What is Family?
Holidays are a time for family. But how we think about family as Christians is a little bit different than that of the world.
The account of the family given in scripture, which I will here limit to the New Testament, extends beyond the biological into the spiritual. Family is concerned with the spiritual relationship between individuals as part of the wider ‘family of God.’ In the New Testament, “scriptural language is often used to refer to the church (Gal. 6:10; Eph. 2:19), and throughout Scripture the family is a key metaphor for the family of God or the household of faith.” It is the Spirit of God that brings a diversity of people, not of flesh and blood, into this familial relation (John 1:12-13).
Further, scripture uses the language of adoption in the Spirit as a way of describing us as “children of God” who are heirs of a great inheritance (Rom. 8:14-17; Eph. 1:5; Gal. 3:29). With regard to adoption in scripture, “Among Jesus’ recorded sayings is a strong motif of honoring the spiritual family over the natural family.” Our being adopted as ‘sons’ is both a current and eschatological reality. Further, it is faith that makes us God’s children (Galatians 3:26). Also, in Matthew, Mark, and Luke we receive an account of Christ saying that those who follow the law of the Father are his true mother and brother (Matt. 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35; Luke 8:19-21). Christ also sets biological father against son, and son against father (Luke 12:49-53). This spiritual reality of our filial connection to God as father attests to a spiritual reality, rather than only a physical one.
Over the last few months, we have been reflecting on how to reimagine how the Christian might engage their finances, their charity, and even their time in a way that is more heavenly minded. This is another place where we can do some theological reimagining. I think that this reimagining is key if we are to be a community set apart for the Kingdom of God, but in this world. Yes, holidays are for family. But we also have to reimagine who might be in our family based upon spiritual realities. Some of you will not be able to travel in the coming months. But, when you are part of a church, when you are a Christian, you always have a family nearby. As we continue on into Advent and into the Christmas season know that there are people here at St Paul’s that are family.