“If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?”
I Timothy 3:5 NIV
We have all heard that family is the building block of society, but have you noticed that the family is one structure that is present across all living organisms, from plants to animals? Even organisms as minute as bacteria have a family.
If even the weed in a forest belongs to a family, then it means one thing – That God, the creator of the universe, is behind the family structure. It shows us that the family is more than just a societal construct; it is God’s design.
God’s ideal family is one where everybody plays their part and shows Christ to the world. Our anchor text emphasises the need to obey God’s instructions about caring for one’s family because it serves as a training ground for how to care for the church.
Families consist of individuals/organisms bound by similar observable characteristics. Just as every species of the Felidae (Cat) family all have similar characteristics like facial whiskers, sharp teeth and claws, members of God’s family are easily identified by a common characteristic which is Love (John 13: 34).
God designed the family to have a husband/father, whose headship over the family is a representation of Christ’s headship over the Church (Ephesians 5:23). God’s instruction to husbands is to love their wives as Christ loved the Church (Ephesians 5:25). Christ demonstrated His love for the Church by dying for her salvation – this is the greatest demonstration of love known to humanity (John 15:13). God has set this as a standard for every husband; in doing this, you mirror Christ’s union with the Church in your homes.
God also instituted the role of a wife/mother and the children. God’s instruction to Wives is to submit to their husbands, as unto God (Ephesians 5:22). Like the Church is subject to Christ, wives ought to be subject to their husbands and obey them in all things (Ephesians 5:23-24).
As for children, the Bible instructs them to obey their parents in the Lord, honour them, and not despise their instructions. Of all the commandments God gave the Israelites, this was the first one with a promise (Ephesians 6:1-3). As children are expected to respect their parents, there is also the expectation that parents do not provoke or talk down on their children so that they do not consider them monsters. (Colossians 3:21).
God cares about the family because it represents His grand plan for His Church. As believers, we all belong to the family of God. We belong to one body, and we ought to play our parts just like in a real family (1 Corinthians 12: 12).
Everything God expects of us as members of His family is rooted in love. God’s plan for us all is that we belong to families (Both personal and local assembly) where everyone operates from a place of love because this is how we show Christ’s love to the world.
Bible Reading Plan: John 5: 18-47