Today’s Podcast
Today’s Bible reading plan:
Read it in a year – Genesis 44-47
see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)
Today’s Devotional
Matthew 12:48-50
Jesus: Who is My mother? And who are My brothers? (pointing to His disciples) These are My mother and brothers. Anyone who does the will of My Father in heaven is My mother and brother and sister.
What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?
Psychologists tell us that when you go through traumatic events with someone you become closer to that person or group of people. We see that exemplified in the number of gatherings life Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) groups and within those, you’ll find small groups of men and women who gather to talk about their experiences in particular units and battles. The comradery they find in the telling and reliving those events helps bond them and ease the trauma that comes in the loss of friends in some of those horrifying times.
Some of my own closest friends come from times when I was deployed into combat zones and defending our country from enemies that wished nothing less than the destruction of our way of life and liberty. Some other friends that have drawn close come from assignments in which family was no where near. Back then cell phones didn’t exist and overseas phone calls were just too expensive to use them with any frequency to call home. We had to rely on each other and so those that were once strangers became fast life-time friends.
In the course of life, my travels and assignments and those of my brothers and sisters have carried us to different states and nations so few of us live close to each other. We don’t get to see each other very often. But when we get together, we know each other because we’re family. There is an instant bond. I know their temperments, their likes and dislikes. I know what makes them laugh and what makes them cry. I know my brothers and sisters even though I don’t see them very often. Why? Because we are part of each other. We are family. There is something in us that is the same even though we are all very different from one another.
I read these words of Jesus and I get the same feeling and understanding when I think about my brothers and sisters in Christ. Because of my military career and my corporate travels after my military retirement, I’ve attended a lot of churches. Where a lot of people could count a dozen or so, I could easily count more than a hundred churches I’ve attended through the years. But there is an interesting thing I’ve found in all those churches.
It really didn’t matter what denomination I attended. It didn’t matter what color the majority of the members were. It didn’t matter what language the people spoke as their native tongue. It didn’t matter whether people dressed to the nines on Sunday morning or came in rags. It didn’t matter what kind of music they sang or even if the music was really good or way off key. When I was among a group of believers, I felt at home. There was a connection between us that you knew you were accepted just because you were there among believers.
How does that happen? How is it that we can feel so comfortable in another church and another worship service regardless of the denomination or worship style or country in which we worship? It’s really pretty simple. They are family. Just like my physical brothers and sisters share DNA with me, they are different and similar to me at the same time. So it is with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We share something in common.
We may be different in many ways, but in the most important things we are alike. We share Christ’s Spirit in us. We share His love. We share His grace and mercy. We share His forgiveness in our lives. We have each been adopted into His family and have become children of the King of kings and Lord of lords. We are a part of His kingdom. So we stand on common ground. We believe together in a common understanding of our faith.
If you are part of a Christian faith, there are a few fundamental beliefs that you hold dear, summed up in the words of the Apostles’ Creed:
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended into hell.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic and apostolic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
On those few statements rest the tenets of the Christian faith. When we join together as brothers and sisters in Christ, regardless of our denominational background and baggage, we share this common bond. We have this spiritual DNA that binds us together, His Spirit alive in us that makes us more alike than different. So we can worship together. We can praise together. We can live in harmony together. We can ignore the color of our skin, the style of our music, the order of our service. We can just glory in the presence of God’s Spirit among us and know we are brothers and sisters in the great family of God Almighty.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved. In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.