How Should A Family Behave?

Posted on December 10, 2006

 

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Romans 12:9-16

In just a couple of weeks, many of us are going to sit down with our extended families and enjoy Christmas dinner together, and we’re probably going to take note of all the weird people in our families and the weird traditions that we keep up every year. You’re not alone, my family is weird too. All of us are, there’s not a perfectly normal family in the bunch.

But how should a family behave? How does the family act that ends up on the cover of a Christmas card? The Bible describes the church as a family and here, Paul is telling us how to live like family and how to relate to others in the family of God…

1.         We need to act in love. (vs. 9-10)

            A.         Real love is sincere.

                        The word “dissimulation” has to do with hypocrisy or insincerity. Our love must be real.

            B.         Real love is discriminating.

                        Not in the people sense, but in the sense of hating sin and loving righteousness.

            C.         Real love is unselfish.

                        We honor and prefer others before ourselves when we love like family should.

2.         We need to serve with passion.(v. 11)

            A.         An outward diligence should mark our service.

                        “Business” here refers to diligence. We must work hard for God!

            B.         An inward warmth should mark our service.

                        “Fervent” refers to something boiling over or glowing with fire.

            C.         An upward focus should mark our service.

                        Service is worship. All that we do should be to God’s glory! (1 Cor. 10:31)

3.         We need to endure hardships. (vs. 12-15)

            A.         When we have problems, we need to keep praying. (v. 12)

                        Our faith will grow in proportion to our dependence upon God through prayer.

            B.         When others hurt, we need to give. (v. 13)

                        Paul never made an apology for expecting God’s people to give to one another.

            C.         When others hurt us, we need to forgive. (v. 14)

                        The word “bless” means to eulogize or to speak well of.

            D.         We need to identify with what people feel. (v. 15)

                        To sympathize is to pity, but to empathize is to “feel with…”

4.         We need to remain humble. (v. 16)

We must always remember that nobody is beneath us. Jesus hung out with the lowliest of the low and the poorest of the poor. Our ministry ought to be to the down-and-out. (Luke 4:18-19)

How is our family behaving?