Sunday Sermons
The Household of God
As Christians we are given an unbelievable privilege, the actual adoption into God’s family and His household, the church(Galatians 4:5; 1 John 3:1). Yet in spite of this people in our world do have wrong attitudes towards the church, which is God’s family (1 Timothy 3:15). Some only want to use it and take from it but not contribute to it, and others view the church as just one more duty that they need to cross off their list before they can move on and do what they want to do on any given weekend. Hopefully we can instill in our present generation, and the next, at an early age, the concept that the church is a family, and it is a fellowship (demanding participation from all members). This means that when one becomes a Christian they are prepared to become an active member in this family. In fact, there is a modern trend in our culture of independent individualism to feel that one does not really need to be a member of any local congregation to be considered a faithful Christian. The denominations are struggling with this problem, as evidenced by what they are writing in response to it (see The Purpose Driven Life, Warren, p. 133). As one writer noted, it is contradictory to claim that one is committed to Christ, but has no commitments or obligations to God’s people (John 13:34-35). The Bible states that the church is the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:23). “I can’t imagine saying to Jesus, ‘I love you, but I dislike your wife’. Or, ‘I accept you, but I reject your body’. But we do this whenever we dismiss or demean or complain about the church” (Warren p. 132). “Following Christ includes belonging, not just believing. We are members of His body the church. C.S. Lewis noted that the word membership is of Christian origin, but the world has emptied it of its original meaning. Stores offer discounts to ‘members’, and advertisers use member names to create mailing lists. In churches, membership is often reduced to simply adding your name to a roll, with no requirements or expectations”(Warren p. 131). A good number of people need to re-read 1 Peter 2:17 which says, “love the brotherhood”. True Christianity involves loving one’s spiritual family.
1 Timothy 3:15
The church is God’s household or family, which obviously means that one cannot be a child of God without being in the church. Therefore all the other members are our brothers and sisters, and (this is critical), we need to love and treat them as our own family. This means treating older men as we would our own father, older women as our own mother, and younger men/boys and women/girls as our own brothers and sisters (1 Timothy 5:1). In fact, Jesus noted that our spiritual family is even more important that our physical family (Luke 8:19-21). This demands a strong loyalty and commitment to other Christians (1 John 3:16 “We ought to lay down our lives for the brethren”). Membership in a local congregation proves “you are committed to your spiritual brothers and sisters in reality, not just in theory. God wants you to love real people, not ideal people” (Warren p. 137). “The difference between being a church attender and a church member is commitment. Attenders are spectators from the sidelines; members get involved in the work. Attenders are consumers; members are contributors. Attenders want the benefits without sharing the responsibility. They are like couples who want to live together without committing to marriage” (pp. 136-137). In contrast, look at the commitment we find in the early church (Acts 2:42).
Mark 10:29-30
Jesus noted that in becoming a Christian, we gain a huge family. We are now part of a large extended family, being a brother or sister to every Christian on the earth. Even if you lose friends when you become a Christian, you will gain far more new friends than old ones that you lost.
“One Another”
Many passages, like the above one, mention the term “one another”, meaning that Christians are dependent upon each other and that every Christian is expected to have the right spirit and treat their brethren right. The following are some “one another” passages (check a concordance for many more).
Galatians 5:13 Serve each other.
Galatians 5:15 Do not bite and devour each other.
Ephesians 4:2 Be patient with each other.
Ephesians 4:32 Treat each other with kindness and forgiveness
Colossians 3:9 Tell each other the truth
1 Thessalonians 4:18 Comfort each other.
1 Thessalonians 5:11 Build up and edify each other.
Hebrews 3:13 Exhort each other to remain faithful.
James 5:16 Pray for each other.
In the New Testament we find that Christians are expected to love each other, pray for each other, encourage one another, admonish each other, greet each other, serve one another, teach each other, accept one another, honor each other, bear one another’s burdens, forgive each other, submit to one another, and be devoted to one another. This is Biblical membership! These are a sample of our family responsibilities that God expects of every Christian. “It may seem easier to be holy when no one else is around to frustrate your preferences, but that is false, untested holiness. Isolation breeds deceitfulness; it is easy to fool ourselves into thinking we are mature if there is no one to challenge us” (Warren p. 134).
