Know Thyself, Family Rules, 11 January 2015
11 01 15 Filed in: Sermons | Family Rules
Series Overview: The purpose of this series is to cast a vision for a healthy church family, noting particular strengths and weaknesses of Scio in the process.
Big Idea: A healthy church family knows its identity.
Who are you? I don’t mean you as an individual, but you as a church? Who are we? We are Scio Community Church, but who are we? What is our identity?
When meeting a new person, it’s common to ask, “What do you do?” Individuals are often identified by their vocation. “I’m a doctor.” “I’m a teacher.” "I’m a student.” That’s what they do, but it’s not the totality of who they are as humans.
An ancient Greek aphorism/saying/maxim says, “Know thyself.” It has been attributed to Socrates and others, was used by Plato, referenced by Benjamin Franklin, found above the Oracle’s door in the movie The Matrix, and serves as the motto of Hamilton College (NY).
One year ago we looked at what it means to be followers of Jesus and our identity…in Christ. Our study of Ephesians had a deep impact on my life as I am beginning to understand God the Father says the same things about me as He says about Jesus: “You are my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.” He says the same to you (unless you are female, in which case He calls you His beloved daughter!”).
As Scio Community Church, we are more than merely a group of individuals. We are greater than the sum of our parts (or persons). The Bible describes the church as a body.
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. (1 Corinthians 12:27)
It is described as a temple. It is called God’s field. It is the people of God.
Perhaps the most common word used to describe the church—and certainly Scio Community Church—is family.
For many, the word “family” elicits positive thoughts and emotions, feelings of love, warmth, respect, affection, and loyalty. For others, pain and heartache are closely associated with family.
What is a family?
Dictionary.com offers these definitions:
a basic social unit consisting of parents and their children, considered as a group, whether dwelling together or not: the traditional family.
a social unit consisting of one or more adults together with the children they care for: a single-parent family.
any group of persons closely related by blood, as parents, children, uncles, aunts, and cousins:
to marry into a socially prominent family.
a group of persons who form a household under one head, including parents, children, and servants.
The definition has changed through the years. Just observing popular television families reveals the transitions our culture has experienced. Think about the differences between the following families:
Little House on the Prairie
The Waltons
All In The Family
Happy Days
Cosby
Roseanne
Home Improvement
Modern Family
A few years ago Coca Cola did this commercial that expresses a contemporary definition of family about as well as any…
According to Coke, family is anyone you want it to be! Fortunately the Bible is our authority, not Hollywood or Madison Avenue!
Family was God’s design from the beginning…and I don’t mean Adam and Eve. Family existed before them!
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” (Genesis 1:26)
Did you catch it? Let us make mankind…in our image and likeness. Although the word trinity does not appear in the Bible, the concept of one God in three Persons is clear. We worship a triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. All God. All family. All creating and doing God stuff together! Each has their own unique roles and relationship to the other Persons. It is something of a mystery…but God models for us community—family!
Our winter series, Family Rules, is a double entendre; rules is both a noun and verb. The purpose of this series is to cast a vision for a healthy church family, noting particular strengths and weaknesses of Scio in the process. When people talk about church, they could mean a building. They could mean a Sunday morning gathering. It is common to refer to the universal church of all followers of Jesus Christ worldwide. For much of this series family will refer to us—Scio Community Church.
We are family!
As I said, that word has baggage for many. We strive to be a healthy family, not a dysfunctional, broken family. No family is perfect, but I hope through this series you will gain a greater appreciation for our Scio family and be challenged to make it stronger, healthier…and possibly larger as healthy things tend to grow.
Why Family?
Of all of the images used to describe us, why would God choose family? Simply, God created the first biological family of Adam and Eve and co-created with them Cain, Abel, and their other children. His design included a father, a mother, and children—three people in one unit. It kind of reminds me of the Trinity!
Likewise, God the Father functions as our Father, the Holy Spirit—called the Comforter and several other terms—plays a significant role, and Jesus is our big Brother. We are called sons and daughters of God. We are called into relationship not only with God, but with one another.
