Belong to Family

Scriptures

Intro

Why Do We Belong to Family?

Pull up 1 Corinthians 12:12-20. At Trinity Church we find that God calls us to embrace the scripture and we see it clearly state for us to be apart of a body.

Context: 1 Corinthians 12 goes over the spiritual gifts. How one gift is not greater than the other but all play an equal part in what Christ calls us to do. The common thread between these gifts, empowered by the same Spirit. They are variations of service, activities, but God is the one who empowers them all.

As He states how we are to view and use these gifts, God shows us the important of different members but the same key principal.

1 Corinthians 12:12–20 ESV

12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. 14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

What we see:

Baptized into One Body from the One Spirit

1 Corinthians 12:13 ESV

13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

David Guzik “But here, Paul does not have in mind water baptism as much as Spirit baptism: For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body. Paul here is writing of the common “immersion” all believers have in the Holy Spirit and in Jesus, a common “immersion” which brings them into one body”

The Body is Arranged by God

1 Corinthians 12:18 ESV

18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose.

Together, we Make up the Body of Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:19–20 ESV

19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

How We Belong to Family

Matthew 22:37–40 ESV

37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Love God With Your Whole Being

Matthew 22:37

Matthew 22:37 ESV

37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

With Your Heart

Our Hearts are the center for how we live. Our desires, passions, affections, motivation. Our sadness, grief, and depression. It is the crux of a healthy body, without it, we die.

Proverbs 4:3–4 ESV

3 When I was a son with my father, tender, the only one in the sight of my mother, 4 he taught me and said to me, “Let your heart hold fast my words; keep my commandments, and live.

Often times, our hearts are referred to our emotions and feelings. It’s more than that though because it leads to action. Keeping His words, commandments, and living for Him.

Story of how I met Berkley and how my heart lead to action.

The desire I had for Berkley and the want to get to know her better and just to talk to her was evident through my actions. I found out her last name, facebook friended her, asked her out, and pursued a relationship with her. We do what we desire. However, although this was a moment where I saw God’s hand in my life and the guidance and wisdom He gave me, our hearts can feel the exact same way for sin. The only difference is you might have some conviction or guilt but we want to sin.

That’s why God asks for all of your heart because we need His desires to become our desires. His ways to become our ways.

God uses the analogy of marriage to compare His relationship with the church as we see it stated in Ephesians, Colossians. Love God with all your heart and let it be evident in your life.

Although that passion is still there for my wife, it is different. It’s deeper and more selfless. The heart I have for her is shown in how much I care for her, spend time with her, grow in God’s word together, pray with and for one another, going on dates, being patient and kind in hard moments, encouraging her, and selflessly loving her as often as my imperfect human heart can. There are moments that I fail and could do a better job. However, the goal is to constantly grow and be the best husband I can be for her, by being the best man of God that I can be. My heart loves her not just from what I say and feel, but what I do and show for her.

What do you do and show for God that you Love Him?

Do you say you Love God but:

Don’t turn away from porn? It corrupts your mind and sabotages your desires. Ruins marriage, and grieves the spirt.

But lash out in Anger at your family?

Stay anxious and let it overwhelm you rather than trusting God?

But are envious or jealous of your co-workers or friends?

But never bring up your relationship with God in your conversations?

Imagine this:

I say I love Berkley with my whole heart:

I cheat on her weekly.

I yell and lash out in anger at her

Pretend I don’t have a wife around other girls so they don’t think I’m taken.

Never spend time with her

If I say I love Berkley with my heart but do those things? Do I truly Love her? Absolutely not.

So why do we do this with God?

Love God with your heart. To help our heart though which will be under attack often by Satan and the world, we must Love God with our mind.

With Your Mind

Go to Philippians 4:8-9, here we have Paul writing to the Philippians about the about Joy, and how in any circumstance, we can rejoice. In this chapter, it’s the conclusion of what Paul has talked about, being joyful always to be thankful, humility, unity, exhortation, and wraps this up. He states this in:

Philippians 4:8–9 ESV

8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

How do we think about these things? Well one, try and think of these things constantly throughout the day. Make an effort. But two, what really works be filled with His Spirit. Dwell in God’s word. This takes time. Try spending an hour of just praying and studying God’s word. Throughout every thing you do, think of God.

Write down what you are grateful for of what God is doing to you.

Pull up the verse of the day on the bible app 10 times.

Pray to God without ceasing. Pray to Him always

Study it and become a scholar of His word.

Let your mind be captivated on Him.

Everything you think about, Love Him with your mind.

Don’t just think about God, read His word, study it, and know it, Love Him also with your heart and how you show it. The heart and mind work together.

With Your Soul

Soul is heart and mind and every aspect of who you are and how God made you.

Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains

Our soul, psuche - “the essence of life in terms of thinking, willing, and feeling—‘inner self, mind, thoughts, feelings, heart, being.’ μιᾷ ψυχῇ συναθλοῦντες τῇ πίστει τοῦ εὐαγγελίου ‘with one mind, struggling together for the faith of the gospel’”

C.S Lewis states

“We don't have a soul. We are a soul. We happen to have a body”

Loving God with all of your soul is giving up absolutely all of yourself, surrendering your will to Jesus fully.

Love the Church as Yourself

Matthew 22:37–40 ESV

37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

First, this verse doesn’t just apply to our church, but everyone around us.

The idea of loving others as we would love ourselves is a big task. First, everything is to God, now, think of the way you want to be treated and loved, well Christ is saying, go do that.

How do you love someone as yourself?

Emphasize with One Another

Hurt for each other. Rejoice for each other.

When Christ is the Center we are united in that and should care for each other.

Be Intentional

Hebrews 10:24–25 ESV

24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

There are active words in these verses: stir in love and good works, meet together, encourage each other, as we wait for the Lord. Be intentional as a body. Often times, being intentional will solve a lot of issues in your life:

If you are struggling with your health be intentional to workout and eat better.

If you miss your friends, be intentional and call them and check in on them.

If your marriage is stagnant, be intentional and go on a date, get away for the weekend, and spend time with you two.

If Church isn’t clicking with you, be intentional and get involved.

Attend our events

Join a Lifegroup

Pray for each other

Serve somewhere.

Take someone out for Coffee or Lunch

Do Bible Studies and Devotions together

Come to Church Consistently, be encouraged and be challenged.

Stay Committed

The American Church has made this extremely difficult to do. Staying committed is hard when you find something you don’t like, you can just try and check out a different church.

What I find even more sad and discouraging though, is how hard it is to just stay committed in general.

The obvious one that we all relate to are New Year’s Resolution. Raise your hand if you’ve ever started a resolution and then a week later gave up.

To build on this, the gyms have a statistic that More than 90% of these people will quit after three months of going to the gym.

Fatherless Children according to the U.S Census Bureau “An estimated 24.7 million children (33%) live absent their biological father”

Divorce rate is at an all time High still. If you look at the statistics, don’t be deceived when you see people say it’s falling. The divorce rate still averages around 45% and less people are getting married.

In the 2000s, the national marriage rate in America was 8.2 people per 1,000. Currently, it is 5.1 per 1,000. With more couples living together without formalizing their union, the divorce rate cannot accurately represent the number of long-term relationship breakdowns.

So we also see people having a commitment issue of just getting married.

Commitment is Key for belonging to Family. If we aren’t committed to our Church, we will stay stagnant, unwilling to move. Granted, if a Church is not preaching the Bible, don’t be committed to it, God’s word is the source of truth and that is what this Church is built upon. But in moments that are difficult, communicate with your pastors, elders, and leaders in love. Don’t abandon ship when things don’t go your way. Go to God, dwell in His word, love Him with your heart, soul, and mind, and be apart of this Family. Humble your heart to let the Holy Spirit Live through you and give you peace and motivation to stay committed. Through thick and thin, we are God’s body. We are His bride he is our groom. He has placed us here for this moment to be apart.

If commitment is easier for you to stick with it, then be intentional and help others in our church stay committed.

Belonging to Family, will have moments where you:

Cry, hurt and mourn together.

Laugh and rejoice together

Take work and effort just like any family

and it will take time.

Belonging to family is more than just empathizing, being intentional, and staying committed. It’s about Loving Christ first, and letting that love flow through you through His spirit to then Love your neighbor, your family, as yourself.

However, what’s most important is when we belong to family, we strive to mimic the unity that God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit are. We strive for the same goal and the same goal is Christ, the hope of Him.

Through christ, through His spirit, we have unity. Unity in making disciples, telling people about Jesus, teaching one another, holding each other accountable to our sin. Love is not just letting people do what they say makes them feel happy. True love, not fairy tail love, is filled with God’s truth. Where we always help people point back to God and His word, to help other turn away from sin, and make God our only priority and only idol.

Go to Ephesians 4:1-6.

Think about the time of when this was written, what was going on in History? The Jews were always the chosen one’s. Now, who are these gentiles now coming into the picture? Paul is saying to them do not hold on to that stigma. Don’t hold on that selfish mindset anymore. We are all one in Christ. He has given us unity through His spirit that lives with each one of us. It is beautiful and wonderful to be apart of it, but it does take work.

Ephesians 4:1–6 ESV

1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

How many times is the word “one” said? 7

When Christ is the goal, and we are walking in how He wants us to walk, we’re going to have unity. Unity where when your friends, co-workers give you crap for following Jesus, you can come back to this church for encouragement where we can pray for you. Unity where when you feel tempted by sin, the church will come along side you and help you face your sin. Unity where when your faith feels dead, the church will worship with you to help you remind your soul of what God has done for you.

Recap