Who Is Our Family?

We just returned from our annual discipleship trip to Montana. For me it was my 9th “pilgrimage” west! Over the course of these nine years, I have developed some great relationships with the people of Springhill Presbyterian Church in Bozeman, MT. I have come to view many of the people there as my “Montana family.” However, just before I departed on the trip this year, I was reminded of the impact of the Gospel on our horizontal relationships. In the opening verse of the book of Philemon, Paul refers to Timothy as his “brother.” In the Gospel of John (11:21), Mary refers to Lazarus as her “brother.” The difference between these two passages is that Lazarus was Mary’s biological brother, while Timothy was Paul’s brother in Christ. The interesting thing is that both passages use the same Greek word, “adelphos.” This word literally means, “of the same womb.” Take a second and think about the significance of this! Mary and Lazarus were biologically related, while Paul and Timothy were Blood related. The Gospel had caused a radical paradigm shift in Paul’s life. Remember Paul was of Jewish descent and was very proud of his ethnic stock (Philippians 3). However, when God rocked him with the Gospel on the road to Damascus (Acts 9), his perspective of horizontal relationships was radically altered. He became the “apostle to the Gentiles.” He confronted racism/ethnocentrism (Galatians 2:11-14). He acted compassionately on behalf of the poor (Galatians 2:10). Paul’s new birth in Christ caused him to view all believers as “family.” This family perspective superseded any racial, ethnic, or economic differences that existed. That is true Gospel transformation!

So when we travel to Montana, we realize that there are geographical, cultural, and economic differences between us, but we quickly recognize that we are family. We get to know each other, we sharpen each other, we laugh together, and throughout the year we pray for one another. As followers of Jesus we are adopted into a multi-national, multi-ethnic family! Lord give us the grace to be family!