Understanding the local New Testament Church
and
your family.
The New Testament church is a gathering focused on worshipping the only true and living God:
A Christian form of personal and family management takes special care to consider the Scriptures teaching regarding our moral, ethical and spiritual responsibilities and limitations. Thinking Biblically, and thus responsibly, includes one having a basic commitment to regular long-term and medium-term planning and it includes managing the short-term use of our time as well. Thinking Biblically out of love leads to thinking responsibly, but this type of thought includes the elements of faith, and hope that is clearly tentative in the sense that it is conditioned on the providential will of God.
If one is given tomorrow, given life and blessed by God to do this or that then one plans, prepares and even trains to do this and that – God willing by using our time wisely.
To be able to pro-actively think, serve or care for other’s needs, we must have available useable time.
Time needs to be understood in terms of our personal choices. These time choices are compartmentalised into “bytes,” minutes, moments, ‘blocks’ of time.
Time is more “than money” it is life lived and through Christ, and as such time has real and true eternal value. 2 Cor. 5.
1st. Worship includes prayers, singing and considering the truth of God’s Word;
2nd. Worship includes assembling or fellowshipping with those of like faith and practice who are given to the care and edification of one another.
3rd. Worship includes teaching, discipleship and building-up our one-another in lives consistent to God‘s Word;
Finally, Worship includes living as mission-driven believers - committed to witnessing to a lost, wicked and confused world.
Living as mission-driven believers calls on each of us to be truly thankful for our salvation and for God's help or life- changing Grace of God
Ephesians 3 and4 underscores these basic elements. The practical outworking of the church’s ministry requires a teamwork focus and spirit.
Living as a mission-driven believers calls us to be active as Christian couples, households teams, and by using special cooperative teams.
First Thessalonians 2:7,11, with Paul’s references to his methodology of care as like that of a family, opens our thoughts to the potentiality of our families
Learning to be a "Christian Family" means learning to operating as spiritual units or teams within the greater ministry of the local church, 1 Cor. 16:15.
“Family teams” are teams committed to:
[a.] real personal change,
[b.] real spiritual growth, and
[c.] shared service to the believers and the Gospel
(Romans 16:1-15), were an essential part of the early church.
Individual and family team vision building, i.e. that is a “vision shared” or partnered with each other as Christians (1 Cor. 16:10, 16-17,19)
Family Teams must be “modeled” within the local church and include definite or specific Christian action.
Maintaining a sense of urgency – (Colossians 4:2-17)
Encouraging genuine commitment to the Gospel, Biblical integrity and living by sharing the truth is essential to these "family teams."
