Belonging To A Family of Families First Principles of Reed, Jeff

THE FIRST PRINCIPLES
SERIES 1 — BOOK 2
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OF FAMILIES
First Principles of Community Life
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A 6-SESSION STUDY
FOR DIALOGUE IN
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THE SCRIPTURES
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First Principles of Community Life — eS
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© Jeff Reed, 1997, 1.1 2004, 2014
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means
(electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other) except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of
the publisher.
These materials are designed to integrate with BILD-International resources, which are designed to help
churches train leaders.
All Scripture, unless otherwise noted, is from the New American Standard Bible.
ISBN 1-891441-01-9
1.1 2004
02 SE ROE Sali) BIO OlKag2)

TABLE OF CONTENTS
05
BELONGING TO
07
INTRODUCTION TO THE SERIES:
A FAMILY OF Becoming Established in Our Faith - 7
FAMILIES Design of the Series - 8
Design of the Study Guides - 10
3
Baar |
BAA
THE CENTERPIECE THE CHURCH LIVING WITHIN A
OF CHRIST'S PLAN— AS A FAMILY BELIEVING FAMILY
THE CHURCH OF FAMILIES
3/
Bern) Be 5) Bann >]
LIVING WITHIN A SETTING LIFE RESHAPING
FAMILY OF FAMILIES PRIORITIES OUR LIVES
08
GLOSSARY OF LIFELONG ENDNOTES
KEY BIBLICAL LEARNING
TERMS AND
CONCEPTS
Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 03

PREFACE—A MODERN DAY CATECHISM
The first part of The First Principles Series was produced over a decade ago, and they are
now being used in training over 400,000 leaders worldwide. They are being effectively
used in non-literate as well as highly educated church settings. How is that possible? The
reason: The series centers on the use of dialogue, the primary method used by Jesus and
Paul in developing leaders in the first century. When used by properly trained leaders, the
dialogue process can be transformational with non-literates as well as doctoral students
and with the churches they are shepherding.
Imagine a group of believers in a small, rural local church that is 70% non-literate, 20%
with about a 6th standard education, and only 10% with a Bible-college level education.
They gather around a First Principles booklet. The literate reads the passages, tells
background information and the storyline if needed, and then they all discuss the passage
together. First, what does it mean? Then, what does it mean to us? in our village? in our
community? in our families? Then imagine a small house church in a highly educated
Western setting, steeped in denominational tradition, trying to get back to “the way of
Christ and His Apostles.” This educational process—dialogue in community—has been
around for centuries and is key to establishing believers and churches in the faith in every
generation and in every culture.
Today, most Western materials are devoid of methods that create serious dialogue in
community. Instead, these materials employ a simple, individualistic approach of either
fill-in-the-blanks or have large amounts of academic (and inductive) Bible knowledge
with individualistic “personal applications” as the goal. New believers in the Global
South often move easily and quickly into our process, while those schooled in the West
struggle to begin to think together in community, having to shed their individualistic
personal insight approach. (Many times the oral learners are better thinkers!) And often
missionaries, used to spoon feeding the illiterate, struggle the most in entering into true
dialogue in community with the national brethren.
Christianity is shifting to the Global South as we enter the 21st century. Western
Christendom is dying, and we find ourselves again in a time like the apostolic age of the
Early Church. It is our prayer that this resource, a modern day didache (a catechetical
tool of the Early Church), will be used by the Spirit of God to train millions of leaders
worldwide who will then be able to establish their churches and believers in the teaching
of Christ, as delivered to His Apostles. In the West, our prayer is that this series will help
raise up a whole new generation of church planters and Antioch type churches to pioneer
vibrant, spontaneously-expanding church multiplication movements.
It is toward this end, and with an awareness of these changing times, that we dedicate
this series.
Jeff Reed,
October 2014
O4 SERIES 1 —- BOOK 2
BELONGING TO A FAMILY OF
FAMILIES - INTRODUCTION
Two of the greatest needs in life are finding a sense of belonging and purpose. Without
these, we eventually are overcome by all sorts of negative emotions: depression,
loneliness, anger, and even despair. In fact, you might say that without a sense of
belonging and purpose we would be overcome by life itself. Both belonging and purpose
are at risk today, especially in Western culture. We are raising a generation that is without
a sense of belonging or of true, meaningful purpose.
From where does a sense of belonging come? At its very core, belonging comes from a
sense of family. In its fullest and most powerful sense, belonging is enjoyed within true
community. The concept that we belong to a family and that our family belongs to a
larger family is foundational to enjoying a healthy sense of belonging. However, it is not
just enough to belong to a family and a community—we must belong to a family and
community of purpose. God has built into each one of us a sense that we are put here for
a purpose. Life is not to be spent meaninglessly, strolling through decade after decade
with no sense of purpose.
In Western cultures today, it is a sad reality that purposeful family life and community
life are breaking down at alarming rates. In fact, the very idea of family is being
restructured. We are encouraged to focus on ourselves—to pursue our own goals
and desires, to build our own careers, to see that our own needs are met. Even with
substantial voices and cultural movements calling for a return to community, the
relentless pursuit of personal goals still drives us. Western individualism continues to
triumph. We are beginning to see massive consequences in our culture, consequences
that have long been evident within the lives of those around us and often within our
immediate and extended families. Fatherless America by David Blankenhorn and The
Abolition of Marriage by Maggie Gallagher are two of a number of major works that
document the breakdown of marriages and family life.
Another sad reality is that the church—God’s design of a community of light in a dark, lost
world—is also falling victim to Western individualism. We have lost the sense of a church
being a family of families and have developed instead an organizational, market-driven
model and a shopping mall mentality. God’s design for the local church is for it to be a
family of families with strong, intergenerational roots: a powerful force in raising children,
in building strong marriages, and in cultivating an intergenerational heritage that grows
stronger generation by generation. In reality, more than 60% of the children in our Western
churches are failing to continue with the faith as they establish their own households.

In this booklet, Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life, we
are going to look at the local church as a family of families. This is God’s design for
His disciples—to become part of a family of believers, a local church family. In session
one, we will see that the church is truly to be a community with purpose. In sessions
two through four, we will focus on community life itself, from which a true sense
of belonging is developed. Specifically in session two, we will examine God’s design
for the local church to function as a family. In the next session, we will look at our
responsibilities within the local church and then in session four, within our individual
family units. Finally, in session five, we will focus on setting life priorities, not just around
our individualistic goals but fully integrating our personal priorities with those of our
individual families and our lives in God’s family, a local church.
In book three, Participating in the Mission of the Church: First Principles of Community
Purpose, we will pick up more fully on the second need—finding a sense of purpose—and
study the first principles of community purpose. These two studies together will lay a
foundation for an enriched lifetime filled with a true sense of belonging and meaningful
purpose. So let’s begin laying this foundation with book two—Belonging to a Family of
Families.
06 SERIES 1 —Booxr 2
THE FIRST
PRINCIPLES SERIES
Becoming Established in Our Faith
It is absolutely critical that we become established in our faith. If we do not, all sorts of
strange teaching will fill our new faith with ideas that are far more compatible with our
culture or previous religion, than with the true Christian faith. The world is full of people
Satan can use to upset whole families and churches with “another gospel.”
Paul spent significant amounts of time making sure that his churches were established
in the faith. He visited them, sent team members, and sent letters to strengthen and
stabilize the churches. These letters became the heart of the New Testament. He
appointed leaders in the churches to see that the new churches stayed true to the
teaching of Christ, which he and the other Apostles received from Christ. He also had
the goal that every man would become mature in Christ (Colossians 1:29). To this end he
labored and spent his life.
We cannot expect to become mature in Christ unless we are established in the faith. But
most of us do not even know what that means or how to know if we are solidly established
in the faith. Most of us were not taken through an orderly (catechetical) training process
when we became Christians (Luke 1:1-4).
The First Principles Series is designed to be just such a process. Once you go through
The First Principles Series, if you do it in a serious and diligent way, you will be solidly
established in the faith, in the same process the Apostles used to establish the first
century church and Christians. And you will have a foundation in your life that will serve
you fora lifetime.
Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life O7

