The Family Of God

The Family of God

Mark 3:32-35, Eph 2:19 KJV

Finding Our Dearest Relatives

When she turned 21, Tammy Harris from Roanoke, Virginia, began searching for her biological mother. After a year, she had not succeeded. What she didn’t know was that her mother, Joyce Schultz, had been trying to locate her for twenty years. According to a recent Associated Press story, there was one more thing Tammy didn’t know: Her mother was one of her coworkers at the convenience store where she worked!

One day Joyce overheard Tammy talking with another coworker about trying to find her mother. Soon they were comparing birth certificates. When Tammy realized that the co-worker she had known was, in fact, her mother, she fell into her arms. "We held on for the longest time," Tammy said. "It was the best day of my life." Each week we rub shoulders with people whom we may barely notice.

But if they share a birth in Christ, they are our dearest relatives. How precious is the family of God!

Jesus seeks Fellowship with his creation

You are members of God’s family.

Eph 2:19 KJV

19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

God’s family should have all of the qualities of family life, but extended throughout the family of God. We should love one another, sympathize with one another, and help one another. We should be bonded into a special family relationship.

1 Peter 3:8 Finally, all of you should be of one mind, full of sympathy toward one another, loving one another with tender hearts and humble minds. (NLT)

Jesus seeks a relationship that transcends earthly ties.

Mark 3:32-35 KJV

32 And the multitude sat about him, and they said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren without seek for thee.

33 And he answered them, saying, Who is my mother, or my brethren?

34 And he looked round about on them which sat about him, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren!

35 For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother.

We need the Love of God’s family

Family Rental

In Japan, you can rent a family. Elderly Japanese who are isolated from their children by the frantic pace of modern life can rent a "family" for lunch and a few hours. Just call Nippon Kokasei Honbu (Japan Effectiveness Headquarters) and ask for a son, daughter, grandchild, whatever relative you want, and that type will show up at your door and greet you as if they haven’t seen you in years. Of course the service isn’t cheap: three hours with your family cost $1,130, plus transportation. Satsuki Ohiwa founded the business in 1990 when a businessman was too busy to visit his mother. Company staff visited her instead, and Ohiwa deemed it a success. Ohiwa’s observation of the recipients is not surprising. She said, "What is common about our clients is that they are thirsty for human love."

Aren’t you glad God didn’t call this service when we needed a Savior? Love can’t be marketed, only unconditionally given.

Jesus is offering fellowship with Himself

A. He asks for it today.

B. He longed for the fellowship of His disciples on the eve of His crucifixion. "With desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer."

Benefits of Fellowship with God

1. It will display our own short comings

The higher the temperature the more chilling would it be to pass into an icehouse; and the more our lives are brought into fellowship with the perfect Life, the more we shall feel our own shortcomings.

2. Fellowship turns the lights on

Christopher D. Green writes:

"I cannot explain why I do it, but I have always walked in the dark. When I was a kid I used to do it more as a challenge; an adventure. Now as an adult, I suppose it is more out of habit than anything else.

"If I get up in the middle of the night, I refuse to turn on the lights. Instead of simply flipping a switch and lighting my way, I wander around in the dark, relying on my sixth sense to guide me. Usually, I guess from all these years of practice, I can get to my intended destination without incident. However, a few nights ago proved to be one of exception and painful consequence.

"After being in bed for an hour or so, I got up to get a drink of water. With my mouth as dry as the inside of a Kleenex box, I shuffled down the hall half asleep but still awake enough to enjoy the tickling feeling the carpet made on my feet. As I cleared the end of the hall, it felt good to pause by the heater. Continuing on only a few shuffles more, I met my doom. I think I actually felt the pain before it happened. With one fairly innocent shuffle, I crashed my foot into the dining room chair. The force was so great it knocked the chair over, and left me in a painful pile on the floor. The scream was muffled only because I had a mouth full of plush pile carpet. If I had only turned on the light, I would have avoided the pain!