Lesson 4 – The Church

Think back on a fun family experience. Maybe it was a really great holiday together, or maybe it was a special day at the park. The wonderful thing about family is that you are committed to each other, to love each other no matter what. That’s how it is with the Church. The Church is God’s family, and now it is yours too. When you gave your life to Jesus, God adopted you as one of His own children, making all other Christians your brothers and sisters! Matthew 12:49-50 says, “Pointing to his disciples, [Jesus] said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.’” Isn’t it amazing that Jesus would include us in His own family!

The Church: One Big Family Made of Many Small Families
Have you ever had a big family reunion? Your individual family joins with other families who are related to you, making one big family. That’s how the Church is. There is the Universal Church, which is every person who follows Jesus, and then there are local churches, where groups of Christians meet together locally to encourage and help one another. Hebrews 10:25 tells us to, “not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another.” God is teaching us that we need each other, just like a family. Do you know a group of Christians in your area that you can become family with? There might be a lot of local churches around you, or there may be very few. Ask God to lead you to other Christians.

How the Church Became My Family
Dena says, “Getting connected to my local church has really helped me in my Christian faith. A few years ago I moved to a new city, really far away from all of my family and friends. I didn’t know anybody, but as I started to go to church regularly I met people who became my good friends. I attended a Bible study with people from church and they helped me grow in my faith and supported me by personally praying for me each week. The people I met at church were very friendly and caring. They would invite me over to their house for dinner or just to hang out with them and their family. I began to build deep friendships with these brothers and sisters in Christ and I found a home away from home through the church. I am so grateful and thankful that I have met people in the church who truly love me and accept me like God does.”

For Today
Thank God for giving you a new, spiritual family. If you do not have a church family, ask God to lead you to one and use our Church Finder if you need help.