Several passages speak of Jesus' brothers and sisters. In Matthew 13:54-56, we read "And when He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works? Is this not the carpenter's son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man get all these things?" Obviously, this passage speaks of Jesus' physical family, for that is precisely what the people were discussing. Joseph and Mary are mentioned as being His parents (Joseph, of course, was Jesus' legal father, even though he was not His biological father; see Matthew 1:20-23). The brothers of Jesus are named, and His sisters are referred to. Later, the apostle Paul repeatedly referred to one of these brothers, as he wrote, in 1 Corinthians 15:7 and Galatians 1:19, of "James, the Lord's brother." This must be a physical relationship, for if it were spiritual, it would not identify which is meant.
When Mary was found to be pregnant, Joseph intended to put her away, but an angel of the Lord told him the child was begotten of the Holy Spirit. In Matthew 1:24-25, the apostle wrote: "Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS." The phrase "knew her not" refers to sexual relations, but notice the wording: "knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn Son." That statement certainly implies that, after Jesus was born, Joseph and Mary had normal marital sexual relations. The fact that they had four other sons and several daughters surely confirms that to be true.
The "veneration of Mary" is based on many false assumptions and perpetuated by false ideas. First, the idea that she is "the mother of God" is absolutely false. Jesus Christ was both God and man; she was the mother of the man, not the God. Jesus addressed this false assumption in Luke 11:27,28: "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!" But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"
Mary was "full of grace," (Luke 1:28), and she was specially favored by God as the one chosen to give birth to His Son. She deserves our respect. Yet, she was just a woman, and as part of mankind, should not be worshipped. On one occasion, when told that His mother and His brothers were outside looking for Him, Jesus said: "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."{Mark 3:31-35} Jesus was not denying the family relationship, but He was emphasizing the surpassing importance of a spiritual relationship based on obedience to God.
The scriptures clearly show that Joseph and Mary had normal sexual relations as husband and wife and that they had a number of children after Jesus was born. The Scriptures also clearly show that although Mary was a great woman, she was still human and not deserving of worship. That's a question we will consider at another time.