One of the songs that we sing from time to time is, “God’s Family.” It goes like this, “We’re part of a family/whose love has no end.” It is a song that simply and powerfully spells out for us a truth that we already know: because we have been saved by Jesus Christ, we enjoy the great privilege and responsibility of being a family.
Family can be difficult. In fact, family can be outright impossible at times. History teaches us that some of the most brutal, inhumane conflicts in human history were between people of the same nation -or people of the same families. It is no secret that “familiarity breeds contempt.” The nature of humanity is such that we tend to reserve our most violent passions for those closest to us.
Over the next several weeks, we will be discussing this idea of family. More specifically, we will look at what it means to be the community of God. We will stroll through some bible stories, watching how co-believers acted towards and responded to one another. Along the way, we will be challenged to extend ever more love, mercy, and grace to one another. We are certainly family. We have been saved by Jesus Christ. We are born again, and that is a tremendous blessing.
–Ricky