October 4 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

Christians have always called each other brother and sister. Occasionally the custom sounds somewhat stuffy. Yet its meaning is profound.

Christ himself taught us to think of our fellowship as a household in which God is the Father and we are brothers and sisters to one another. He did not despise natural relationships. One of the few words he spoke from the cross concerned his care for his widowed mother. But Christ did teach that the other bond, the bond of the Spirit, is deeper and more lasting than the tie of blood.

Some have suggested that the Christian custom of calling each other brother and sister stems from a faith in the general fatherhood of God and the general brother- and sisterhood of all people. However, this has never been a teaching of the Christian church. On the contrary, we teach that the church, as the household of God, is separated from the world to do the will of God. It is obedience to God that creates the ties that bind.

When Christ began to gather his own people, he created a new fellowship. He laid the name of the Father on the lips of his followers, and he taught them that this Father has authority in his house. So the fellowship of Christ's followers may be called the fellowship of those who do the will of God.

Christians make all their relationships secondary to their fellowship with those who obey—with their brothers and sisters in Christ. We would rather break off all other relationships than let go of this fellowship—just as we would rather suffer pain and persecution in our personal life than be disobedient to the will of our heavenly Father.

When the church has become a company of those who find their unity in similarities of race, color, or social status, it has degenerated. It is and must be a fellowship in obedience.

And the church ardently desires the brother- and sisterhood of all people when it prays, "Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."

REFLECTIONS

Think about—and give thanks for—the strong ties you have with others in your congregation because of your common desire to do God's will.

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published by Paideia Press in 1977. This updated edition is copyright 2009 by Faith Alive Christian Resources. You can order a copy of this revised version of the book directly from the publisher.

A man of many accomplishments, Andrew Kuyvenhoven is probably best known for his contributions to Today (formerly The Family Altar), a widely-used monthly devotional booklet associated with the Back to God Hour. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations for this updated edition of Daylight are from the Holy Bible: Today's New International Version copyright 2001, 2005 by the International Bible Society.