Love: A New Commandment - a Journey in PhilippiansSample

Finally, family

Research shows that there is a direct link between the joy, laughter and love in the church family. And of course, family is the right way to talk about church. “Brothers and sisters” is not just church jargon. The people who believe in Jesus are God’s covenant family.

In one of his letters, Paul said the Gospel was announced to Abraham with the promise that through his family God would bless the nations of the world. From the start, God had his eye on the whole world. Jesus finally fulfilled that promise. Jesus reconciled the whole world to God. The door into this family is now open. Anyone can come in through faith in Jesus. But that led to a very specific problem Paul now addresses.

“Finally” makes it sound like Paul is planning to end the letter. But then he continues to write about the “identity markers” of the family of God. For hundreds of years, it was circumcision and the law that showed people were God’s family. Now non-Jewish believers were pressured by some Jews to be circumcised to show they were family. Paul says no! The way of identifying God’s family has changed now that the King has come. To go back to the way things were before the cross, would be “fleshly”.

Paul uses strong words to condemn these actions that make people feel like second-rate family members. We are the circumcision, he says. Not the true circumcision. The only. Faith in Jesus is the sign that the Spirit of God is working in a person, and that’s the one and only marker of God’s family. So, push back with Paul against any pressures that make you feel like a second-rate family member. Take up your place in this family. Laugh, rejoice and worship with them. You need to do that to grow in love. But the family needs you also. It’s sad but true that some people inside the church family still make others feel less accepted. That must change!

Reflection Question

What can I do to help people know they are fully accepted by God into his family?

Prayer:

Thank you, Father, for fully accepting me into your family through Jesus. Holy Spirit, use me to help others in this family know that they are fully accepted. Amen.