Categories: Trinity, family | September 15th, 2009 | by Ken Horn | no comments
Does God have a family?
Gracyn, 3
Yes, He does. But not in the same way that you and I have a family.
First, the Trinity — God in three persons — includes God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
But there is also the family of God, which is all the followers of Jesus. How do you become part of that family? By receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior. Then God adopts you (Romans 8:14-17; Galatians 4:4-7). You’re still part of your earthly family, but now you are in a much larger family too. That’s why we sometimes call other Christians “brother” and “sister.”
It’s a wonderful thing to be in God’s family. These words from a gospel song say it well: “I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God.”
Ken Horn
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What does 1 Corinthians 7:14 mean when it says an unbelieving husband is “sanctified” through a believing wife and the children are now “holy”?
The context refers to a situation where one partner in a marriage becomes a Christian and the other does not. Paul says the believing partner is not to initiate a divorce in such cases where the unbelieving partner chooses to stay in a loving relationship.
He explains further that continuing in this relationship “does not defile the believer. The believer’s faith in God and Jesus has a sanctifying influence over the relationship. In that sense the unbeliever is sanctified, or set apart from anything sinful in the relationship. If this were not so, the children born to the couple would be unclean, that is, ceremonially unclean and therefore unable to come into the presence of God. But the sanctifying influence of the Christian parent makes the children holy in the sense that they belong to the Lord and can be brought into His presence for His blessing. The Holy Spirit can make such a marriage situation into a powerful ministry” (Horton, Stanley M., I & II Corinthians, Springfield, Mo., Logion Press, 1999, p. 71).
This does not mean the unbelieving spouse is given salvation. The children also, upon reaching an age of accountability, still have to make their personal choices. But the blessings they enjoy because of the believing parent certainly could influence them (and the unbelieving partner as well) to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord.
Stanley M. Horton
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