Christians loved each other so much in the First Century that they were even willing to sell their own possessions to help each other (Acts 2:44-45). Christians also loved to spend time with each other, not merely at services, but outside of services as well(Acts 2:46). Here we could stress to our children the importance of helping their parents when other Christians are coming to visit, because “family” is coming over (1 Peter 4:9).
Galatians 6:1
Christians help other Christians when they are struggling (Romans 12:15) and they are quick to go and try to help a Christian who is either growing weaker, is in sin, or who has stopped attending (James 5:18-19). In addition, if we see another Christian doing something wrong, we do not gossip to others about it, rather we go to the person with the problem and try to help them(Matthew 18:15). In fact, if we know that someone has a problem with something we have said or done, we need to make the first move and go to him or her (Matthew 5:23-24).
Ephesians 4:3
Another “family obligation” is preserving unity in the local congregation, just as we seek to preserve unity and peace in our own physical families. “Nothing on earth is more valuable to God than His church. He paid the highest price for it (Acts 20:28), and He wants it protected, especially from the devastating damage that is caused by division, conflict, and disharmony. If you are part of God’s family, it is your responsibility to protect the unity… you are commissioned by Christ to do everything possible to preserve the unity, protect the fellowship, and promote harmony among all believers” (Warren p. 161). We need to be quick and diligent in clearing up any misunderstandings, or correcting any sins that we have committed (see above). There also needs to be diligence is seeing that we refuse to spread inaccurate information. We need to be zealous about guarding the reputations of our family members as well (Proverbs 6:16-19). Warren makes a good point concerning the gap between thereal and the ideal. We need to be following the Bible (2 John 9), yet we also need to be patient as other family members are growing (1 Thessalonians 5:14 “be patient with everyone”), yet sin is never to be excused or downplayed (1 Corinthians 5). Courtesy is very important in any family. We need to treat each other with respect, and be considerate of each other. Such things as compassion, sympathy, patience, understanding, and love are so important (Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted”; 1 Peter 1:22 “a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart”). Christians will disappoint us and just as true, we will end up disappointing others as well. “Groucho Marx was famous for saying he wouldn’t want to belong to any club that would let him in” (Warren p. 163). We must resist the temptation to insist that Christians in a congregation must be perfect before we will join or get involved, for the same demand for perfection would exclude us from membership. Dietrich Bonhoffer suggested that disillusionment with fellow Christians is a good thing because it destroys our false expectations of perfection in this life. The sooner we give up the illusion that the church must be perfect before we love it, the sooner we will get involved and try to help others grow (Galatians 6:1-4; Hebrews 12:12-15 “Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble, and your straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed…See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God”). Bonhoffer also noted that “He who loves his dream of community more than the Christian community itself becomes a destroyer of the latter”. The person who is only willing to love or work with the ideal congregation or Christian has not really understood what Christianity is all about. Strive for perfection, strive for maturity, but realize part of that important process involves loving, helping, encouraging, teaching, admonishing and rebuking what is less than ideal. We really need each other to make it to heaven (Hebrews 3:13). The person who feels that they do not really need anyone, is like a coal on the BBQ is gets separated from the other coals. While the other coals are getting hotter, the lone coal gets cold. This expectation, of keeping peace in the family, is not something that is to be done half-heartedly, but, “If possible, so far as it depends upon you, be at peace with all men” (Romans 12:18). “Peace always has a price-tag. Sometimes it costs our pride; it often costs our self-centeredness” (Warren p. 157). Let us remember that Jesus died for these brethren of mine, therefore they are worth my best efforts. These are relationships worth having, and they are relationships that I need for my own spiritual maturity.
Hebrews 10:24-25
To build genuine fellowship, you must have frequent and regular contact with other Christians (Hebrews 10:24-25). Genuine family relationships are not built on convenience (“we’ll get together when I feel like it”) but on the conviction that I need it for my spiritual health. In addition, please note that God commanded these Christians to continue meeting even during times of persecution and tremendous upheavals in this world (10:32-34). The above verse also reminds us that one must have frequent, regular contact with Christians in order to build genuine fellowship (Acts 2:42 “They were continually devoting themselves to….”; 2:46 “Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart”). Look closely at these verses and you will see that the early Christians genuinely enjoyed each other’s company. They not only wanted to be together for times of worship, but they also wanted to be together outside the assembly as well.