If you recall last week when we concluded our series on Mary, we noted Jesus’ own words regarding family:
Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:35)
It’s not uncommon for people in our Scio family to refer to one another as sisters and brothers…and for good reason. We are related…by blood—Jesus’ blood.
Paul wrote most of the New Testament of the Bible and frequently referred to other believers as brothers and sisters (e.g. 1 Cor. 8:13; 2 Cor. 2:13; Phil. 2:25).
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. (Galatians 6:10)
Peter referred to us as family, too:
Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor. (1 Peter 2:17)
Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. (1 Peter 5:9)
Have you ever had a close friend that felt like a brother or sister—or even more so?
One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. (Proverbs 18:24)
You can choose your friends, but you don’t choose your family. You are born into or adopted into a family. In one sense, God adopted us into His family.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. (Ephesians 1:3-6)
For in Christ Jesus you are all children of God, through faith… (Galatians 3:26)
In another sense, we choose to become a part of the Scio family. Your attendance and participation communicate your desire to make this your church family, though unlike earlier times, there are options. In fact, there are about three hundred options in Washtenaw County alone! It’s not uncommon for selfish, consumeristic impulses to prompt people to go “church shopping,” but that was never God’s design for His family. The variety of church options is both a blessing and a curse, an opportunity to customize and contextualize and also a way to divide and segregate.
The aforementioned metaphor as the church as a body with different parts usually refers to individual people being individual parts, though I believe it could also refer to individual churches in a community, each unique and special and in need of one another, partnering together knowing the nightmare and pain of a detached body part! We do not try to compete with other area churches, but rather complement and partner with them. We need them and they need us.
This raises the question, “Why are there so many churches in Washtenaw County?” What separates us from St. Luke Lutheran Church, St. Francis of Assisi, the Ypsilanti Free Methodist Church, or even our neighbors down the road, Covenant Community Church?
Geography is a legitimate reason for multiple churches in our county. It is ideal to be involved in a church family close to your home, for a variety of reasons (even though few in the Scio family live near our Scio facility!). Practically, the 350,000 or so residents of our county would not fit in our sanctuary for worship—or any facility in the area, for that matter!
Theology is another factor that makes us distinct from other churches. There are significant differences between Catholic and Protestant churches (and Orthodox). We all refer to ourselves as Christians and are genuinely brothers and sisters, but significant historical events have revealed distinctions such as the role of the Bible, the Lord’s Supper, Mary, and church traditions. There are some wonderful, godly Catholics, Protestants, and Orthodox and plenty of Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox who look nothing like Jesus and merely consume religious goods and services.
Under the umbrella of Protestants lies a host of denominations, roughly 43,000 worldwide with some predicting 55,000 by 2025! Ugh! Theological differences account for such a large number.
We are a part of the Christian & Missionary Alliance, a global movement of churches. We may have differences of opinion on the Bible with some Lutherans, Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterians and other Protestants, though I would argue most are minor in comparison to differences with other world religions. All followers of Jesus are on the same team! We’re all one, big, sometimes-happy family!
Another distinction between Scio and other local churches is our methodology or style. Some churches worship with pipe organs, others with lasers and rock bands. We’re somewhere in the middle! Some facilities have stained glass and steeples while some churches meet in school auditoriums or night clubs. We’re somewhere in the middle! Some are formal, use the King James Version of the Bible and have ministers in robes while others are informal, use modern translations, and have ministers in shorts and flip flops. We’re somewhere in the middle!
Perhaps the one thing that makes Scio Community Church—our family—unique from other church families is…you! Us! People! We even have a sister church, Saline Community Church, in the Alliance with similar beliefs and practices (albeit somewhat different geography) but they don’t have you! God has assembled a unique collection of men, women and children to call Scio their church family. You are the church! We are the church!
We are a people—God’s people.
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:9-10)
We are a chosen people who both exist as a family and who are on mission together. There is an aspect in which we are, but also in which we do. We have been invited into relationship with the Father and challenged to live out our calling. We participate with God on His mission. Specifically,
We exist to fulfill the Great Commission and follow the Great Commandment by
• serving our communities
• sharing our story
• sending disciples to bless the nations
so that God is glorified.
There is so much more to say about our Scio family…and we will in the coming weeks. The first rule for us as a family is to know who we are…and Who’s we are!
