does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.

Leaving All to Follow Jesus

Then Peter said, “See, we have left all and followed You.”

So He said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or parents or brothers or wife or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who shall not receive many times more in this present time, and in the age to come eternal life.”

You Will be Hated by All

“But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons.

You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake, but it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony.

Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.

You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death.

And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake, but not a hair of your head shall be lost.

By your patience possess your souls.”

The Father's Business

And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast. When they had finished the days, as they returned, the Boy Jesus lingered behind in Jerusalem.

And Joseph and His mother did not know it; but supposing Him to have been in the company, they went a day’s journey, and sought Him among their relatives and acquaintances. So when they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking Him.

Now so it was that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers.

So when they saw Him, they were amazed; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us? Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously.”

And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” But they did not understand the statement which He spoke to them.

Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.

Hand to the Plow & Looking Back

Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.”

And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

Then He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”

Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.”

And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.”

But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Forsaking Rewarded by the Lord

Then Peter began to say to Him,

“See, we have left all and followed You.”

So Jesus answered and said,

“Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the Gospel’s, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time—houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions—and in the age to come, eternal life.”

James & John are Called

“When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets.

And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him.”

Jesus Presumed Out of His Mind

Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.

But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, “He is out of His mind.”

{this was right after picking the 12, then healing & casting demons out of many}

Jesus' Mother & Brothers

Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.

And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You.”

But He answered them, saying, “Who is My mother, or My brothers?” And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother.”

Jesus Marveled & Limited by Unbelief

1) Then He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him.

2) And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were astonished, saying, “Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands!

3) Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” So they were offended at Him.

4) But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.”

5) Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them.

6) AND HE MARVELED because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.

Jesus Limited by Unbelief

But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.”

Now He could do no mighty work (dunamis) there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. And He marveled because of their unbelief.

Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.

Jesus Came to Bring a Sword / Division

“Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.

For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’

He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.

And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it."

Here Are My Mother & Brothers

46. While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him.

47. Then one said to Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak with You.”

48. But He answered and said to the one who told Him, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?”

49. And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers!

50. For whoever does the will of My Father in Heaven is My brother and sister and mother.”

James / John Leave Their Boat & Father

Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets.

He called them, and IMMEDIATELY they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.

Zeal for the Father’s House - Jn. 2:17

Because, for Your sake I have borne reproach, shame has covered my face. I have become a stranger to my brothers and an alien to my mother’s children;

Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.

NOTE: This is also here to let us know that we are on track when this happens to us, so that we are encouraged to stay the course.