LIVING WITHIN A BELIEVING FAMILY

The origin of the family began when God created Adam and Eve. Family plays a vital role in everyone’s life. Every household falls into God’s plan to reveal His glory.

In the early church, there was literature called “household texts.” Apostle Paul, in his letters to the churches, spoke about individual households and larger households. He gave specific guidelines for the household of God—the whole church.

The purpose of the individual household texts was to give a clear picture of the guidelines for life as a family, especially in light of how those families were to live in the community. Paul and Peter used their culture’s format to explain how Christians’ families were to live within the church, God’s family. We can see three individual household texts in the New Testament letters: Ephesians 5:22- 6-9, Colossians 3: 18- 4-1, and 1 Peter 3: 1- 7.

In a time when the guidelines for marriage and family life are being redefined in our culture, we must build our marriages and families upon God’s design.

We can see that Paul directly addresses each household member: wives, husbands, children, fathers, slaves, and masters. Husbands are to love their Wives, and wives are to submit to their husbands. Children are to obey their parents. Slaves are to obey their masters, and Fathers are to patiently train their children.

Each of us needs to know our responsibilities in our family and submit to his or her responsibilities. God has blessed and placed us in our family with a big purpose and plan. Christ’s plan centers on the church being a family of families.

The husband is to love his wife as much as Christ loves us, even giving up his life for her. He is to cherish and nurture her. He is to give significant, patient attention to the development of his children.

God expects families to be orderly so that the church can function orderly. God created an order to things, and families and churches work when we follow His order.

In today’s world, we can see our families diminishing, authority is not being practised well, and we are creating a generation of children devoid of all the benefits, character, and security of stable family life in which men lead their homes.

Sadly, most Christians fail to understand what is living within a believing family, and they end up in failure and separation. Christians file most of the divorce cases in India.

We are called to serve the Lord, for He has given us a new life to love one another in Christ and live holily. Let us keep our focus on Christ and have a renewed mindset.

Christ has a plan for His church, which includes guidelines for individual families. He expects us to follow it.