You can listen to this message and others at the Scio podcast here. You can also subscribe to our podcast here.
Big Idea: A healthy church family knows its identity.
Who are you? I don’t mean you as an individual, but you as a church? Who are we? We are Scio Community Church, but who are we? What is our identity?
When meeting a new person, it’s common to ask, “What do you do?” Individuals are often identified by their vocation. “I’m a doctor.” “I’m a teacher.” "I’m a student.” That’s what they do, but it’s not the totality of who they are as humans.
An ancient Greek aphorism/saying/maxim says, “Know thyself.” It has been attributed to Socrates and others, was used by Plato, referenced by Benjamin Franklin, found above the Oracle’s door in the movie The Matrix, and serves as the motto of Hamilton College (NY).
One year ago we looked at what it means to be followers of Jesus and our identity…in Christ. Our study of Ephesians had a deep impact on my life as I am beginning to understand God the Father says the same things about me as He says about Jesus: “You are my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.” He says the same to you (unless you are female, in which case He calls you His beloved daughter!”).
As Scio Community Church, we are more than merely a group of individuals. We are greater than the sum of our parts (or persons). The Bible describes the church as a body.
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. (1 Corinthians 12:27)
It is described as a temple. It is called God’s field. It is the people of God.
Perhaps the most common word used to describe the church—and certainly Scio Community Church—is family.
For many, the word “family” elicits positive thoughts and emotions, feelings of love, warmth, respect, affection, and loyalty. For others, pain and heartache are closely associated with family.
What is a family?
Dictionary.com offers these definitions:
a basic social unit consisting of parents and their children, considered as a group, whether dwelling together or not: the traditional family.
a social unit consisting of one or more adults together with the children they care for: a single-parent family.
any group of persons closely related by blood, as parents, children, uncles, aunts, and cousins:
to marry into a socially prominent family.
a group of persons who form a household under one head, including parents, children, and servants.
The definition has changed through the years. Just observing popular television families reveals the transitions our culture has experienced. Think about the differences between the following families:
Little House on the Prairie
The Waltons
All In The Family
Happy Days
Cosby
Roseanne
Home Improvement
Modern Family
A few years ago Coca Cola did this commercial that expresses a contemporary definition of family about as well as any…
According to Coke, family is anyone you want it to be! Fortunately the Bible is our authority, not Hollywood or Madison Avenue!
Family was God’s design from the beginning…and I don’t mean Adam and Eve. Family existed before them!
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” (Genesis 1:26)
Did you catch it? Let us make mankind…in our image and likeness. Although the word trinity does not appear in the Bible, the concept of one God in three Persons is clear. We worship a triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. All God. All family. All creating and doing God stuff together! Each has their own unique roles and relationship to the other Persons. It is something of a mystery…but God models for us community—family!
Our winter series, Family Rules, is a double entendre; rules is both a noun and verb. The purpose of this series is to cast a vision for a healthy church family, noting particular strengths and weaknesses of Scio in the process. When people talk about church, they could mean a building. They could mean a Sunday morning gathering. It is common to refer to the universal church of all followers of Jesus Christ worldwide. For much of this series family will refer to us—Scio Community Church.
We are family!
As I said, that word has baggage for many. We strive to be a healthy family, not a dysfunctional, broken family. No family is perfect, but I hope through this series you will gain a greater appreciation for our Scio family and be challenged to make it stronger, healthier…and possibly larger as healthy things tend to grow.
Why Family?
Of all of the images used to describe us, why would God choose family? Simply, God created the first biological family of Adam and Eve and co-created with them Cain, Abel, and their other children. His design included a father, a mother, and children—three people in one unit. It kind of reminds me of the Trinity!
Likewise, God the Father functions as our Father, the Holy Spirit—called the Comforter and several other terms—plays a significant role, and Jesus is our big Brother. We are called sons and daughters of God. We are called into relationship not only with God, but with one another.
If you recall last week when we concluded our series on Mary, we noted Jesus’ own words regarding family:
Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:35)
It’s not uncommon for people in our Scio family to refer to one another as sisters and brothers…and for good reason. We are related…by blood—Jesus’ blood.
