Welcome to Truth for Life, where today we begin a series called The Christian Family. What is the Christian family, and what difference does it make in how you frame your life every day? Here's Alastair Begg to help us think through this vital issue. Mm. We're going to read from the Bible in the New Testament.
in Colossians. And in chapter three. And beginning to read adverse through to verse 21. Colossians chapter 3. And twelve Through 21.
Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved. compassionate hearts Kindness. Humility, meekness. and patience. bearing with one another, And If one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other.
as the Lord has forgiven you.
so you also must forgive. And above all these, put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom.
Singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do in word or deed, Do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus. giving thanks to God the Father through Him. Wives, submit to your husbands as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives.
and do not be harsh with them. Children. Obey your parents in everything. for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, Do not provoke your children.
lest they become discouraged. We turn now to the Scriptures. Father, what we know not, teach us. what we have not Give us What we are not, make us. for your son's sake.
Amen. If we're going to understand the Christian family, It needs to be within the context of the church family. That we do not exist as Christian families, as separate entities and on our own. But we exist as Christian families within the context of God's family. And it is in the framework of the family of God that we discover the support and the encouragement that we desperately need in the raising of our children.
And that is why routinely we are saying to one another that the child of a Christian home has a claim upon the prayers and service of the church.
Now, how does that notion transfer itself to day-to-day reality. That's the real question. To take it seriously, and seriously we must take it, and to understand it at the most basic level. It is imperative that we understand what the church is. What the church is.
I was asked this past week to participate in some kind of radio campaign to encourage people to come back to church. And so they gave me a number of statements that I was supposed to be made that apparently are being distributed across various radio stations around the nation. And I was very happy to do that. I say, come back to church this Sunday. But I said to myself, Well, where are these people?
There's a clear understanding as to why we were gone for a while. But there is no earthly reason. as to why many are not back. Unless of course We have completely missed An understanding of what the church is. It's not a building to which we return, where we visit.
but it's a family to which we belong. And it just so happens that in our elders' meetings where we read a book with one another consistently, the book to which we turned in the last two meetings is another book by our friend and helper, Sinkler Ferguson. and is entitled Devoted to to God's church, devoted to God's church. And although we're only into the first chapter, we as elders have been reminded. that instead of asking Instead of asking, how can I fit uh the church into my family agenda.
The question is actually reversed. How then Can I fold my family life? Into the purposes and practices of the church. You see, we've been going through 2 Samuel and we're seeing again and again that this king and these kings point forward to Jesus, who is the king. And Jesus is the king, and he has a kingdom.
Now what does it mean to be a part of God's kingdom? Where do you make sense of the idea of the kingdom of God?
Well, the church. The local church. is the community In which an understanding of what it means to be followers of the king. is then expressed. And this, of course, is something vastly different from the idea of the local church as a kind of democracy.
whereby it's run by elected representatives. And people try and lobby their representatives and share their opinions and debate their ideas and consider their priorities and so on. In a kind of one man, one vote, try and get it the way you want it, a bit like a country club or a golf club or a sports club or whatever else it is. I think I'm going to talk to somebody about that.
Well, you see, we are all under the king. And we are all under the Word. Let me give you a quote from Sinkler. I could have. You know, messed it up and made it sound like it's mine, but that wouldn't be perfect.
That would be bad. Better just give him his own words. This is what he says, and he's writing as a pastor. My family needs the church family for its own growth and health. No single family possesses all the resources it needs, To be a truly and fully Christian faith.
Family. We need support. friendship, example, wise counsel, And much else from the church family. Listen to this. Two Christian parents.
are not in themselves adequate to rear one child for Christ. They were never meant to be.
So, the resources of our own family, no matter how wonderful, are scarcely adequate. We And perhaps, especially, our children need the church. And in that context, They and we will be blessed Expectation.
Now, that should probably make many of us just take a deep breath. It certainly did me. But it makes perfect sense. I mean, isn't it true for us as parents that there is at least a period in life where our children think? That their mother and father are two of the craziest individuals that ever descended upon the earth.
That if they only go 50 or 100 yards down the street, they can meet some of their friends who have parents who are perfectly normal. How in the world did I get this to? Failing to recognize that the same thing is happening in reverse, that the guy who lives 100 yards down the street thinks my mother is just amazing. How are we going to do this? We are we have lived or are living through the most rapid change In family structure, in human history.
That's where we are. And therefore, it is absolutely vital for us. to know What we believe where we belong. And how then As citizens of a kingdom, As members of a family, we're supposed to behave.