DESIGN OF THE
FIRST PRINCIPLES
Series I-III
This booklet is part of a set of four booklets, which make up Series I. The whole
collection, Series I-III, totals thirteen booklets. They are all built around an idea found in
Paul’s letter to the church at Colossae written almost 2000 years ago.
See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to
the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according
to Christ. (Colossians 2:8)
The phrase the elementary principles is best translated “the first principles.” They are the
basic fundamentals that represent the first things that must be learned, upon which
everything else is built. If they are not carefully understood, everything else will be
distorted. The writer of the letter to the Hebrews understood this when he exhorted the
Hebrew Christians who were forgetting their newfound faith, in Hebrews s:
11) Concerning him we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become
dull of hearing. 12) For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for
someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to
need milk and not solid food. 13) For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to
the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14) But solid food is for the mature, who because
of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.
The Hebrew Christians forgot the first principles of their faith. Once they became
Christians, their Jewish family members and friends put tremendous pressure on them
to return to Judaism and began challenging the basics of the Christian faith. It is clear
from this passage that it is impossible to move on toward maturity without carefully
understanding the first principles.
This series of booklets is designed to lead you through the first principles so that you can
build upon them and grow on toward maturity. In every generation of churches since the
time of the New Testament, believers were expected to learn these first principles. In the
Early Church, before new believers were accepted into the church, they needed to learn
the didache (“the teaching”). “The Didache” was a summary of the basic teaching of the
New Testament—the first principles. During the Reformation (1500’s), this teaching was
called catechism, again designed to help Christians master the first principles.
08 SERIES 2 — BOOK 2
Actually, the concept of first principles is important in every area of life. It is central to all
quality education. Almost 150 years ago, in the classic work The Idea of the University, John
Newman referred to a concept he called “pushing up the first principles.” According to
Newman, the purpose of a university is to teach the first principles of every discipline and
then to explore the full limits of those first principles—pushing the principles up through
all levels of research.
So it is with our Christian faith. Once we have mastered the first principles, we are able to
push them up through all areas of our lives. That is, we are ready to move on to maturity.
The First Principles Series is carefully designed to help you lay the foundation of your faith.
Whether you are a new believer, a believer who needs to have these first principles laid
carefully for the first time, or for whatever reason, need to have them laid afresh, do your
work carefully and you will reap a lifetime of benefits.
The First Principles

Series | Series Ill
1. Becoming a Disciple 1. Handling the Word with Confidence
First Principles of the Faith First Principles of Bible Study
2. Belonging to a Family of Families 2. Unfolding the Great Commission

First Principles of Community Life First Principles from Acts
3. Participating in the Mission of the Church 3. Laying Solid Foundations in the Gospel
First Principles of Community Purpose First Principles from 1 & 2 Thessalonians
4. Cultivating Habits of the Heart 4. Catching God’s Vision for the Church
First Principles of Disciplined Living First Principles from Ephesians
Series Il 5. Living in God’s Household

1. Enjoying Your Relationship First Principles from the Pastorals
First Principles of Marriage
wb . Passing on Your Beliefs

First Principles of Family Life
3. Envisioning Fruitful LifeWork

First Principles of Ministry
4. Building for Future Generations

First Principles of True Success
Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life O09

DESIGN OF THE
STUDY GUIDES
This series is designed to lead you through a learning process—a process designed to
teach you to think. This process is based upon the Hebrew wisdom model in the Bible
(the Bible’s educational literature) and on sound, contemporary, educational research.
It is used in all of BILD’s Bible studies, so once you have mastered the process it will
serve you for all of your future work in these and subsequent series. It will also provide a
natural study model that you can apply to all areas of your life.
The first five weeks, you will follow a four-step study process. The sixth week is a
summary session and final step. You will “pull together” all of your work from the first
five weeks into a final project and share it in your small group.
Consistent Study Process (CSP)

A Consistent Study Process (CSP) is used in these books to take you through a complete
learning cycle every time you study a passage or concept in the Scriptures. CSP can
also serve as a convenient reminder that Bible study is not ESP—we are not trying to
mystically experience the text, but to carefully and soundly study the text. There are four
basic steps to this process and one final step that integrates the work from the first four.
The First Five Weeks:

In the first five sessions of every First Principles study guide, the four basic steps will be
done each week: (1) Study the Scriptures, (2) Consult the Scholars, (3) Think Through
the Issues, and (4) Apply the Principles.
The importance of each step is explained below.

[)
TZ
ES Study the Scriptures

This step is foundational. We cannot begin exploring the issues of the Bible
without first understanding exactly what the passages mean. Discussion groups in which
everyone simply shares his opinion are disrespectful of the Scriptures, and therefore to
God. They are often merely a pooling of ignorance.
You will go through this same first step in every session, in every booklet. You will
begin with a passage to read, answer a few basic questions about the passage, and finally
summarize the core teaching of the passage.
Your work in this step:
e Read the passage.
e Think through the questions.
¢ Summarize the core teaching of the passage.
Consult the Scholars

This step is very important as well, although it is not always highly valued
by Christians in our generation. God raises up teachers and scholars to serve in every
generation. These teachers can do great harm or great good to churches. We have
provided you with some solid, carefully chosen research—in nugget form—to stimulate
your thinking. These nuggets of research take two forms. One is a brief commentary on
the passage. The other consists of several short instructional quotes on the ideas related
to the core truths of the passage.

e Read and reflect on the brief commentary.
e Read and reflect on the key quotes.
e Record any insights from the readings.
| Think Through the Issues

This step is designed to help you think through the implications of the core
teaching of the passage that you have been studying. Unless we go through this process,
we can gloss over the significance of the core truths—the first principles of the faith. This
is best done in a small group where issues can be discussed thoroughly. Debate an issue in
light of the biblical text and try to come to one conclusion as a group. It is not a time for
airing opinions but for genuine interaction with the issues.

e Think through the issue before discussion.
e Record your initial thoughts on the issue before discussion.
e Discuss the issue in your small group.
e Record your final thoughts after the discussion.
5] Apply the Principles

This step brings the basic learning cycle to completion. It is not enough to
gain a clear grasp of an issue. It is not enough to accurately understand the core truths

of a passage or verse in the Bible. We must apply it to our lives. Applications should be
specific and related to the core truths of the passages studied.

e Think back through the first three steps.
e Design an application for your life.
The Sixth Week:

The last session in each study guide is the final step.
eae Reshaping Our Lives

This step brings together the entire study process. In each of the first five
weeks, we moved through the 4-step Consistent Study Process (CSP). Now in the sixth
week, you will pull together all of your work and evaluate your whole life.
Too often today, we stop short of what is necessary to really change our lives. Thinking
through simple applications is very important as we study the Bible, but thinking through
our whole lives in light of these new truths is essential. The final step in the study process
requires that we rethink our entire lives in light of the truths we have been studying—that
we rearrange our worldview. We must allow the truths to reshape every aspect of our lives.

e Commit your heart—by reflection, personal journaling, and prayer.
¢ Commit your mind—by forming clear convictions and memorizing Scripture.
e¢ Commit your life—by decisions, personal projects, and life habits.
Two Final Parts of the Study Guides:

Each study booklet contains two additional parts—a glossary and alifelong
learning section.
Glossary of Key Biblical Terms and Concepts—The glossary is designed to help you
with important terms that you may have encountered for the first time in your study.
They are kept to a minimum in the guides, but it is not possible or preferable to remove
all terms with special meaning. New terms—especially biblical terms full of rich truths—
just have to be learned. To make this process easier, we have included a glossary.
Lifelong Learning—This final section introduces you to additional resources that you
may want to pursue. After completing a study guide, it is crucial that you do not view
yourself as finished. You must understand that you are laying foundations fora lifetime of
learning. Several resources are recommended for your further development.
12 SERIES 1>— BOOK 2

THE CENTERPIECE
OF CHRIST'S PLAN
—THE CHURCH @
In the first book in this series, Becoming a Disciple, we saw that Christ commanded
the disciples to take the gospel to the entire world, baptizing and teaching those who
believed. We saw that baptism implies initiating them into community. This community
was referred to earlier as His church (Matthew 16:18). We will now pick up the idea of
His church and attempt to understand how it fits into His overall plan. The passage that
we will begin with is found in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians—Ephesians 2:18-3:11. In this
passage, Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus to reveal Christ’s administration—what His
plan is for those who believe. That plan is His church. This passage is one of the main
sections in Paul’s letters to the churches where he explains his role amongst the churches
and, by doing so, sums up the framework for the plan of Christ, which before this had not
been made known to men.

