Text:  1 Timothy 3: 4-6 He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. 5 (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil.

We need to get grounded in the Word of God. The family is the basic unit of human relationship and as such is foundational to both society and the church. (Genesis 2:18-24).

What is a family? : A basic social unit consisting of parents and their children, considered as a group, whether dwelling together or not: the traditional family.

Christian Family: A Christian family is one which lines up with Biblical principles and one in which each member understands and fulfills his or her God-given role. The family is not an institution designed by man. It was created by God, and man has been given the responsibility of stewardship over it. The basic Biblical family unit is comprised of one man, one woman—his spouse, and their offspring or adopted children.

One of the primary principles: The family unit is one that involves a commitment ordained by God for the lifetime of the members. The husband and wife are responsible for holding it together; the current attitude of our culture notwithstanding. Although divorce is sought and granted much too easily in our society, the Bible tells us that God hates divorce. (Malachi 2:16).

When you think of a family, you have to think about the words accountability and responsibility.

Accountability: Liable to being called to account;    answerable.

Responsibility: Liable to be required to give account, as of one’s actions or of the discharge of a duty or trust and the ability to act without guidance.

1.    Able to make moral or rational decisions on one’s own and therefore answerable for one’s behavior.

2.    Able to be trusted or depended upon; reliable, good judgment or sound thinking.

To be part of a family one must be willing to be held accountable and responsible to a higher calling.

Ephesians 5:22–26 (NIV): Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. …

1.     Provides the guidelines for husbands and wives in a Christian family.

2.     The husband is required to love his wife as Christ loved the church.

3.     A wife should respect her husband.

4.     A wife must willingly submit to his leadership in the   family.  (RESPECT)

5.     The husband’s leadership role should start with spiritual matters and then flow to instructing and teaching both his wife and their offspring scriptural values, leading the family into biblical truth.

6.     Of course, the first requirement for the members of a good Christian family is that they all be Christians, having a true relationship with Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

7.     Fathers are instructed to bring up their children in the training and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4).

8.     He is also to provide for his family. If he does not, he “denies the faith and is worse than an unbeliever”. (1 Timothy 5:8).

9.     So a man who makes no effort to provide for his family cannot rightly call himself a Christian. This does not mean that the wife cannot assist in supporting the family.

10. Proverbs 31 demonstrates that a Godly wife may surely do so, but providing for the family is not primarily her responsibility; it is her husband’s.

11. Woman was given to man for the purpose of being her husband’s helper (Genesis 2:18-20) and to bear children.

12. Husband and wife are to remain faithful to one another for a lifetime.

13. This eliminates the cultural view that divorce, living together without being married, and same-sex marriage are acceptable in God’s eyes.

14. Sexuality, expressed according to Biblical standards, is a beautiful expression of love and commitment. Outside of marriage, it is sin.

15. God declares equality of worth in that all people, men and women, are created in God’s image and likeness, and are therefore equally valuable.

16. This does not mean, however, that men and women have identical roles.

17. Women are more adept at nurturing and caring for the young, while men are better equipped to provide and protect the family.

18. Thus they are equal in status, but each has a different role to play.

Children : They have two primary responsibilities in the family.

1.     To obey their parents and to honor them (Ephesians 6:1-3).

2.     Obeying parents is the duty of children until they reach adulthood, but we are to honor them for a lifetime.

3.     God promises His blessings on those who honor their parents.

So what is your responsibility in God’s Church?

1.     Love , believing and accepting Him.

2.     Romans 12:10-11 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.  (NIV) Follow his word

3.     Romans 13:13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. (KJV)

4.     Ephesians 5:1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; (KJV)

5. Ephesians 4: 26 “In your anger do not sin”[a]: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, (NIV)

6. Ephesians 4:29-32 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

So what is the problem?

Many Christians say they are Christians but they don’t act like Christians.

1.     When we talk we do not sound like Christians. (tongue & mouth)

2.     We look for excuses not to go to church and other church programs.

3.     We refuse to follow Gods word by looking for loop holes.

4.     We refuse to give our 10 percent of our tithes.

5.     We’re unwilling to become a part of the body.

I was once asked:  Why should I  Join a church?

The same analogy is true for a human body.

• Your body isn’t a casual collection of loosely related parts.
• You don’t keep your fingers in your pocket until you need them.
• They are joined. They are members of the body.
• The local body of Christ should be like this also; those joined to Christ

who are members of  His body should express that relationship through

a visible membership.

To be a stone in his temple means to belong to a worshiping community.

• To be part of a body means to belong to a living, functioning, serving, witnessing community.
• To be a sheep in the flock means belonging to a community dependent on Him for food, protection, and direction.
• To be a member of a family is to belong to a community bound by a common fatherhood.
• When put together you have the main functions of an individual Christian.

Evidently, we are meant to fulfill these, not on our own but together in the

church.

And in a household, a family,

• You’re either a member or you’re not.
• So, if you are part of the family of God, show it by joining a local expression of God’s family.

What Must We Do?

1.     Workers Together With God: Paul uses a phrase in 2 Corinthians 6:1 which says, “And working together with Him…..”

• It is a fascinating thought that we can indeed be workers together with God in the accomplishment of His purposes.
• While your part in God’s scheme of things may be small, it is nevertheless important.
• If I fail, then my part goes undone.
• Even the screw that holds down an oil pan on the motor is important. Nothing in the service of the Lord can be called unimportant.

2. Get The Job Done

• There are times when church work means hard work. Sometimes it is the baking of a cake for someone in need.
• Sometimes it is the writing of a note of encouragement.
• Sometimes it is seeing a job that needs to be done and doing it.
• Be assured that God has a place for you in the church.
• Don’t wait for someone to ask you to do it.
• Find your place of service and give God the strength of your whole being. He expects no less.
• Your Role: It doesn’t matter:

A.   Your role may be an energetic greeting at the door.

B.    A behind the scenes volunteer, teacher, usher or preacher, a clerk or trustee;  JUST GET THE JOB DONE!

Closing:

When a husband, wife and children all fulfill their God-appointed roles in the family, when they have all committed their lives to Christ and to His service, then peace and harmony will reign in the home.

If our church families believe, trust and follow God’s word, WE will find joy, peace, harmony and love (The fruits of the Spirit).

But if we try to have a good Christian family and a good Christian church without Christ as Head, or without adhering to Biblical principles the Lord has lovingly provided for us, we will fail.

REMEMBER, WE ARE FAMILY!