Fundraising and Family Approval
“When His own people [kinsmen] heard of this, they went out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, ‘He has lost His senses.’ The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, ‘He is possessed by Beelzebul.’ ”
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Have you been asked these questions by family members?
Why don’t you get a real job?
Why not be a church pastor or youth minister?
Can’t you work part-time rather than “beg” for a living?
You are not alone. Thousands of gospel-workers receive these criticisms, and so did Jesus. His own family said, “He has lost His senses.” The NIV says, “He is out of his mind.”
Why did Jesus’ family challenge him? For one thing, Jesus, the eldest son, was abandoning the family carpentry business. We learn in Matthew 13:55 and Mark 6:3 that Jesus’ father was a carpenter and so was Jesus (“Is not this the carpenter’s son?”) and (“Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary…?)
Jesus gave up a stable income to become an itinerant preacher with “nowhere to lay his head” (Luke 9:57)! It was embarrassing. He has lost his senses.
Furthermore, Jesus had attracted the attention of the Pharisees from faraway Jerusalem who said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul.” Reinforced by religious leaders, his family might say, “Jesus healed a few sick people and preached around Galilee, but now he has gone too far.”
How about you? What is your answer to family and friends who say you have “gone too far?”
A young Zambian mission-worker was on her first funding appointment with a former mentor. He surprised her by saying, “Get a real job.” Blindsided, she paused a moment, then boldly replied, “Sir, I have a real job! It is sharing the gospel of Christ with Africa!”
Her answer was spot-on—her Calling to the Gospel. If God has called you to ministry, then you can do no other. The Apostle Paul endured much criticism but said in 1 Corinthians 9:16, “Woe is me if I do not preach the gospel.”
In my case, it was my good-hearted gentle mother who asked me, “Scott, can’t you become a Presbyterian pastor or something like that—instead of a ‘missionary’?” The question was appropriate. I was young. But, over the years, by God’s grace, my family has affirmed my Calling.
My two brothers worked in insurance careers, so my dad said with a twinkle in his eye, “All three of my sons are in “Life Insurance!” Makes me smile.
Romans 1:16 guides us. “I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation….”
Prayer: “Father in Heaven, You have called me to ministry. May the questions of my family and friends not discourage me but deepen my zeal to honor Christ. Please do more than I can ask or think. Amen.”
