Galatians 6:9-10
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.
One thing we can all agree on is that we don’t get to choose our parents and siblings in this world. As we grow up, we find out that every family has challenges of their own. However, even with all the imperfection and struggles we learn to love our parents and siblings. There is a saying that many people say in regard to family; “blood is thicker than water”. This saying generally means that family bonds are stronger and more important than relationships with friends. In the end we will always choose our family over personal friends and all others.
However, when we come to faith in Jesus Christ, we are placed into a new family, which is known as the household of faith. We can see in scripture that the early church met together as a family, breaking bread in each other’s homes. (Acts 2:46) One of the things that amazes me about the early church is the love for one another. This love was expressed in many ways; however, we get a clear picture of how that loved looked like by what many in the early church did for their new family in Christ.
Acts 4:34-35
“There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need”.
We have here a clear example in scripture of how the love of God led people to sell their belongings to meet the needs of other fellow believers. As a believer in the Lord, I often wonder what it would be like if we could replicate this type of giving. How would the world around us view the church if we were genuinely concerned in meeting the needs of others? The apostle Paul in the letter to the Galatians, tells us that we should do good to everyone, and especially to those who are in the household of faith. Our responsibility is to be “our brother’s keeper”, and to look out for the needs one another. My challenge to us all is to be the answer to someone’s needs, especially those that are our brothers and sisters in the Lord.