Now, it's a very large subject and can. Give us an opportunity to unpack it. But let me begin. And suggest that what we need to do first of all, albeit somewhat briefly, is make sure that we understand the biblical context. Then, recognizing that we do not live in a bubble or in a cocoon.
That we acknowledge something regarding the cultural setting. And then as we draw to a close. Uh acknowledge The solution that is found in the gospel.
So, biblical context, cultural setting. gospel solution.
Now, you will notice as we read this together that the specific directions for the Christian family begin in verse 18. With this radical call to both wives and husbands to a level of love that is quite remarkable. But the specific directions for the Christian family are set within the larger context of the place of the family in the context of the church. And so look at how the church family is addressed. Verse 12.
Put on then as God's chosen ones. God's chosen ones. And what he's saying to them is this, You readers of my letter living there in the Colossi Valley are part of a vast company of God's redeeming purposes from the very beginning of time. that he began calling out of people that are his very own. and he is adding to that number.
all kinds of people from all kinds of places, including you. And you are the chosen ones. You are those who were sought out by God when you weren't looking for Him. That the picture of the garden is the picture that is true running through the whole of history. That it is God who comes seeking Adam and Eve.
Where are you? Rather than Adam and Eve running around looking for God. No, they were hiding from God. And by nature we hide from God. And there are people here that read this letter and said, you know, that is exactly what was true of me.
I had no interest in these things, I thought those people were crazy. Just last week I spoke with a number of people and I was struck by one young lady who said to me, I don't know who she is, I met her just briefly along with her family. And when I found out that she was In New York State, somewhere. I said to her, What was happening there? She said, Well, I was hiding from God in New York City.
I was hiding from God in New York City.
Well, what a good place to go and hide. Yeah. You can get lost in a lot of places there. And what happened, I said, well, she said the hound of heaven. reached for me.
Well I wonder has the hound of heaven come and reach for you? Look at what happens. Turn back a couple of pages to the beginning of Colossians, and you realize that these Colossians had a hound who had reached them, and the hound's name was, if you like, Epaphras. He's writing to those who are. Followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, who have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
He's not writing to religious people who are trying to do their best. He's writing to those who have been made citizens of the king. He is writing to those who are now members of the family. And they He says in verse 6, Now this is true of you. That the word of truth, the gospel, has taken root among you, and that is since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant.
Now, in that context, again in Colossi, there were all kinds of voices, as there are all kinds of voices today. Saying to men and women, you know, if you want to know God, you have to reach a certain standard. If you want to be part of God's group, then you have to be at a certain level. You have to do certain things. You have to stop doing a lot of things and start doing a whole bunch of new things.
Well you say, okay, well where did this come from?
Well, it came from religion. The idea that somehow or another we can eventually, by negating that which is poor and embracing that which is better, reach a standard of acceptance with God, if you like, qualify for membership. But no, you see, the only qualification is the qualification that Epaphorus told these people in Colossi about. He explained to these people that they could never, as I must explain to you routinely, that they and we could never attain God's standard. And that our acceptance by God is only through faith In the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now what do you need to enter heaven? Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. What is required to be a member of God's family? Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Let not conscience Make you linger.
nor of fitness fondly dream. All the fitness He requireth is to feel Your need of him. I need you. Oh, I need you.
Now some of us are not there because we're very self-sufficient. That's that's we're we're proud of it. We have done it, we have earned it, we have put it away and so on.
Well, the door is closed, isn't it? Because it only opens. to those who cry out to him in need.
So in other words, we belong to him. We belong to him. We are the objects of His love, coming back to our passage. We are the chosen ones. We are holy, set apart from what we were, set apart to God.
We are beloved. It's a lovely thought, isn't it? That we are the ones who've been loved with an everlasting love. And what he's actually saying in this section, which we're not going to delay on, is that in some senses you wear what you are. I think the advertising slogan was the reverse of that, wasn't it?
You are what you were. He's trying to sell you a certain kind of outfit, as it were. But in actual fact, you can put on I could put on all kinds of things and it would be very obvious. I remember one time we had a surgeon at the clinic and he invited me to come down and participate with him and go through the OR rooms in the clinic. This is a long time ago.
He was from Michigan, I remember. And I met him in the locker room and he dressed me up like a surgeon. It was one of the most ridiculous things you ever saw in your entire life. There is something about a surgeon who, when he puts that thing on his head, people go, wow, that is impressive. If anybody else does it, the people are like, whoa, something is definitely wrong here.