READ THE PASSAGE: EPHESIANS 200° je it
Think Through the Questions:

1. What did Paul reveal to the Gentiles? What was his stewardship?
2. Who laid the foundation for Christ’s church? Who was the cornerstone?
3. What is Christ's administration (plan)? How does it fulfill God’s eternal purpose?

Summarize the Core Teaching of the Passage:
Write a paragraph, outline, annotate, or chart your conclusions—whatever best
communicates for you. Be sure to comment on Paul's job description and what exactly
was revealed to the church at Ephesus.
Core teaching of Ephesians 2:18-3:11

The following comments are designed to help you better understand the passage and to
stimulate your thinking on the implications of the teaching.
Read and Reflect on this Brief Commentary on Ephesians 2:18-3:11:

It is important to understand the context of this passage within the letter to the church
at Ephesus, and within the context of Paul’s whole ministry. This letter was written to
the church at Ephesus to motivate them to live lives that were consistent with the whole
mission of Christ. The first half of the letter unfolds the whole plan of Christ—His
administration and their “calling.” The second half of the letter describes how they should
live in light of Christ’s plan and His specific directives for ordering their lives.
14 SERIES 1 - BOOK 2
In this passage, Paul states that he has been given a two-fold job description (3:8-10). He
was given the responsibility to preach the gospel and “to bring to light the administration.”
His responsibility to take the gospel to the Gentiles was revealed to him at his conversion
on the road to Damascus. You can read that account in Acts 9. Here he adds to his job
description by stating that he was told to reveal Christ’s plan for His church. The term
administration comes from two words in the Greek: “house” (oikos) and “law” (nomos).
It literally means “house law,” “house order,” or “administration,” and is commonly used
for “plan.” Paul’s job was to reveal to the churches Christ’s plan for His church, which he
did through his letters to them. In Ephesians 2:11-17 Paul states that the Gentiles were
separated from God’s promises and that God was working through the nation of Israel
(the Jews). Now, because of the death and resurrection of Christ, the wall between the
Jews and Gentiles was broken down. Now those who believe, Jews and Gentiles alike, are
made into one new family—the household of God, the church. This new plan—the Jews
and Gentiles being one in a new community called the church—was a mystery (3:1-7). The
term mystery refers to something that was hidden in the past but has now been revealed.
Paul had a special role in the revealing of this mystery—bringing to light the house order.
In this passage, he reveals several important aspects of the plan. Notice that the plan—
His church—is the way in which the world will understand the wisdom of God Himself.
Even the angelic and demonic forces will be able to see God’s wisdom through Christ’s
church (3:10). Clearly then, the church is at the center of God’s plan for the universe and
will be central to God accomplishing His purposes.
Also, notice how he describes this new community of believers— both Jews and Gentiles
(2:18-22). It is described as both a household and a building, specifically a temple. It
is a living temple, a community of believers. The whole community is built upon the
foundation of the Apostles and Prophets. All their writings are in the form of New
Testament letters to churches and church leaders and gospels that describe Jesus’ life,
ministry, and teaching. Christ is the cornerstone of the building, the place you start
building from. The church is growing into one living community where the Spirit of God
dwells and accomplishes a worldwide witness of Jesus Christ.
The church is at the very center of Christ’s plan for this age. In addition, He hasa specific
plan for His church. An aspect of Paul’s job description was to reveal that plan to the
churches. Through this plan, God’s wisdom is being revealed to all who watch—even the
angelic and demonic forces.
Read and Reflect on Key Quotes:

The following quote is taken from the book, What On Earth Are You Doing?: Jesus’ Call to
World Mission, by Michael Griffiths, a well-known and widely respected missions leader.
“In the previous chapter, we saw what Christ does for people corporately. He brings them
into membership of new communities of light and love, making them ‘fellow-citizens

with God’s people and members of God’s household’ (Ephesians 2:19). Perhaps sometimes
in the West we have lost sight of the importance of these basic Christian communities,
and think that churches are merely incidental organizations within institutionalized
Christianity. We think that the gospel tells how an individual may be saved. But the letter
to the Ephesians declares that both individual salvation and the corporate community
are essential parts of the gospel. The churches are not merely incidental means of grace
to help individuals to be saved. They are not merely temporary providers of care and
protection while we are on earth. God’s long term purpose is to produce a new, beautiful,
redeemed human society in which he himself will dwell.”
The quote below is from David Hesselgrave’s Planting Churches Cross-Culturally: North
America and Beyond, a classic work on the central role of churches in God’s plan.
“Various metaphors describe the church in its relation to Christ. It is his building—‘built
upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner
stone’ (Eph. 2:19-21). It is his spiritual body—‘the fullness of Him who fills all in all’
(Eph. 1:23 see also 1 Cor. 12:12-13). It is, as it were, his bride—the object of his love and
provision (Eph. 5:25-33).
“The church, then, is not an afterthought in the mind of God. He planned for it in
eternity past and provided for it in the death and resurrection of his Son (Eph. 1:19-23).
And the Son prepared for its formation and development by instructing his followers
as to their mission and empowering them by his Spirit (Acts 1:4-8). The church and the
churches have no friend like their Lord! If Christians are to love what their Lord loves,
they must love the church—and the churches! In the final analysis, Christology is closely
allied with ecclesiology. When we inquire into a person’s faith, we do well to ask what
that individual thinks of Christ and his church!”?
16 SERIES 1 = BOOK 2
Record any insights from the brief commentary and quotes:
Think Through the Issues

At the very heart of Christ’s plan is His church—and therefore His churches. Think
through the importance of the church in your thinking. Today we have lost our sense of
community and belonging and tend to pursue our individual goals and aspirations. Think
through the implications of Christ having a master plan for our communities of faith.
ISSUE: The centrality of the church in Christ’s plan
Think Through the Issue Before Discussion:

1. How important is the church in Christ’s mission?
2. Is it necessary today that we follow Christ’s plan for the church as revealed by Paul?
How do we know it is not outdated?
3. How can we know the details of the plan?
4. Is it important that we make the church central to our life plans?
Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life A,

Record your initial thoughts on the issue before discussion:
Discuss the issue in your small group.
Record your initial thoughts on the issue after discussion:
18 SHRIES 1° — BOOK 2
5) Apply the Principles
It is now time to respond to what you have studied and discussed. Take your time on
this section.
Think Back Through the First Three Steps.
Design an Application for Your Life.

Complete the assigned project and record any additional applications.
There are two aspects to the assigned project. The first part is to write a basic
statement summarizing the centrality of the church in Christ’s plan. Then record
some of your initial thoughts on what it would mean for the church to become the
center of your life plan.

i — continued
20 n a [4 yy 3 ia)° °
me
THE CHURCH
AS A FAMILY
OF FAMILIES ©
In the last session, we saw that Paul had aspecial role in revealing Christ’s
administration for His church. The term administration, you remember, refers to a
“plan” or to the “house order” for Christ’s church. One of the questions that logically
follows deals with the details of the plan: How specific does Paul get concerning Christ’s
administration for His church, His household? The idea of the household of God is
central to Paul’s thought in the letters to his young, faithful leaders, Timothy and Titus,
who were part of his missionary team. The passage that we will study in this session is
1 Timothy 3:14-16. Many believe that this passage is the heart of Paul’s entire discussion
in the Pastoral Epistles. The Pastoral Epistles include all of his letters to Timothy and
Titus—1 and 2 Timothy and Titus.

READ THE PASSAGE: 1 TIMOTHY 2714-16

1. Why did Paul write to Timothy? What do you think he had in mind when he referred to
“conduct in the household of God”?
2. What is the role of a local church in regards to guarding the truth?
3. What does the passage say about the church’s role in preserving the gospel?