Paul wrote most of the New Testament of the Bible and frequently referred to other believers as brothers and sisters (e.g. 1 Cor. 8:13; 2 Cor. 2:13; Phil. 2:25).
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. (Galatians 6:10)
Peter referred to us as family, too:
Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor. (1 Peter 2:17)
Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. (1 Peter 5:9)
Have you ever had a close friend that felt like a brother or sister—or even more so?
One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. (Proverbs 18:24)
You can choose your friends, but you don’t choose your family. You are born into or adopted into a family. In one sense, God adopted us into His family.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. (Ephesians 1:3-6)
For in Christ Jesus you are all children of God, through faith… (Galatians 3:26)
In another sense, we choose to become a part of the Scio family. Your attendance and participation communicate your desire to make this your church family, though unlike earlier times, there are options. In fact, there are about three hundred options in Washtenaw County alone! It’s not uncommon for selfish, consumeristic impulses to prompt people to go “church shopping,” but that was never God’s design for His family. The variety of church options is both a blessing and a curse, an opportunity to customize and contextualize and also a way to divide and segregate.
The aforementioned metaphor as the church as a body with different parts usually refers to individual people being individual parts, though I believe it could also refer to individual churches in a community, each unique and special and in need of one another, partnering together knowing the nightmare and pain of a detached body part! We do not try to compete with other area churches, but rather complement and partner with them. We need them and they need us.
This raises the question, “Why are there so many churches in Washtenaw County?” What separates us from St. Luke Lutheran Church, St. Francis of Assisi, the Ypsilanti Free Methodist Church, or even our neighbors down the road, Covenant Community Church?
Geography is a legitimate reason for multiple churches in our county. It is ideal to be involved in a church family close to your home, for a variety of reasons (even though few in the Scio family live near our Scio facility!). Practically, the 350,000 or so residents of our county would not fit in our sanctuary for worship—or any facility in the area, for that matter!
Theology is another factor that makes us distinct from other churches. There are significant differences between Catholic and Protestant churches (and Orthodox). We all refer to ourselves as Christians and are genuinely brothers and sisters, but significant historical events have revealed distinctions such as the role of the Bible, the Lord’s Supper, Mary, and church traditions. There are some wonderful, godly Catholics, Protestants, and Orthodox and plenty of Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox who look nothing like Jesus and merely consume religious goods and services.
Under the umbrella of Protestants lies a host of denominations, roughly 43,000 worldwide with some predicting 55,000 by 2025! Ugh! Theological differences account for such a large number.
We are a part of the Christian & Missionary Alliance, a global movement of churches. We may have differences of opinion on the Bible with some Lutherans, Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterians and other Protestants, though I would argue most are minor in comparison to differences with other world religions. All followers of Jesus are on the same team! We’re all one, big, sometimes-happy family!
Another distinction between Scio and other local churches is our methodology or style. Some churches worship with pipe organs, others with lasers and rock bands. We’re somewhere in the middle! Some facilities have stained glass and steeples while some churches meet in school auditoriums or night clubs. We’re somewhere in the middle! Some are formal, use the King James Version of the Bible and have ministers in robes while others are informal, use modern translations, and have ministers in shorts and flip flops. We’re somewhere in the middle!
Perhaps the one thing that makes Scio Community Church—our family—unique from other church families is…you! Us! People! We even have a sister church, Saline Community Church, in the Alliance with similar beliefs and practices (albeit somewhat different geography) but they don’t have you! God has assembled a unique collection of men, women and children to call Scio their church family. You are the church! We are the church!
We are a people—God’s people.
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:9-10)
We are a chosen people who both exist as a family and who are on mission together. There is an aspect in which we are, but also in which we do. We have been invited into relationship with the Father and challenged to live out our calling. We participate with God on His mission. Specifically,
We exist to fulfill the Great Commission and follow the Great Commandment by
• serving our communities
• sharing our story
• sending disciples to bless the nations
so that God is glorified.
There is so much more to say about our Scio family…and we will in the coming weeks. The first rule for us as a family is to know who we are…and Who’s we are!
You can listen to this message and others at the Scio podcast here. You can also subscribe to our podcast here.