Love Your Church Family Series

Last week we noted from Romans 12:1-3 that we are not to be Christian Zombies, but be WAMBs: Worship God with our attitudes, our Minds, and our Bodies! How many of you had zombie moments last week? How many of us Christians had moments during the week when we didn’t think or act godly?? - notice that my hand is up.

The Christian faith is an ongoing battle! Do we really love God who loves us with an everlasting love? This is the most important thing we all need to grasp. In Romans 8:38-39, we noted that nothing can separate us from God’s love; neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Have we really grasped this truth of God’s love? If we do, shouldn’t we love Him back? If you love God then keep on fighting the good fight of faith, till you are taken home to heaven, where Jesus will welcome you and tell you, “Well done, my good and faithful servant!”

And so, before we can move on with the rest of God’s instructions to us in Romans 12-16, we must be committed to worshiping God always! Don’t be a Christian Zombie, be a WAMB! Worship God with your attitude, mind, and body! Today the challenge is, “Don’t be greedy, love your family!” What are the 2 greatest commandments??

And so Romans 12 follows the same thing; Love God = Worship God! Love your neighbor starts with loving your family, first your physical family, then your spiritual family! How do we know this? What is the 6th Commandment from the 10 Commandments? - Honor your father and mother! And God tells us in 1 Timothy 5:8, If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

Don’t be greedy, love your family! If you need more information about loving your physical family, study again Ephesians 5-6. If you would like copies of those messages from Ephesians 5-6, let me know. Our passage today, Romans 12:4-13, speaks of loving our spiritual family, the people of the Christian Church! Please open your Bibles to Romans 12. Let us pray our commitment to God’s Word before we read…….

Romans 12:4-13…

Don’t be greedy, love your family!

How do we love each other in the church?

The first thing we have to realize and accept is what is noted in v4-5: As Christians in a church, we are one body and we belong to each other. What does this mean? It is God’s plan for Christians to be stuck with each other. No matter how different we may be and no matter how spiritually mature or immature we are, if we profess to be Believers of Jesus Christ in this church, we are stuck with each other!

By the way, how do we know who the Believers are in the church? What did we learn from Romans 10:9? That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Christians believe with their hearts that Jesus Christ is their only Savior and confess with their mouths that Jesus is their Lord.

And you know, this is one of the main reasons why we do church membership.

When you apply for church membership, you will not only put in writing your belief in Jesus Christ as Savior but have an opportunity to confess that Jesus is your Lord. If you have never applied for membership and you call All Nations Bible Church your home church, I encourage you to become a member. Talk to me about completing a Membership Application. Proclaim to be a Christian and be a Church Member. Only Church Members have the right to vote in congregational meetings because at least we know that they have proclaimed their Christian faith through the Membership process. Be a Church Member; we will be having a Congregational Meeting soon to vote on next year’s leaders and budget.

Now, getting back to our passage; We start loving one another in church by:

1. realizing and accepting God’s truth that we Christians belong to each other!

What is the second thing we can note from Romans 12:6?

2. Christians are to use their God-given abilities for service in the church.

What’s significant about this for us?

a. Every Christian is given a spiritual gift from God!

b. Every Christian should use their spiritual gift!

And so, each one of us who profess to be Christians must know our spiritual gift and use them!