Write a paragraph, outline, annotate, or chart your conclusions— whatever best
communicates for you. Be sure to Comment on the idea of proper conduct and on the
role of the church in preserving the truth and the common gospel.
Core teaching of 1 Timothy 3:14-16

The following comments are designed to help you better under stand the passage and to
Read and Reflect on this Brief Commentary on | Timothy 3:14-16:

This passage is a very important complement to the Ephesians text we just studied. As
we established, an important part of Paul’s job description was to reveal to the Gentiles
Christ’s plan for fulfilling His mission—the centerpiece being His church. The church
is the household of God (Ephesians 2:20). The big question becomes this: How specific
is Christ’s plan for His church? Does it matter to Him how we conduct ourselves within
His household?
22 SERIES 1 —- BOOK 2
One of the main passages that address this issue is 1 Timothy 3:14-16. In this passage,
Paul gives us his purpose for writing 1 Timothy. He also gives us a framework for
understanding the details of Christ’s plan for His church. The purpose of this letter to
Timothy was to give directions for proper conduct in a household of God. Some have
argued that the conduct he had in mind here was the conduct ofa leader, since he was
addressing Timothy. While it clearly includes how leaders are to conduct themselves
within God’s household—the church family—it is much broader than that. He addresses
all sorts of household matters in this letter, including how household members should
relate to one another as a family (5:1-2) and the household’s responsibility to care for
widows who are part of the church family whose own immediate family could not care for
them (5:3-16). You see, the local church was a real household of God.
It is also important to notice that Paul is addressing a specific local church. Timothy was
at Ephesus at the time, but he was speaking generically of all local churches everywhere.
It is important to note that he is writing concerning how one ought to conduct himself in
“a” household of God. In the original Greek there is no definite article before church (no
“the”). He is addressing conduct in a local church. Remember the meaning of the word
administration in Ephesians. It literally means “house law” or “house order.” Paul’s job
was to bring to light the administration for Christ’s church—God’s household. Here he is
specifically instructing Timothy in the establishing of a local church according to Christ's
plan. This includes such matters as qualified leadership, how to relate to each other in the
family of God, the care of widows, and the appointing, paying, and correcting of leaders,
just to mention a few.
Why does all of this matter to Christ? Well, it appears that there is a relationship
between the truth and household order in a local church, between the structure of
the relationships of a community of believers and the preservation of the truth—the
proclamation of the gospel and teachings of Christ. The local church is to be the pillar
and support of the truth, and Christ wants the community ordered in such a way that the
truth can be guarded and practiced in a sound manner.
Are these guidelines for all churches? Did Paul expect all of his churches to follow
them? According to Paul, a church that was not set in order was considered to be
deficient—Titus 1:5. That is why he sent letters and a member of his team to work with
new churches; they needed to become established in this manner. We may well say, who
was Paul? Why do we have to follow what he said? Because, following Paul is following
Christ, since Paul’s job was to reveal Christ’s administration for His church. Again, part
of the reason is to preserve the truth—the sound teaching delivered to the churches by
the Apostles. Many would come along with a different message and upset whole churches
(Titus 1:611). Therefore, the churches needed to be set soundly in order, as communities
of faith, to withstand this false teaching.

Vern Poythress, a scholar and respected professor at Westminster Theological Seminary,
makes a similar case for the use of 1 Timothy 3:1416, in his book The Church as a Family:
Why Male Leadership in the Family Requires Male Leadership in the Home as Well.
“Finally, the Apostle Paul explicitly indicates the prominent role of the family theme in 1
Timothy 3:14-15:
Although I hope to come to you soon, I am writing these instructions so that, if 1am
delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household,
which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.
“In fact, these verses summarize the thrust of the whole letter. The phrase ‘these
instructions’ is most naturally understood as referring to the contents of the letter as
a whole. Thus the letter as a whole has the purpose of indicating ‘how people ought to
conduct themselves in God’s household.
“The reference to ‘God’s household’ could theoretically involve either of two ideas:
namely, the idea of communion with God in the ‘house’ or ‘temple’ of God, or the idea of
a household managed by God. In some contexts within the Bible the idea of God dwelling
among His people as a temple is emphasized (1 Corinthians 3:10-17). But in the context of
1 Timothy the idea of household order and arrangements is obviously the most prominent.
The order of the church is analogous to the order of a human household. Members of the
church are to treat one another as they would members of their own family (1 Timothy
5:1-2). They are to care for one another in need (1 Timothy 5:5,16). The overseers are to
be men skillful at managing the household of God, as demonstrated by their earlier skill
with their own immediate families (1 Timothy 3:1-7).”3
— continued

We live in a culture in which everyone wants to follow his or her own style. Many
churches believe that we need to follow the gospel of Christ, but how we order our
churches is a matter of personal preference. It seems restrictive, and even narrow, to
follow the guidelines set forth by Paul for the churches in the first century. Discuss this
issue as a group, making sure to touch on the relationship between preserving the truth
and the way we order our community life.
ISSUE: Conduct in the household of God

1. What is Paul referring to when he talks of proper conduct in the household of God?
2. Why do these household guidelines matter?
3. Is there a relationship between the preservation of truth and the household guidelines?
Between the preservation of truth and our witness concerning Christ?

4) Apply the Principles
this section.

The application of this session is focused on understanding the key concept and
beginning the process of rethinking the way you live in light of it. This is an important
part of beginning to apply this truth to your life.
Write a summary of the idea of the local church as a family of families — a

household. Defend why we need to be following these guidelines today. Also,
record some initial thoughts on how this concept affects the way you live.

\
\\ — continued
INNA
we
iS
-
=
Dom SERIES “1 = BOOK2
LIVING WITHIN
A BELIEVING
FAMILY ©
In the times of the Early Church, there was atype of literature called “household
texts.” These texts fall into two types: individual households and larger households—
communities. In his letters to the churches, Paul uses both of these types. First, we will
look at the texts that speak about individual households. In the next session, we will look
at some of Paul’s specific guidelines for the household of God—the whole church.
The purpose of the individual household texts was to give a picture of the guidelines for
life as a family, especially in light of how those families were to live in the community.
Paul and Peter used the format of their culture to explain how families of Christians were
to live within the church—God’s family. There are three of these individual household
texts in the New Testament letters: Ephesians 5:22-6:9; Colossians 3:18-4:1; and 1 Peter
3:1-7. In this session we will study the Ephesians passage. In a time when the guidelines
for marriage and family life are being redefined in our culture, it is vital that we build our
marriages and families upon God’s design.
= Study the Scriptures

READ THE PASSAGE: EPHESIANS 5:22-6:9

1. What are the basic responsibilities of each family member?
2. What does Paul mean when he states that a husband is to love his wife like Christ
loves the church?
3. What does Paul mean when he says that a wife is to submit to her husband?
4, What does it mean for parents to train their children in the “discipline and
instruction” of the Lord?
communicates for you. Be sure to comment on the specific role of each family
member. Then write a brief summary statement of God’s design for the family
Core teaching of Ephesians 5:22-6:9

Read and Reflect on this Brief Commentary on Ephesians 5:22-6:9:

As mentioned in the introduction, there are three “household texts” in the letters to
the churches, two by Paul and one by Peter. These passages form the framework for
understanding God’s design for a family. Remember that Paul’s job description was to
reveal Christ’s administration—the “house law” or guidelines for His household. In
this passage, Paul addresses household guidelines for families. This means that these
guidelines are Christ’s very design for families that are part of His family, the church, and
therefore to be practiced by all churches.
The structure of the passage is very simple. Paul directly addresses each household
member: wives, husbands, children, fathers, slaves, and masters. The entire household
unit is addressed, and they are addressed inalogical order. He first addresses the one
under authority and second, the one in authority. Wives are to submit to their husbands.
Children are to obey their parents. Slaves are to obey their masters. Husbands are to love
their wives. Fathers are to patiently train their children. Masters are to treat their slaves
kindly. An individual household is in view throughout the entire passage. Masters and
slaves are mentioned since many of the households in that culture included servants,
some hired and some indentured. Therefore, instructions needed to be given to everyone
in the household since the household unit was to be a smaller unit within the household
of God. The directives to slaves and masters are mainly applicable to cultures where a
similar household structure exists today.
Some argue that this passage should only apply to the Early Church culture. The problem
with this is twofold. First, Paul’s job description was to explain how Christ is ordering
His households, which are the possessors of the truth worldwide. That is what he is
doing here—giving order to the individual households of faith. Second, the purpose of
the entire letter to the Ephesians must be considered. Paul is instructing the church
at Ephesus how they should walk as Christians. This passage is a major part of that
instruction. Some argue that the passage is not teaching that wives should be submissive
to their husbands but that there should be mutual submission of the wife to the husband
and the husband to the wife. At one level this is true—we are all to be subject to each
other. This is how Paul ends the previous section in Ephesians 5:21. Yet, the point is that
each is to submit to his or her responsibility. Husbands are to lead and love their wives;
wives are to follow and respect their husbands. Children are to obey their parents; fathers
are to assume the responsibility of shaping the spiritual direction of their children. Slaves
are to submit to their masters; masters are to deal patiently with their slaves.
We must ask, What is the logic of the passage in Paul’s letter and writings? Is it that he
didn’t like women and children? Was he just a product of his times—when women had
little value? The passage is clear. The husband is to love his wife as much as Christ loves
us, even giving up his life for her. He is to cherish her. He is to give significant, patient
attention to the development of his children. Why then these directives? Because Christ
has a plan for his people. His plan centers on the church being a family of families. For
the church to function orderly, its families must be orderly. God created an order to
things, and when we follow His created order, families and churches work.
In our contemporary Western culture, this at first seems foreign, to some even archaic,
because our culture communicates such a different message. We are going in the opposite
direction of these guidelines. And, what is the result? Our families are fragmenting,

