This morning, we join together as a church family and friends outdoors in the beautiful world that God created for us.
God created everything in six days and each day, He said that it was good. Shortly after, however, God saw one thing that was not good; for us to be alone.
Of course, God knew this ahead of time, but it wasn’t until Adam named all of the wild animals that he realized his loneliness as well.
God knows what is best for us; His plans and His purposes. However, let’s be honest with ourselves, we don’t always agree with Him.
Often, it isn’t until we’ve travelled down our own path pretty far until we realize that it isn’t good. It’s when we choose to turn back to God in agreement with Him that He can turn things around for us.
We call this repentance. Literally just turning things around in our lives so that we’re heading in the direction of God’s plans and no longer outside of them.
In the beginning, God created family to fill this void and loneliness in Adam’s life. No longer was he alone; he had a wife and children. Adam had family.
Now God knows what He had planned for family. It was to be a safe place where we learn and grow together. It was to be a place of refuge from the rest of the world. A place where our needs are met by one another so that we can be whole and complete and lacking nothing. A place where we can figure out who we are as we help each other reach our full potential.
However, not every flesh-and-blood family looks like this. Unfortunately, most are not.
God created yet another form of family, though!
Most of us are familiar with the idea of being born again. Jesus taught about being born again to Nicodemus in John 3 and he thought Jesus was crazy at first! Jesus explained that it’s not being born of the flesh again by climbing back into our mother’s womb, it’s being born by the Spirit.
When we’re born in the flesh, we have a family by means of blood.
When we’re born in the Spirit, we have a family by means of Jesus’ blood. adopted into a new family!
We’re adopted into a new family with tons of new brothers and sisters! That’s why we find that term used so often throughout the New Testament referring to others who are saved; brothers and sisters.
Romans 8:14-17
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
We’ve been adopted into a new family and into a new bloodline and into a new inheritance.
Although we’re still not a perfect family, we often find in our spiritual family that which is lacking in our natural families. We should find in our spiritual family people who love us unconditionally, people who want to see us succeed in life, people who generously give to serve our needs, people who love God with their everything.
Listen to these descriptions of the first church family:
Acts 2:42-47
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Acts 4:32-35
32 All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. 33 With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all 34 that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales 35 and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.
Let’s enjoy this day together as a church family. We’re not perfect. However, every day, we strive to become more like Christ as individuals. As we each do this, every day, our family just keeps getting better and better! It’s a blessing to be a part of it and we’re blessed by it!
What we may be lacking in our natural family, we often find in our spiritual family.
Psalm 133:1;3b
1 How good and pleasant it is
when God’s people live together in unity!
3b …For there the Lord bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore.