“Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family: Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.” ~ Jane Howard, American Journalist
Perhaps you’ve heard the story of the young boy who asked his father, “Where did people come from?” His father explained that God had created Adam and Eve, and they had given birth to babies, who had babies, who had babies... Unsatisfied with this answer, the boy went to his mother and posed the same question. She replied with an account of evolution involving monkeys that eventually became people. The boy then ran back to his father and accused him of lying.
“No, son,” the father explained, “Your mother was talking about her side of the family.”
As followers of Christ, we believe what the Bible says about the origin of life: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” That bold declaration of truth sets the stage for what follows: the grand story of God’s glorious intention for mankind. Central to that plan is the family.
After creating the heavens and the earth, the Genesis account tells us, “God saw all that he made, and it was very good.” Yet in the next passage, he says, “It is not good for man to be alone.” To remedy this situation, God’s invented marriage, and with it, the family.
In a fascinating parallel, God calls the Church to be a family – his family. While it’s up to each individual to respond to God’s invitation to eternal life in Jesus Christ, the journey of faith is to be one of relationships. God designed us to live and serve together in community.
Paul spends much of the New Testament teaching, correcting, and encouraging the Church to avoid sin and embrace the practice of holy, selfless, Spirit-led unity.
In his first letter to the church in Corinth, he writes: “I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought” (1 Corinthians 1:10).
Like any family, the family of God is vulnerable to bickering, competition, and conflict. These can give rise to serious dissentions and alienation, effectively neutralizing our participation in the mission of God. Instead of making the Good News of Jesus known through love and compassion, the Church is prone to dissolve into a brood of angry, resentful, isolated “brothers and sisters.”
As Paul explains, that is not what God had in mind or expects from his family. “Strive for full restoration,” he tells the Corinthians. “Encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace” (2 Corinthians 13:11).
The Great Commission and Great Commandment are not intended to be solo activities. As the big-C Church, we are expected to join together with God in His mission.
No matter how we refer to ourselves – Mennonite Brethren, members of a local congregation, part of the Body of Christ, brothers and sisters in God’s family – we need each other. Our lives, actions, and efforts are inexorably intertwined. God desires to weave us into a marvelous tapestry that declares our identity to the world: “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples,” Jesus said, “if you love one another” (John 13:35).
As the Pointer Sisters once famously put it: We are family. In this case, God’s family. We can resist and fight against our brothers and sisters in Christ, or we can embrace them. The former grieves God’s heart. The latter pleases him. The choice is up to us.
PRAY
“Pray for God to help you be more forgiving, to display compassion, and to extend grace to others as we work together to make Jesus known in the world. “