authority is breaking down, and we are creating a generation of children devoid of all
the benefits, character, and securities of stable family life in which men are leading
their homes. One of the most profound treatments of this family breakdown is David
Blankenhorn’s Fatherless America: Confronting our Most Urgent Social Problem. Once the
father’s role as leader of the family is abandoned, all levels of family and community begin
disintegrating. Movements like Promise Keepers will have little lasting value if we fail to
follow Christ’s instructions for our homes and churches. Christ has a plan for His church,
which includes guidelines for individual families. He expects us to follow it. He gives it to
us for very good reasons.
Note: In this commentary on the Ephesians passage, we are not dealing with many of the
significant guidelines for marriage and family relationships. We will come back to this
passage in two other booklets— Enjoying Your Relationship: First Principles of Marriage
and Passing On Your Beliefs: First Principles of Family Life—and deal with instructions
of leaving, leading, loving, respecting, and several other personal aspects of family
relationships. Both of these booklets are in Series Two of The First Principles Series.

The following quote is taken from Stephen B. Clark’s monumental work, Man and
Woman in Christ: An Examination of the Roles of Men and Women in Light of Scripture and
the Social Sciences. This is an exhaustive 800-page book, which deals with all aspects of
the household texts on both the family and the church. In addition, he proves that the
objective use of credible social science research supports this wisdom of Christ’s plan for
the family and the church.
“Ephesians 5:22-33, like its parallel passage in Colossians 3:18-19, forms part of a section
of the epistle commonly described as a ‘household code’ (Haustafel). Both Ephesians and
Colossians contain a series of exhortations to wives and husbands, children and parents,
and slaves and masters. These exhortations are paralleled by similar exhortations in 1
Peter, which show something of the same structure. The household codes in Ephesians
and Colossians—along with their close parallel in 1 Peter—are part of a wider category of
teachings, including sections of the pastoral epistles and material in the apostolic Fathers,
which instruct Christians on how to approach important relationships according to God’s
design. Teachers in the early church probably taught about relationships in this way as
they instructed new Christians....
“The teaching on how to conduct particular relationships, such as the husband-

wife relationship, was part of an even larger body of Christian teaching on personal
relationships found in many places in the New Testament. The household codes in
Ephesians and Colossians are embedded in larger sections (beginning with Eph 4:1 and
with Col 3:1 or 2:8) that could be entitled ‘how to live in the body of Christ.’ In Ephesians,
this larger section begins with an exhortation to live in a united way as members of the
32 SERIES 1 = BOOK 2
body. It then proceeds through discussions of the old life and the new life, loving one
another in Christ, and living in holiness, and then to ‘the household code. Just before
the passage on order in marriage, Paul gives exhortations like, ‘Be angry but do not sin;
do not let the sun go down on your anger, and ‘let all bitterness and wrath and anger and
clamor and slander be put away from you, with all malice, and be kind to one another,
tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you... In other words,
the context for the teaching on order in the husband-wife relationship is the teaching
on basic Christian love. To successfully live in God’s order for marriage, husbands and
wives must put away bitterness, wrath, anger, and other sinful activities and be kind and
tenderhearted to one another.
“The ‘household code’ in Ephesians (and Colossians) then, does not teach on everything
which goes into the relationships it considers. Rather, this part contains a very specific
kind of exhortation, an exhortation on order in those relationships.”

— continued
ei,
uO Think Through the Issues
As mentioned above, in our Western culture it is easy to dismiss this teaching about men’s
and women’s roles because it is going a different direction from the prevailing opinions of
society’s philosophy. It can seem like it will be repressive or violate the basic worth of the
individual. What is really at stake is the whole issue of authority. What is often not seen in
society’s focus on the rights and needs of the individual is an undermining of authority—
subtle at first, then eventually an all-out assault on authority. Discuss what it means for
homes to be structured according to the household texts, while living them out in the
context of love, mutual respect, and tender relationship. Also, discuss the relationship of
an ordered family, to order in the family of families—the local church.
ISSUE: Implications of the individual household guidelines

1. Why do you think Christ designed an individual household to function the way He did?
2. What might be the relationship of the household order of individual families to the
household order of the family of families—the local church?
3. What might result from rejecting these guidelines and embracing a democratic
approach to household order?
4. What might be the result of failing to view these household guidelines in the context of
Christ’s overall plan—the context of love?

3 Apply the Principles
this section.

Christ’s design for a family may be different from the family in which you were raised.
It may also be different from the way you currently believe or even have your own
household structured. You may need to restructure your marriage relationship and
possibly your entire household.

In the space provided below, write your thoughts on how your current household—family
design—compares with Christ’s design for a family.
Your summary of how your family design measures up against Christ's design.
Also record any thoughts about what needs to be realigned.
LIVING WITHIN
A FAMILY OF
FAMILIES @
As mentioned in the previous session, in the times of the Early Church, there was a
type of literature called “household texts.” These texts fall into two types: individual
household texts and larger household texts for communities. In the last session, we
focused on individual household texts. This session we will focus on household texts that
are designed for communities. The Pastoral Epistles (1 & 2 Timothy and Titus) deal with
household guidelines for a local church household—a family of families. The community
household texts deal with the ordering of relationships within community life, using
a similar style as the individual family household texts. Rather than addressing wives,
husbands, etc., they address the parts of the community: elders, deacons, older men,
older women, younger men, younger women, widows, etc. One of the most basic passages
within these community household texts is Titus 2, which we will study in this section.

READS TEES PASSAGE PiDUS <2, vais

he . What are the household guidelines for older men? Older women? Younger women?
Younger men?
2. What does this tell you about how God has structured the community life of His local
churches?
3. What do these community guidelines have to do with the effectiveness of a local

church's witness in the world?

Write. a paragraph, outline, annotate, or chart your conclusions— whatever best
communicates for you. Comment on the various community roles and relationships;
what these relationships say about how Christ has structured the community life of His
churches; and how this structure relates to the church's effective witness in the world.
Core teaching of Titus 2:1-15

Read and Reflect on this Brief Commentary on Titus 2:1-15:
Titus 2:1-15 is in the midst of a letter written by Paul to one of his key men, Titus. The
whole letter is written in a style of that day—the household texts—that addressed
community life as a whole. In this case, the community life being addressed was that of
a local church. In Titus 1:5, Paul told Titus that he left him on the island of Crete to “set
in order what remains” in the churches. The term refers to completing what is not yet
done in the churches. Their community life as a church was not yet ordered according
to Christ’s design. Paul began by telling Titus to appoint elders in every church. He was
to look for men of good character, good managers of their own households, who knew
the teachings of Christ well, so that they could refute those who would distort it and
bring another teaching. Why? Because many were going to come who would upset whole
families by their teaching. The church needed leaders who had raised their own families
in the teaching and therefore could help anyone who might become unstable in their
understanding. This gives us insight into why Christ set up the household structure that
He did. Men who lead their own families well are to become part of a team of elders who
shepherd the whole community, thus keeping the church solid and stable in the teachings
of Christ.
Paul then addresses the members of the community in the same direct, methodical style
that he did in the household text in Ephesians. Instead of wives, husbands, children,
fathers, slaves, and masters, he now focuses on their community roles—older men, older
women, younger women, and younger men. He starts the section by calling his teaching
“sound doctrine”—doctrine that is healthy and integrated fully with their lives. Older
men are to be both sound in character and in faith. Older women are to be godly and to
possess good attitudes toward authority (reverent), to avoid gossiping, and to teach the
younger women how to live correctly in their own homes and in the church community.
The younger men, like the older men, are to be sound in character and in doctrine, with
a special comment given to having a reputation for doing good deeds. Again, slaves are
to possess the same attitudes in the community of faith—respecting the head of the
household to which they are legally bound.
Notice several things from this passage about how they are to live in community. Men are
to be sound in faith. This is crucial since they are responsible for their own households
and must keep them from being upset when other teachings invade the community (Titus
1:10-11). Older women are to keep households from being upset internally—through
gossip or younger wives not living contentedly within their homes. Note he is not saying
that women cannot be enterprising nor do anything outside of their homes, but they are
to be the stable “heart of the home.” The whole of this instruction is for the benefit of
sound, healthy, harmonious community life.
Another key concept is woven throughout the instructions—that of sound and sensible
living. The literal idea is that of balanced living.
Balanced life priorities are in view here. Part of this is for the reason listed above—a
sound, stable community life, based on Christ’s teaching. However, more is intended.
Remember our mission—to make disciples of all nations. Being an ongoing witness in
the community is part of that mission. When we live balanced, godly, harmonious lives in
the church community and in our own homes, we make an impact for the gospel of Jesus
Christ. Notice how he completes several of the directives:

