When churches closed due to the pandemic, it was very difficult for my husband and I. We missed our church family so much. The sermon was still being done via zoom, and we did watch, but there was something lacking. The interaction and fellowship of our spiritual family was what we were missing. We missed being in the presence of our brothers and sisters in Christ. And we missed seeing their faces and the sweet fellowship/connection that happens when God’s family came together. God designed us to love that time together. And those around us are able to see and be drawn to God through that love that we have for one another.

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. ³⁵ By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:34-35.

John 1:12 tells us that all followers of Christ are children of God. “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,”.

And, we are children of God because of God’s incredible love for us (not because of anything we have done). “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. ” 1 John 3:1.

That means that anyone who is a follower of Jesus Christ is our brother or sister in the Lord. But when we are in a congregation together or have fellowship together, it is very intimate and there should be love for one another. In fact, the scripture tells us that, if we do not have love for our brothers and sisters in Christ, we might want to examine our hearts. “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death” 1 John 3:14.

Please understand… I am NOT a “people person”. Prior to knowing Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior, I wanted to be as far away from people as I could get. I would have been perfectly content to sit in my house or on our property and never see another soul other than my husband and children. But that is why this love for God’s family is such great proof that we are followers of Jesus Christ. Our flesh (nature) desires to satisfy our needs and desires, while this love for others is foreign to the world and self-sacrificing.

This love that we have for God’s family is supernatural. It is not like any other kind of “love” that the world experiences. “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor” Romans 12:10. It can only come from our Heavenly Father. “We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:19.

The enemy has decimated the family structure today. If people even marry, they soon divorce and there is fracture and hurt and bitterness. That is why the family structure that God offers is so incredible. It is why God’s family longs to be together.

My personal family consists of 8 siblings. There is a blend of step, half, and full biological. My parents were each married 4 times. Can you imagine the dysfunction that the enemy created through these circumstances?

But God knew what the family structure would look like. He knew how the enemy would wreak havoc and break hearts. He knew the wreckage that would become the family structure of today. And, as He always does, He made a way.

He is a good Father who desires His children to love and be loved. So, He created a family. And, if Jesus is Lord of our lives, we are all brothers and sisters in God’s family. The love we have for one another comes from Him and we are commanded to love one another. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 13:34.

There are multiple verses that address how God’s family is supposed to be a support to each other. “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” Galatians 6:2. We should be to able share things that might even be shameful and pray together over it. “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working” James 5:16. Our affection for one another should be so great that we even greet each other with hugs and kisses. “Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.” Romans 16:16. Only a family that truly has love for one another could do these things in true love and sincerity.

People are drawn to God because of the beautiful love that we share as brothers and sisters in Christ. When the lost, hurt, and broken of this world see the magnitude of love that God’s family has for one another, they can’t resist it. They want to know more and God begins to reveal His love for them.

So, Church, can we put our petty disputes (that all families have) aside? We need to learn to get along now because we are going to be spending eternity together 😉 . Besides the love that we show one another could be what God uses to rescue a soul. Let’s love one another! “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8.

Father God, we thank you that we can love one another. Because you first loved us. We praise you for the love of Jesus who, because of His great love for us, willingly suffered and died in our place! We praise you, Jesus!

And we thank you, Jesus, that, as you faced your suffering on the cross, you prayed to the Father for unity in God’s family. Not just the family then, but us as well. “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” John 17:20-21. And the unity that you prayed for was the same intimate and beautiful unity that you have with the Father! We cannot praise or thank you enough!

Holy Spirit, help us to love, support, and pray for one another. Help us to be unified with that same sweet and intimate love that you share with the Father and Jesus. Use our love for one another to draw others into a beautiful and intimate relationship with you, Lord, and then with us as well. Thank you for adopting us. We are children of God and members of God’s family and we thank you! We pray this in your precious and Holy name, Jesus.

You may have come from a very dysfunctional family. You may have some real hurts and brokenness because of your family life. Because of that dysfunction, it may be difficult for you to even think about desiring to be a member of a family.

I am begging you to go to our Life Preserver page (https://forgiven-n-loved.com/life-preserver/). On this page, you will find a prayer outlined. Please, please, pray that prayer. Through it, God wants to forgive you of your sin, free you from the guilt and pain that you have been walking in and adopt you as His own precious child. He wants to make you part of His family. I promise you that the love that you will find in God is sweeter than any love you have ever known. Please pray. And, once you have, reach out to me at admin@Forgiven-N-Loved.com and let me know. I’d love to be in prayer with and for you.

Luv Ya!