Sister Sledge had a hit song from the late ’70s called, “We Are Family.” In fact, this song was so popular that the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team used it for their theme song as they won the World Series in 1979. Family matters. Our state convention, under the leadership of our president, Dr. Rudy Gray, has emphasized family this year.
HooksWhat has always fascinated me is that God established the family as the first institution. It was established before the church itself. There in the garden, God joined Adam and Eve in the first home. Man and woman were joined and became one flesh. The family matters to Jesus because he used it as symbol of his relationship to the church in describing the church as being his bride.
The family, in its social dimension, reflects God. The nature of the triune God is revealed in the social aspect of the family. Each member of the Trinity has a unique personality and distinctive identity, yet they are one God. One in three, three in one is the main thrust of the Nicene Creed. In the same manner, the family has distinct members who interact with each other out of love, but the family is one unit.
The family also is like the church. Just as the family is a representation of God, it is also a representation of the church. Family dynamics can be seen in the dynamics of the church. The church is referred to as the family of God. The church is the body of Christ on the earth. The focus of family life is so that individuals may develop the social skills necessary for social interaction in the church, thereby becoming productive members of the church. It is these relationships on earth that will survive into eternity.
Therefore, the family is important to God and the church. The family is under a great deal of stress these days. There are many forces at work to destroy the institution of family as God intended it to be. Family health, individual health, and maturity are inseparably entwined. For optimal individual development and maturity, the power of family identity and socialization are crucial elements. The degree of development and maturity which individuals display is directly related to the health of their families and exposure to an environment of healthy family living. Society has become self-centered because of the breakdown of the family unit. God created the family unit as the primary social unit for teaching individuals how to live with others. Anything the world has engineered cannot fully or effectively replace what God has ordained.
For these reasons, family matters to us at Evergreen Baptist Church as we seek to help individuals and families in the church and the community.
In looking through the church history, I have discovered that the church motto has been, “Living for Christ in the World Today.” What a powerful motto and a necessary message for this world today. We are to be like the apostle Paul, who wrote, “To die is to gain, to live is Christ.” As we move forward, let us live for Christ in this world today until he returns.
Hooks is pastor of Evergreen Baptist Church, Effingham.