“...that the Word of God may not be dishonored” 2:5
“...in order that the opponent may be put to shame” 2:8
“...that they may adorn the gospel of God our Savior in every respect” 2:10
The way we live in community, as a local church, makes a difference in our impact for the
gospel of Jesus Christ. This is also true for the way we live within our own homes. And
doesn’t that make sense? As homes and communities disintegrate in our Western culture,
we can have an especially powerful witness before the watching world.
One final comment is in order here. Some may still be thinking that these directives
are not for us today. Please notice Titus 2:15. It could not be stated any stronger. In
the churches that Titus was “setting in order,” he was not to let anyone “disregard his
teaching.” He was to speak with all authority. For us to disregard this teaching today is to
disregard Paul’s teaching; to disregard Paul’s teaching is to disregard Christ’s whole design
for the family and for His church.

“Paul’s theme throughout this dynamic letter to Titus is clearly ‘a profile for a Christian
life style” By contrast, his primary concern was the ungodly life style of false teachers
and, consequently, the way they were influencing the new Christians in Crete. This was
foremost in Paul’s mind when he charged Titus to remain in Crete to ‘straighten out what
was left unfinished’ (1:5).
“These false teachers claim ‘to know God, wrote Paul, ‘but by their actions they deny
Him. They are... unfit for doing anything good’ (1:16).
“Paul’s master stroke for solving this problem was to appoint to eldership in Crete men
who would combat their negative influence with a godly life style. Consequently, Paul
very early in his letter enumerated those qualities that should characterize a spiritual
leader’s family life as well as those that should characterize his personal life.
“In addition to moral and ethical guidance (concerning how these men lived), they were
to be well-grounded in sound doctrine (concerning what they believed). And with this
‘trustworthy message’ they were to encourage the new Christians and also to openly
refute and rebuke false teachers who were leading them astray.
“Paul’s primary strategy for resolving this problem, however, was not teaching ‘sound
doctrine’ per se. If it had been, he would have spelled out carefully what this sound
doctrine should be. Rather, he concentrated on what should accompany sound doctrine.
“Paul’s approach in this letter brings into focus a very serious methodological error that
is prevalent in some Christian circles today. Some believe and teach that emphasizing
‘sound doctrine’ will automatically result in a ‘godly life style. If this were true, Paul
40 SERIES’? ="BOOQR*2
would not have spent the bulk of his letter spelling out what should accompany sound
doctrine-—what that life style should be, as it relates both to Christian leaders and to
all members of Christ’s body. And this leads us directly into the next paragraph in Paul’s
letter. “You must teach, wrote Paul, ‘what is in accord with sound doctrine’ (2:1).
“Paul turned his attention from the leaders to all the members of Christ’s body. Evidently,
he felt it was necessary to become very specific regarding various segments of the
church. Consequently, he instructed Titus as to what to say to older men, older women,
young women, young men, and slaves. Furthermore, he specifically discussed behavioral
expectations in their relationship to governing authorities, as well as their attitudes and
actions toward the unsaved world at large.”s
This quote is taken from The Measure of a Christian, by Gene Getz. Getz is considered
by many to be the father of the church renewal movement in the United States and has
written extensively on New Testament principles for churches. Anything written by Getz
is solid, biblical material.
Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 4l

— continued
ar
10 Think Through the Issues
Christ’s instructions have a clear logic to them. He has taken us into His family and has
entrusted His whole plan to us. Too often today we embrace the gospel and yet fail to pay
attention to His instructions concerning how we are to live as a community of believers.
It is almost as if we think we are free to make up our own plan. Yet Christ’s design for His
churches is set forth for a purpose. It directly relates to His overall mission. Reflect on the
purpose of His design for His churches and His families in relation to His overall mission.
ISSUE: Implications of the guidelines for the household of God

1. Why do you think God designed the functioning of the household of God the way
that He did?
N . What part does the life of the community play in keeping families strong and
on course?
Ww . What is the relationship between a church properly “set in order” and the condition
of the families in the church?
4. How do the community household guidelines relate to the mission of the church?
In what sense do they adorn the gospel of God?
42 SERTE'S"1>= BOOK -2
oS Record your initial thoughts on the issue after discussion:

5 Apply the Principles
this section.

The first aspect of living in a community of faith according to God’s design is to gain a
sense of your roles and responsibilities for your current stage in life.

In the space provided below, write your thoughts about your current role in the
community of faith and what priorities should be in your life right now as a member of
Christ’s family.
Your current role in the community of faith and what your current priorities ought
to be as a member of Christ’s family:
SETTING LIFE
PRIORITIES ©
Once we understand Christ’s overall mission and gain a sense of His basic plan—
including His household instructions for our families and our churches—we are ina
position to begin setting our life priorities. In a general sense, we all have the same
priorities, and we need to arrange our lives around them before we can plan our lives in
any specific way. If we are going to be true disciples of Christ, we must adapt our lives to
His mission, His plan, and His guidelines for our lives, our families, and our churches. We
must learn to live our lives wisely with a solid understanding of what His will is for our
lives. A significant portion of His will for our lives is revealed in His mission—His plan
for His church, including the household texts. In this session we will study Ephesians
5:15-21, which challenges us to live wisely within the sphere of Christ's plan.
{)
>

READ THE PASSAGE: EPHESIANS 5:15-21

1. In this context in Ephesians, what does it mean to walk as wise men? To understand
the will of the Lord?
2. What does the filling of the Spirit of God have to do with walking wisely and
understanding the will of the Lord?
3. In what sense are walking wisely and being filled with the Spirit similar commands?
4. What is the relationship between walking wisely, the filling of the Spirit, and following
Christ’s household instructions in Ephesians 5:22-6:9?

communicates for you. Comment on the relationship between walking wisely, the
filling of the Spirit, and submitting our lives to Christ’s instructions for our individual
households and, therefore, the household of God.
Core teaching of Ephesians 5:15-21

Read and Reflect on this Brief Commentary on Ephesians 5:15-21:

This passage is very basic, and yet many of the important issues are easily misunderstood
if the context is not carefully considered. This passage immediately precedes one of the
family “household texts”— Ephesians 5:22-6:9—that we studied in session three.
The initial command in this passage is to walk wisely, that is to walk with skill.
Specifically, this means that we are to make the most of our time, since we each are
allotted a portion of time to serve the Lord. Outside of Christ’s community of believers,
life around us is filled with evil and purposes that are unlike Christ’s purposes. We will
either fill our lives with the pursuits of the world—which is represented in this passage
by getting drunk with wine which leads to unrestrained living—or we will be filled with
the Spirit. In this context then, being filled with the Spirit is allowing our lives to be
filled with Christ and His purposes. At the heart of this is “speaking to one another in
psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the
Lord....” This pictures community life—both life in our individual families and life in the
family of families. We can know this because of the term “one another” in the passage
and the fact that a household text immediately follows—Ephesians 5:22-6:9. Ina parallel
passage—Colossians 3:16—being filled with the Spirit is synonymous with letting the
“word of Christ richly dwell within you....” So to be filled with the things of the Spirit is
to plan our lives around Christ and His purposes and saturate ourselves with His word,
rather than to be filled with wine and all the pursuits of this world.
The key to the passage is to walk wisely, making the most of our time. This implies setting
the priorities of our lives around Christ and His plan. As you remember from the other
Ephesians passages that we have already studied, the heart of His plan is His church. The
household texts provide a framework for ordering our lives around Christ’s plan. This
means that His purpose must become our purpose (Ephesians 3:8-10). His mission must
become our mission (Matthew 28:19-20). His priorities must become our priorities (Titus
2). Since we are to walk wisely and make the most of our time, we must plan our days,
making sure that we do not just spend them as the world does.

