A Family to Belong

Main Thought

All families have ties that unite them. It can be through blood relation, marriage, adoption, or some other deep connection. God’s Church is a family too. The church family spans denominations and ethnicities, breaking down barriers and boundaries to unify Christians across history. What connection do we share? We share faith in Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, whose sacrifice makes us right with God. God the Father adopts us into His family, and the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in every believer. The connection we share is rooted in the deepest part of our beings. We should therefore strive to love one another, include one another, and build with one another.

Main Passages

19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

- Ephesians 2:19-22

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

- John 1:12-13

14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

- Romans 8:14-16

Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in the Main Thought or Passages above?

2. The following three statements are powerful truths about our place as the family of God. Which one is most impactful for you, and why?

   1. We were dead, but now we live.

   2. We were separated, but now we’re included.

   3. We were foreigners, but now we’re family.

3. How can viewing yourself as a son or daughter of God change the way you interact with people?

Parenting: Honoring the Past, Guiding the Future

Main Thought

Where does God want people to experience Him for the first time? In a church, a conference, or maybe even a concert? The Bible is clear: a child’s first experience (or introduction to God) is actually meant to be in the home. If a Christian parent’s goal is to educate their children on God’s principles, then that parent must first embrace God’s principles for themselves. The best way to teach love isn’t by mandating it - it’s by modeling it. (Jesus did this when He perfectly fulfilled the Great Commandments to love God and others with His death on the Cross.) Then, God intends for parents to teach their children His Word and ways diligently. We can intentionally seek regular opportunities, or capitalize on random ones. In addition to teaching and instruction, we’re meant to impart love for God through our passionate examples. Some things are caught, not taught. Those who don’t have their own children can assist and support parents in many ways as a part of the Church, which is a very important part of Christian family.

Main Passages

4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

- Deuteronomy 6:4-9 

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

- Matthew 28:18-20

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), 3 “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” 4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

- Ephesians 6:1-4

Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in the Main Thought and Passages above?

2. Did anyone in your family teach you about God in an impactful way? Who was it, and how did they do it?

3. How can you be a blessing to the Next Generation, and teach them the ways of the Lord?

Singled Out

Main Thought

Society can obsess over romantic love, attraction, and sex. Even Christians can unintentionally turn marriage into an idol, hoping that it will their fulfill their ultimate needs and desires. But being single (biblically defined as unmarried and celibate) is a valid option in God’s eyes. It’s such a good option that even Jesus chose it while He walked the earth! Singleness provides special opportunities and freedom to people. It grants a greater level of autonomy than that which is experienced by those who commit to covenant marriage. A single person can use their increased opportunities to serve God and impact eternity, like the Apostle Paul did. Choosing to be unmarried and celibate, even for a season, gives people an opportunity to discover fulfillment in God as they exercise self-control. This fulfillment can be displayed to the world as a beautiful testimony, in which God’s love is experienced differently in manner yet equally in measure.

Main Passages

17 Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him.

- 1 Corinthians 7:17

10 The disciples said to him, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.” 11 But he said to them, “Not everyone can receive this saying, but only those to whom it is given. 12 For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let the one who is able to receive this receive it.”

- Matthew 19:10-12

32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. 33 But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, 34 and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. 35 I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.

- 1 Corinthians 7:32-35

Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in the Main Thought and Passages above?

2. Is the love of Jesus Christ sufficient to meet the deepest needs of intimacy in a person’s life? Why or why not?

3. If you are single, how can you best cherish the life that God has called you to lead? If you are married, how can you best support those around you who are single right now?

The Power of Commitment

Main Thought

Today’s world is all about “me.” Marriage is no different. People want to know what they will “get out of” marriage. This kind of self-centeredness will not provide a foundation for a long-lasting and happy marriage. Christians, on the other hand, have a responsibility to look beyond themselves when it comes to marriage. God created marriage to mirror His love toward us. Jesus laid down His life in order to  put God and other people above Himself. Husbands and wives should seek to love each other with the same self-sacrificing love. When we commit ourselves to doing this well, our love stories can become a real-life picture of God’s love for the world.

Main Passages

21 …submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. 22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. 25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.

- Ephesians 5:21-28

29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

- Ephesians 5:29-33

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

- John 3:16

Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in the Main Thought and Passages above and why?

2. If you’re married, what does being married mean to you? If you’re single, what does marriage mean to you?

3. Does the idea that Christian marriage is meant to be different from other marriages outside of Christianity sound strange to you? Do you agree or disagree?