Over the holidays we’ve been looking at what the Christian community (church) and what the Christian household (nuclear family) SHOULD look like. The interesting thing is, these two communities cannot exist in isolation from each other.
On the one hand, the way God has always dealt with humans is through the family. This is why God chose to work through Abraham AND his family (descendants). It’s why God killed Achan AND his family for Achan’s sin (Josh 7). It’s why Joshua can say ‘as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord’ (Josh 24:15). And it’s why God asked for 8 day old babies to be given the sign of faith (circumcision).
Yet at the same time, God has also dealt with humans through his collective people. In the OT this was the nation of Israel. In NT times, God now deals with people from all nations, through the church. And just like we could not sever an Israelite family from the nation of Israel, so too can we not sever a Christian family from the church. This works both ways in practice.
One example of the church connecting with the family is infant baptism. The reason the church baptises babies of believers, is God’s promise to deal with families. If even one of the parents is Christian, then the children are also (1 Cor 7:14).
The way a Christian family can connect to the church is by inviting members of the church in, to share family moments; moments like Sunday lunch, Monday dinner, or family devotions. A single Christian once said how privileged she felt being able to help with the kids’ bath times every Monday night at her minister’s house. May our church and our households work together the way they SHOULD.
Brendan McLaughlin
