Loyalty to the Image of God

In Mark’s gospel we read that Jesus Mother and brothers came to send for him, but when he is told they are looking for him, he answered looking at the multitude around him, ‘Who is my mother or my brothers? Here are my mother and my brothers. Whoever does the will of God is my brother and my sister and my mother.’ There are two important points to learn from this. First: water is thicker than blood. The family that you joined in your baptism is more important than your biological family. Of course in God’s kindness, you biological family is often included in the family of Christ. In such cases there is no need to chose between one and the other, but when your family rejects the faith or requires you to disobey the clear Word of God, you are under the obligation to obey God rather than man. Your family is here and everywhere the people of God gather around the table of God to do God’s will in word an deed. But secondly, this also means that the family of Christ is just that: Christ’s family. Being a Christian is not about personalities, individual teachers or pastors, or even denominations. To be a Christian is to have Christ’s name as your last name. To be a Christian is be a child of our Father in heaven, a younger brother or sister of Christ our elder brother. Your loyalty is to Christ first and foremost, your loyalty is to those all around you who do the will of God. You are not of Paul or Apollos or Luther or Calvin or the CREC or Wilson or Jordan or Leithart and certainly not Sumpter. You are of Christ and Christ is of God. Therefore put away any pride and put on gratitude. Put away competition and put on thankfulness. Put away fear and worry and put on a deep joy. This is the new humanity of God; you are new Adams and new Eves in Christ. You are the images of God refashioned, remade. Give thanks and rejoice.