It is important here to review our overall purpose before setting our priorities. Review
Michael Griffith’s quote in session one (page 16) before reading the remainder of his
quote in this section.
“What we have been saying, of course, is not only significant for missionaries or full-time
ministers of the gospel. Every single one of us, if we are committed Christian men or
women, has a responsibility to work and serve within that Christian community. We shall
also be concerned to see that the church continues to grow and to go out in evangelism.
We shall never be satisfied with maintaining a church at its existing size, but ever
concerned for fresh outreach and the planting of new daughter congregations...
What place does the local church play in your Christian life now?
Do you see building up congregations into credible and beautiful communities as a worthwhile
task for the whole ofyour life?”
The following quote is from Francis Schaeffer, who again provides thought-provoking
insights into the importance of making the local church central to our lives.
Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life AT

“Notice this: you can have individual Christians and no Christian community, but you
cannot have a Christian community without having individual Christians. On the other
hand, as evangelical, orthodox men and women, we can understand and fight for the need
of the individual coming to God and then we can stand individualistically, in a poor sense,
rather than in a practicing community. But we must not stand in sheer individualism;
once we are Christians, there should be community. As I have used the term before, there
is to be an orthodoxy of community as well as an orthodoxy of doctrine.
“There are, of course, many forms of Christian communities—local churches, theological

schools, Christian colleges, missions, etc. All of these are, or should be, Christian
communities, though differing slightly in form. However, they are not entirely equal
because, except for the local church, all the others have come into existence to meet the
changing needs of the years. In the New Testament, however, the church form has been
commanded by God Himself for the era in which we live—that is, until Christ’s return.””
This last quote is from Howard Synder, an evangelical Methodist, who has written several
books on renewing the local church according to New Testament principles.
“Spiritual growth occurs best in a caring community. There are spiritual truths I will
never grasp and Christian standards I will never attain except as I share in community
with other believers—and this is God’s plan. The Holy Spirit ministers to us, in large
measure, through each other. This is what Paul is talking about when he says ‘we will in
all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body,
joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love,
as each part does its work’ (Eph. 4:1516). This interaction of the many members in one
body is body life. Karl Barth rightly points out that when the New Testament speaks of
upbuilding, it ‘speaks always of the upbuilding of the community. I can edify myself only
as I edify the community.’”*

As a member of a family of families, we have a purpose in life and a set of accompanying
responsibilities. Therefore, we have the obligation to live wisely and make the most of our
time. We can no longer live as the world lives but must totally focus our life purpose and
life priorities around the purpose and priorities of Christ. Think through your purpose in
life and your basic life priorities in light of Christ’s overall plan for His church.
ISSUE: Setting life priorities

1. In light of Christ’s purpose for His church, what should your overall purpose in life be?
2. How does Christ’s plan for His church—as framed in by the household texts—shape
your own life priorities?
3. In light of these priorities, what are the implications of “making the most of
your time”?

50 SERIES" P= BOOK 2
Apply the Principles
this section.

The first aspect of making the most of our time is to set out a clear purpose for our lives
and accompanying priorities in light of Christ’s overall plan for the church and for our
lives as members of His household.

In the space provided below, write a summary statement of Christ’s plan for this age,
followed by your own life purpose statement in light of Christ’s purpose. Then list a core
set of priorities for your life in light of the household texts you studied in sessions three
and four.
Summarize Christ’s plan for this age, your own life purpose statement, and a
core set of priorities
Belonging toa Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 51

— continued
RESHAPING
OUR LIVES ©
We now have an understanding of the church as the centerpiece of Christ’s overall plan.
We have seen that Christ has an administration for His church: the church is structured
as a household, a family of families. And this household has a set of household guidelines,
both for the church family and for our individual families. We are to order our lives
around this plan.
It is now time to pull together all of our applications from the first five sessions, in
order to affect our whole lives. In this fast-paced world, it is hard to find time to do any
serious reflection. While we have benefited from the exercises in the first five sessions,
actually integrating the truths into our lives as a whole takes extra effort. Taken
together, they can become a powerful force bringing about significant change—change
designed to reshape our lives.
wae Committing Your Heart

Ul|Je REFLECTION, PERSONAL JOURNALING, AND PRAYER
Journaling is an excellent way of reflecting more deeply about the significance of what we
have been learning. It forces us to express in words what has entered our hearts. It helps
us identify and clarify what the Spirit has been using in the Word to enlighten our hearts,
as well as to convict us. Prayer should follow this. We should ask God to permanently
transform our hearts to give us a desire and longing to grow to maturity.
In this section, think back over your work from each of the five previous sessions. What
happened in your life because of your work in each session? Record your thoughts and
reflect on what you wrote. What new convictions have you developed? What have you
seen God begin to do in your life? Are there areas that you wish you had followed through
on more fully? What affected you most? What convicted you most? What excited you
most? How has your philosophy of life changed?
Finally, formulate these thoughts into one main prayer request. If you were to ask God to
give you the ability to order your life around His plan, how would you ask it? Write the

request in a paragraph. Transfer it to a 3- x 5-inch card and carry it with you. Pray over it
regularly. Over the next few weeks, record on the back of the card any ways that you see
God answering your prayer.
Your Journal — thoughts on ordering your life around Christ’s plan for His church:
Prayer Request:
FORMING CLEAR CONVICTIONS AND

MEMORIZING SCRIPTURE
It is essential that we pull together what we have studied—formulating our thoughts into
clear convictions. Begin by writing a paragraph, summarizing your convictions from the
first five sessions about Christ’s plan for His church, including how He wants us to order
our families and the family of God. Then, list the essential Bible references to back up
your convictions. Finally, choose at least one of these verses to memorize, record it below,
and quote it by memory to your study group when you meet. Transfer it to a 3- x 5-inch
card—writing the verse(s) and reference on one side and your insights into the verse(s)
on the other side. Review it for about 6 weeks.

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Living in a family of families—core convictions:
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DECISIONS, PERSONAL PROJECTS, AND LIFE HABITS
Think back over the “Apply the Principles” section of each of the five sessions. It is one
thing to think about specific applications to our lives as we move through each study. It
is another thing to think across our whole lives and begin reshaping our life goals and
lifestyles by what we are learning. This is a vital part of building our lives around Christ’s
plan for His church and around the household texts.
Several things are necessary in order to integrate these principles into our lives. First,
look back over your “Apply the Principles” sections and your work so far in this session.
Are there decisions that you need to make? For example, do you need to rearrange any
of your current life priorities? Are you making the most of your time? Do you really
understand the will of the Lord? Does your household? What kind of overall adjustments
do you need to make in your life direction as a result of this study?
Decisions, personal projects, and life habits:
Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life Sa

GLOSSARY OF KEY BIBLICAL
TERMS AND CONCEPTS
The following is a list of important terms that you may have encountered for the first
time in this study. Although they are explained in the booklet, it is easy to forget their
exact meanings. This glossary can also serve as a catalogue of biblical terms and concepts
for future reference.
ADMINISTRATION. The term administration is used in Ephesians 3:8. It literally

means “house law” or “house order” and is commonly used for “plan.” When Ephesians
states that Paul is to “bring to light the administration of the mystery,” it refers to Paul’s
job to make clear Christ’s plan for the church in this age.
ANGELIC AND DEMONIC FORCES. This refers to angels, spiritual beings who
assist God in fulfilling His plan, and demons, who assist Satan in trying to thwart God’s
plan. The church is God’s plan for demonstrating His wisdom to the watching world,
which includes angels and demons.
APOSTOLIC FATHERS. Early Church leaders who played major roles in writing,
establishing, and leading churches after the death of the Apostles. Their writings help
us understand the first 150 years after the Apostles, but they were not considered on
par with the writings of the Apostles; therefore, they were not included in the New
Testament. They are still available in print today.
CHRIST’S CHURCH AND HIS CHURCHES. The concept of Christ’s church