And I remember I got on the elevator with him from the dungeons of the place to go somewhere. And as it turned out, there was some kind of Saudi prince who was in the hospital at that time who had his own secret service. And as we got on the thing, there was a secret service guy, a Saudi guy. And I never forget the way he looked at me. And and and what he was essentially saying is You are not that.
So, the idea that you are what you wear. Yeah. What he's saying is you wear what you are.
Now we're not going to unpack this, but what he said is: you had a lot of clothes in your old closet. Your pre-Christian closet was full of a bunch of ugly stuff. In the grace of God, that stuff is being removed. But now, in the grace of God, put on your new clothes. You've been given a whole new wardrobe.
And you have all these amazing t-shirts. Compassion. Kindness, humility, meekness. Patience.
So, your wife says to you, Well, I see you left the patience one off this morning, did you? The congregation says, and that's another kind word from your pastor. I think you lost that shirt as well. No, your new self. is under new management.
And this is an ongoing process. You will see that. Uh where is that in verse 10? And having put on the new self, which is being renewed, present continuous tense, is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its Creator. The process of being conformed to the image of Jesus, of being made like our elder brother, is not an instantaneous process, it goes on over a lifetime.
And so the intense practicality of it ought to be a terrific encouragement to us. And you will see that there as he goes on in verse 13, bearing with one another. If you're like putting up with one another. Do you know how many people bounce from church to church because they didn't like X or they didn't like Y or they got to take their baseball bat to another diamond? Put up with other people.
Put up with a pastor? put up with this one? After all, goodness gracious, aren't they putting up with you? Putting up with one another. And where there is reason for complaint, Against someone else?
And it would be a strange life if there wasn't. Forgiving each other? As the Lord has forgiven you. You're a new person. You've been forgiven, he says.
Therefore it would be ridiculous. For you, having been forgiven everything that stood against God, To hold in short term. A debt that someone owes to you. No, forgiving each other. binding all these things together.
Put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. I'd like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony, right? We understand that longing. Right? All we are saying is give peace a chance.
Imagine there is no this. Imagine there is no that. Where are the answers to these longings? Where's the answer to these longings, you see? He says, Now, you Colossian believers.
Or if you're like now, you Cleveland believers. You want to make an impact in your city? Here it is. It's not a political campaign. It's a radical transformation from the inside out.
Where What you are. And it is then As he goes through that, He gets to the point where he says, as the word dwells in you, As the peace of Christ rules your hearts, as you give voice to the praise of Almighty God. He says, and let me just put it in this way, whatever you do, It's comprehensive. There's no outs now. There's no little secret place where I can say, yeah, but it doesn't cover this.
No, he says it covers everything. Whatever you do, Do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
So, this is the characteristic of the member of the church family: a thankful, prayerful, joyful, forgiving, compassionate, kind heart. These are the characteristics. Daunting and wonderful, isn't it? And then He applies it. Wives Submit to your husbands.
As is fitting in the Lord. You see, once again, when you come to the details of the Christian family, Unless we understand that the Christian family folds itself into the church family. And that it is the church family which makes sense of the family. That the church family is not an addendum, it's not something that you join like joining a club. No, it is something that you are.
Uh Um You're listening to Alistair Begg on Truth for Life, and we'll hear more about Christian family life on Monday. At Truth for Life, we love the local church. We make every effort to encourage the men who are called to lead as pastors. In fact, our mission statement reflects this passion. We're committed to teaching the Bible in a way that is clear and understandable, trusting that God's Spirit will work through the teaching to reach unbelievers and to draw believers closer to Himself.
Our prayer is that as a result, local churches will be built up and more committed to the proclamation of the gospel. That's why we host the Basics Conference. If you're in pastoral ministry or in church leadership, join Alistair for Basics 2026. This year the gathering will take place September 29th and 30th in Valencia, California. Basics is a time for pastors to come together, to learn from the Bible, to enjoy a time of fellowship, and to encourage one another, to do the basics of ministry well.
Herschel Yorke, who is the Dean of the School of Theology at Southern Seminary, will be speaking along with Alastair. You can register or get more information when you visit basicsconference dot org. If you can't make it to basics this year, but you're a pastor, or if you teach a Sunday school class or lead a Bible study group, check out our For Pastors and Churches page on our website. There you'll find free and low-cost Bible teaching materials that have been carefully selected to strengthen your ministry and your church family. Check out the most recent offers at truthforlife.org slash churches.
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588-7884. Thanks for joining us this week. Hope you have a great weekend and are able to worship with your local church. Have you noticed an increasing sense of detachment and loneliness in our world? On Monday we'll consider the cause.
and look to the solution. The Bible teaching of Alastair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life. Where the Learning is for Living.
