Category: Mark Chapter 3

In the verses which immediately precede this passage, we see our blessed Lord accused by the Scribes of being in league with the devil. They said, “he hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils.”

We all know how painful it is to have our conduct misunderstood and misrepresented, when we are doing right. It is a trial which our Lord Jesus Christ had to endure continually, all through His earthly ministry. We have an instance in the passage before us. The “Scribes which came down from Jerusalem” saw the miracles which He worked. They could not deny their reality. What then did they do? They accused our blessed Savior of being in league and union with the devil. They said, “He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils.”

The beginning of this passage describes the appointment of the twelve apostles. It is an event in our Lord’s earthly ministry, which should always be read with deep interest. What a vast amount of benefit these few men have conferred on the world! The names of a few Jewish fishermen are known and loved by millions all over the globe, while the names of many kings and rich men are lost and forgotten. It is they who do good to souls who are had “in everlasting remembrance.” (Psalm 112:6)

These verses show us our Lord again working a miracle. He heals a man in the synagogue, “which had a withered hand.” Always about His Father’s business,–always doing good,–doing it in the sight of enemies as well as of friends,–such was the daily tenor of our Lord’s earthly ministry. And He “left us an example that we should follow His steps.” (1 Peter 2:21) Blessed indeed are those Christians who strive, however feebly, to imitate their Master!