Smoodock's Blog

This posting represents another in my ongoing discussion with a gentleman by the name of Arthur. He takes the position that Mary didn’t believe in Jesus’ ministry and withdrew her support for him. While I believe it was difficult for Mary to understand all that was occurring and everything that was said about her Son, I don’t believe she was unsupportive. She did what she could. It would be wrong of us to expect more than that from her. Other posts in this discussion can be found HERE, HERE and HERE. Below you will find Arthur’s words in bold italic to distinguish them from my replies.

Arthur asked earlier concerning Mary: “…why did she not support Jesus in His religious life.” To which I replied: “You are presuming an understanding for Mary that God’s people are given after Pentecost due to the Holy Spirit being within us. She could understand only as much of the Scriptures that her father had correctly taught her. She received no such teaching in the synagogues.”

Is it really being presumptuous when I say that Mary knew from the angel that her son was directly from God?

No, that would not be presumptuous of you. However, you asked why she didn’t support Jesus in his religious life. I assume you are speaking of his public ministry. First of all, the text never claims she didn’t believe Jesus was doing just as he should. You are presuming this and the text does not support your understanding in Mark 3 or elsewhere. But, assuming your argument that she did disbelieve Jesus message, all she knew was what she was told by those who taught her concerning what to expect of the Messiah.

Moses erred and was not permitted to come into the Promised Land. Samson erred and his strength was taken away. An unnamed prophet erred by believing a false prophet and was slain (1Kings 13). You cannot expect Mary, who did not have the Holy Spirit within her, to understand the Scriptures apart from what she had been told they said. Neither you nor I know the complete story behind the incident in Mark 3:31. However, Mark 3:21 is in the context of the Pharisees and scribes telling the people that Jesus cast out demons by the lord of demons. It was because of the leaders’ testimony that Jesus’ friends believed Jesus was beside himself, and presumably they told Jesus’ family. What were they to think? Everyone was saying—i.e. the Jewish leadership and Jesus’ friends—that Jesus was saying and/or doing things that gave the impression that he was having what we might call today a ‘nervous breakdown.’ What would you expect of Mary? Most women were unschooled in the first century. She was taught to trust her religious leaders. She had no reason to doubt Jesus’ friends, and she hadn’t spoken with her Son yet. It seems to me, you may be trying to give her a modern education and modern female liberties, not to mention a post-Pentecost spiritual maturity. She had none of these.

I made the statement concerning Mary: “…and she certainly wouldn’t want to believe that her Son, who was supposed to be the Messiah, was going to be crucified.”

Forgive me here, but is it not yourself who is making the presumption here…

Luke 1:46-48

And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

Are you saying that by this testimony of Mary that she knew Jesus would be crucified? If so, I certainly don’t see it. No one believed the Messiah would be crucified—none of the Apostles, not his family, not John the Baptist, not anyone. Jesus told the disciples he would be crucified, but the idea was so foreign to their understanding of what the Messiah was to do, that they simply didn’t understand. If the disciples, whom Jesus specifically taught he would be crucified didn’t understand, how could Mary of whom we have no record of her being taught such things?

Concerning John’s astonishment that Jesus was the Messiah (John 1:31, 33)…

I’m sure that John’s parents must have mentioned to John the amazing events which took place while in the womb. I only use my common sense to indicate, why should John be astonished?

False doctrine has tremendous power. It captures the mind, if believed, so that one cannot see the truth it hides. The false doctrine must first be proved false, before the truth can be understood. No one in Israel believed the Messiah would suffer, be rejected and be crucified. Anything that Jesus might have shared with John about these things while they were growing up would have been too difficult to believe, because of the prevailing false doctrines concerning the Messiah. Thus, when John saw Jesus coming and the sign from heaven come down upon him—he was astonished.

I said: “I think John really thought that, when the Messiah would come along, he would have been able to pick him out without the help of the vision”

Or perhaps he had doubts about what his parents had been telling him?

We can presume many things but whatever we believe should agree with the context of Scripture, and the text says that John would be great in the sight of God. If this is how God saw John, then we need to adjust our beliefs so that they agree with what God says.

It is not my intention, to cause hurt or to upset anyone, or even to try and disprove someone’s faith.

My view is this, if one is a Hindu, then be the best Hindu you can be, if one is Catholic, Protestant, Muslim or Jew, my advice would always be the same. Be the best in your religion whatever your faith and set the highest of standards. Aim for God’s heart and love your brothers/sisters whatever faith or no faith.

I don’t consider anything you have stated was meant to hurt me or anyone else. As far as this debate/discussion is concerned, it is to seek the truth. While I do not wish to make any disparaging remarks against anyone’s faith, I do believe truth is truth. I do not endorse the modern social doctrine of political correctness. Every faith cannot be correct concerning its understanding of God because all contradict one another. If any are correct, it can be only one. There is such a thing as absolute truth. The “That is your truth and this is my truth” doctrine is a false doctrine that takes away everyone’s responsibility to the truth. That said, Jesus claimed “No one can come to the Father but by me!” (John 14:6), and no one even knows the Father except Jesus and he to whom Jesus reveals the Father (Matthew 11:27). If this is true, then none of the other faiths is able lead one to the true God. It is through Jesus alone that we are saved (Acts 4:10-12).