and His churches is found throughout the New Testament. All believers make up His
one church—His eternal family of all believers from all cultures (this use is sometimes
capitalized). Within His plan, every believer is to be part of a local church—a family of
families, which is obedient to His instructions concerning community life.
ELDERS AND DEACONS. Elders are the leaders of a local church. Each local church
is to have a team of elders who share in managing the affairs of the local church. They are
to be good managers of their own households and to be of good character (1 Timothy 3:1-
7). Deacons are to assist them (1 Timothy 3:8-13).
FAMILY OF FAMILIES. A term that helps us understand the plan of how Christ
wants His churches to function. Churches are designed by Christ to be a family of
families. That is, the church is instructed to organize itself as a large extended family,
which is made up of many families. Thus, every believer is a member of the family, yet it
does not supersede but rather strengthens individual family units.
GOSPELS. The four separate accounts of the life of Jesus Christ: Matthew, Mark, Luke,
and John.
HAUSTAFEL. A German word referring to the Early Church form of writing called
“households texts.” It has caught on and is often referred to in writings describing
these texts.
HOUSEHOLD TEXTS, HOUSEHOLD CODES. A form of writing commonly used

in the culture of the Early Church. The form laid out guidelines for how ideal households
(families) and communities ought to function. This form was used in the New Testament
passages for families (Ephesians 5:22-6:9; Colossians 3:18-4:1; I Peter 3:1-7) and for
churches (1 Timothy 3:14-16).
JEWS AND GENTILES. Jews are the people whom God chose to fulfill His purposes
in reaching (blessing) all other peoples (nations). Gentiles refers to all the other nations.
Now, all believers in Jesus Christ are made into one new people, His church.
MYSTERY. Something previously hidden and now revealed. In Ephesians 3, it refers to

Christ’s church, in which the Jews and Gentiles are now one and equal members of this
new community of faith.
PASTORAL EPISTLES. The three final letters written by Paul: 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus.
These epistles were written to his two key young men with instructions on how they should
conduct themselves as leaders and how to properly establish the churches as households of
God, especially majoring on the importance of trained and qualified leadership.
SOUND DOCTRINE. The concept of sound doctrine carries with it the accurate
teaching of the faith, accompanied by healthy (literal meaning of sound) and sensible
living as a family and as a community, as instructed in the household texts.
WALK. A way of life or the everyday activities of a person’s life. To walk in the Spirit
means to conduct the everyday affairs of one’s life within the sphere of the Spirit’s
direction, which is synonymous with living according to the Scriptures—the Word of
Christ (Ephesians 5:18; cf. Colossians 3:16).

LIFELONG LEARNING
The booklets of this series are designed to lay the very essential foundations of the
faith. They are intended to be just a beginning. The writer of the New Testament letter,
Hebrews, reminds us that we are to move on to maturity (Hebrews 5:11-14). This Lifelong
Learning section is at the end of each First Principles Series booklet. It will serve as a
guide to some of the resources that will enable you to build solidly on the foundations
laid in each booklet and, therefore, urge you to press on toward maturity. Review
these resources and include any that you would like to read or work through in the
“Committing Your Life” section of the sixth session.
|. Participating in the Mission of the Church: First Principles of Community

Purpose, The First Principles Series |—Book Three
Book three is a follow-up to the booklet you have just completed— Belonging to a Family
of Families. It is very important to follow-up your work in this booklet with book three,
so that you understand that becoming part of God’s family is not designed merely for
your own needs but for a much larger purpose, that of fulfilling Christ’s mission for
His church. Book three will complete the household concept of book two, helping each
individual believer learn how to bea vital part of reaching other households with the
gospel and helping churches multiply worldwide.
2. The Church at the End of the 20th Century, by Francis A. Schaeffer

(CrossWay Books)
Though written over thirty years ago, this book is just as relevant for the church today
as the day it was written. Schaeffer has a tremendous grasp of what it takes for a local
church to live in community in order to be real and relevant—both before the watching
world and before those who have only experienced the institutional church. Though it is
difficult to read at times, this book is a unique guide to understanding what a local church
needs to be doing to be an effective witness as a community in a culture that is fast
becoming post-Christian.
3. The Walk: The Measure of Spiritual Maturity, by Gene Getz

(Broadman and Holman Publishers)
The Walk is an excellent companion to this study booklet. It covers all the essential
principles of the New Testament that should govern our lives as committed disciples, as
believing families, and as local churches. It is also a good companion to the next booklet,
Participating in the Mission of the Church, since it does an excellent summary of the
mission of the local church as unfolded through the book of Acts. It is very readable, yet
full of solid, biblical teaching.
Endnotes
1 Michael C. Griffiths, What on Earth Are You Doing?: Jesus’ Call to World Mission,
(England: InterVarsity Press, 1983), p. 38. Used by permission from InterVarsity Press.
2 David J. Hesselgrave, Planting Churches Cross-Culturally: North America and Beyond, 2d
ed. (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House Company, 2000), pp. 18-19. Used by permission
from the publisher.
3 Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Church.as a Family: Why Male Leadership in the Family
Requires Male Leadership in the Home as Well, (Westchester, Illinois: Crossway
Books, 1990), p. 12. Used by permission from the Council on Biblical Manhood and
Womanhood and the author.
4 Stephen B. Clark, Man and Woman in Christ: An Examination of the Roles of Men and
Women in Light of Scripture and the Social Sciences, (Ann Arbor: Servant Books, 1990),
pp. 73, 74. Used by permission from the author.
5 Gene A. Getz, The Measure of a Christian, (Ventura, California: Regal Books, 1983), pp.
96-97. Used with permission.
6 Griffiths, pp. 53, 54.
7 Francis A. Schaeffer, The Church at the End of the 20th Century, (Westchester, Illinois:
Crossway Books, 1970, 1971), p. 56. Used by permission from the author.
8 Howard A. Snyder, The Community of the King, (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity
Press, 1977), p. 75. Used by permission from the publisher.

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THE FIRST PRINCIPLES
The First Principles Series is a set of 13 six-session, dialogue-based Bible study guides for use by church leaders
and mature Christians to establish believers and churches in the faith, sort of a 21st century catechism. Rather
than a typical information-based, fill-in-the-blank approach, the series employs a highly effective learning process
involving Bible passages and readings, community dialogue, personal reflection, and projects. Teaching core
principles of Christ and His Apostles, this series guides participants in becoming firmly established in their faith.
SERIES ONE covers the process of establishing believers in their faith in the context of a local church—
a household of God.
SERIES TWO turns participants’ attention from the household of God—a local church—to individual households—
the family. God’s plan for husbands, wives, parents, and children is set in the context of the local church family.
SERIES THREE moves from passages to entire New Testament books, first developing a clear process of accurately
interpreting these books, then revisiting the first principles in the context of Acts and Paul’s letters.
TEACHING THE FIRST PRINCIPLES isasix-session guide designed to help leaders understand this new,
dialogue-based approach and to develop the full skill set necessary to establish believers and churches in the faith.
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THE FIRST PRINCIPLES

02 SE ROE Sali) BIO OlKag2)

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 03

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 05

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life O7

The First Principles

2. Belonging to a Family of Families 2. Unfolding the Great Commission

Series Il 5. Living in God’s Household

wb . Passing on Your Beliefs

3. Envisioning Fruitful LifeWork

4. Building for Future Generations

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life O09

Consistent Study Process (CSP)

The First Five Weeks:

The importance of each step is explained below.

ES Study the Scriptures

Consult the Scholars

Your work in this step:

| Think Through the Issues

Your work in this step:

5] Apply the Principles

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 11

Your work in this step:

The Sixth Week:

eae Reshaping Our Lives

Your work in this step:

Two Final Parts of the Study Guides:

12 SERIES 1>— BOOK 2

ES Study the Scriptures

Think Through the Questions:

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 13

Core teaching of Ephesians 2:18-3:11

Consult the Scholars

Read and Reflect on this Brief Commentary on Ephesians 2:18-3:11:

Read and Reflect on Key Quotes:

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 15

Think Through the Issues

ISSUE: The centrality of the church in Christ’s plan

Think Through the Issue Before Discussion:

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life A,

Discuss the issue in your small group.

Record your initial thoughts on the issue after discussion:

Think Back Through the First Three Steps.

Design an Application for Your Life.

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 19

ES Study the Scriptures

Think Through the Questions:

2. What is the role of a local church in regards to guarding the truth?

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 21

Core teaching of 1 Timothy 3:14-16

Consult the Scholars

Read and Reflect on this Brief Commentary on | Timothy 3:14-16:

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 23

Record any insights from the brief commentary and quotes:

Think Through the Issues

ISSUE: Conduct in the household of God

Think Through the Issue Before Discussion:

Belonging to a Family of Families: First Principles of Community Life 25

Discuss the issue in your small group.