The First Family

“And Adam called his wife’s name Eve because she was the mother of all living.” — Genesis 3:20

What is the ideal family?  How does the Bible model the ideal family?  What lessons can we learn from the first families of the Bible?

When we think of first families, we often consider families that model and live out certain values that we believe all families should strive towards.  For instance, Americans commonly look to their president and first lady with the expectation that they be the model of the ideal family.  Also, Christians often look to their pastor and his wife (who is commonly called “First Lady” in traditional black churches) to model the ideal family.  Whether you realize it or not, as a kingdom business steward, your employees look at you and your family expecting to see a family that lives out the values that you proclaim in your company.  

We all are aware of the failures of first families whether in politics, business or church leadership, but are the standards imposed upon these first families realistic?  Do they truly reflect God’s expectations or have we bought into an idea that reflects more of what we hope of others, but we ourselves could never live up to?  While it is true that all professed Christians ought to model a family life that reflects the glory of God, and all leaders ought to model a family life that sets an example of integrity, honor and charity, this should not be confused with a Hollywood picture or romance novel idea of a perfect family.  Our idea of a model family should not come from the perfect, unrealistic picture that we’ve painted for ourselves or what is being projected by Hollywood, but rather from the examples that we see in the Holy Scriptures.  

Adam and Eve were the first couple that God created and together they built the first family.  They were made perfect and sinless, but both fell into temptation and sinned against God.  They had two boys, Cain and Abel. Like his parents, Cain sinned when he killed his brother because of his jealousy.  However, in spite of it all, God still worked through them to establish the lineage of the human race and to bring out a family that would become the basis for His chosen people.

Abraham, a descendent of Adam and Eve, became the patriarch of a family of faith that God would call to re-establish a lineage of a faithful people, through whom He would bless the world.  Abraham lied twice and was encouraged by his wife to sleep with their maid to have the child they were promised, because they were impatient with God and His perfect timing.  Yet, God still called Abraham friend and he became the father of our faith.

Jacob, the grandson of Abraham, would become the one through whom God would establish the nation of Israel.  Jacob was known as a trickster, and his children committed all kinds of sinful acts.  For example, they sold their brother, Joseph, into slavery, and one son slept with his own father’s wife.   Again, in spite of all this, God still used this family to be the founders of the nation of Israel, and each son became a leader of each of the twelve tribes of Israel.

David, from the line of Jacob’s son Judah, would be called by God to become the second King of Israel and was even referred to as a man after God’s own heart. He built Israel’s monarchy up so much so that it became the envy of the ancient world.  Yet, even David stumbled.  He committed adultery with the wife of one of his soldiers and then killed him to conceal the sin.  His children also did not model God’s faithfulness; one son raped his half-sister and another killed his own half-brother and overthrew his father from the kingdom.  David’s son, Solomon, who became king after him, followed suit when he married foreign women against God’s instructions and built alters to honor foreign gods.   But again, God maintains that David was a man after His own heart, and he became the ancestor of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who is actually called the Son of David.  This perfect Jesus was consequently known as the son of a king that was an adulterer and a murderer.

After reading this history, it seems like God’s idea of first families is not the same as ours.  We look for perfection; God looks for vulnerability.  We look for morality; God looks for righteousness.   We look for pride; God looks for brokenness.  God’s first families are neither perfect nor sinless.  Among them are liars, cheaters, murderers and fornicators,  but they all have committed themselves to the mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ and the service of His kingdom.  They recognize that they have been called not because of who they are, but because of who their God is.  They look to Jesus the author and finisher of their faith for everything in every circumstance.  They allow their imperfection and the trials they encounter to show the glory of God.  They recognize that they have been justified and are therefore no longer condemned.  They boldly pursue their call though they may be mocked by the world, called hypocrites by those looking for perfection and legalists by those looking to silence them.  In spite of it all, they stand proudly as God’s First Families, who are not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They recognize that their perfection is not what proves the awesomeness of their God, but rather it is His ability to redeem even the greatest of sinners and use even the worst of individuals and families who make Him Lord and Savior.

“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.  And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.”  1 John 2:1-3

My prayer for you today is that you will seek God for the grace to carry out the call that He has for your family in spite of what you’re  going through, while trusting in Jesus Christ to work all things together for your good.