therefore then having the opportune time labor to do good for the benefit of all, now, most of all for the benefit of the family of faith. (Galatians 6:10)
We are to be good to all people when we have the opportune time, but most of all we are to be good to the household of faith. It is a profound thing Paul writes that fits with what Jesus said. Let us look at other scriptures that support what Paul is saying and why understanding this is so important. We love Jesus and want people to know him and do not want to be a hindrance to those called to eternal glory.
"I tell you, amen, to you, to the extent you did to one of the least of these, the one my brother, you did it to me." (Matthew 25:40)
Another reason Jesus puts such emphasis on doing good to his brethren and loving one another is as John writes, it is God's nature, love, thus agape love is a sign we know God or are born of God. Jesus warns us of false ministers, they will claim to be of God. They will want your money, want you to serve and sacrifice, and give in claims of spreading the gospel. But judge them by their fruit, they will not love the brother right next to them. And the world sees this, saying Christians are cruel, they do not take care of their own people. This is not how Jesus said we are to be known, no, but by how we love one another.
a new commandment I give to you; love one another just as I loved you, you must love one another, in this, all know because you exist, my disciples, if you have love for one another. (John 13:34-35)
This is a profound verse, a heart-changing verse. People will know we are disciples of Jesus because we love one another. It is a command thus people will know we obey Jesus by how we follow his command to love one another. He could have said something else like people will know you are my disciples by your charity or how good you are to the people of the world. Or by your commitment to a commission to evangelize, spread the gospel, or how you give generously... but he didn't, it is how you love one another. Paul is writing to us, be good to all but especially to the household of Faith, the family of God. It is the same as saying love one another, be good to one another, first. Why is there an emphasis on loving one another and doing good to the family of God especially? Let's look at the scriptures further.
The least of these is His brothers, others of the household of faith, what we do to them we do to Jesus. And we know what the least mean, Jesus tells us to put first the least when he says the first must become last, and the last become first, and the great must exist servants of all (Mark 9:35, Matthew 20:25-26). Are not the least little children in faith and does not this imply the mature become servants to help mature the children? This is the essence of the great becoming servants of all, not like leaders of the world that lord over the people and exercise authority over the people (Matthew 20:25-26). For what purpose but their own selfish gain? Can we even call such greatness in the kingdom of God leadership when Jesus said it is being a servant of all? The scriptures gives names like shepherding or pastoring, which is also translated as an overseer as the shepherd watches over the flock, in service to the Chief Shepherd, not domineering over them (1 Peter 5:1-5).
"And whoever gives a drink to one of the little ones of these named a disciple, amen, I say to you, no one shall lose that his reward." (Matthew 10:42)
It is interesting amen is used this way, Jesus said "amen I say to you..." and "I say to you amen, amen, the one hearing my words and believing in the one sending me has eternal life" (John 5:25). In the Old Testament "the idea of something that is faithful, reliable, or believable seems to lie behind the use of amen"* It is said amen means "so be it." His authority and his word are true, so let it be so, believe it. This is true, it is true of his promises and his commands. He commands us to love one another, it is his word, amen, so be it. Amen, if you receive Jesus, you receive the one who sent him, and if you receive the one he sends, even doing such a small thing as giving him a drink of water, amen, you do it to Jesus, there is a reward. Again, why did Jesus command us to love one another and why do the scriptures put emphasis on doing especially good to the family of God?
and we know and believe the love which God has for us, that God exists to love and the one abiding in love abides in the one God and the one God abides in him. (1 John 4:16)
If God is love then God exists to love. Love is the essence of who God is, he is love. He sent His Son so we would not perish, in who we escape the coming wrath, this is love. Therefore the one who knows God loves, he lays down his life for his brother just as Jesus did for his brethren. It is plain as day. God was merciful through his great love, therefore we love and are merciful. This is how God is manifesting the riches of his grace in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. We love him because he first loved us. Jesus is the exact representation of His character and we are being conformed to his image, that purpose put forth in the church so that we grow up truth in love, into mature adulthood, into the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Maturity is tied directly to love, we are perfected or matured in love, the bond of love leads to perfection, and we grow up truth in love. We grow in Grace in the knowledge of Jesus, strengthened in faith working through love.
"in this love is matured among us so that having confidence in the day of judgment because just as he exists also we exist in this world" (1 John 4:17).
Love is perfected, matured among us, the household of faith, when walk like Jesus did. This maturity, often referred to as bearing fruit, is practicing love towards one another, fruit of love to my brother and the world. Why is it imperative that we love one another? It shows that we are mature in Christ and walk as Jesus walked. "But whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked" (1 John 2:5-6). "In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him" (1 John 2:6). We love just like Jesus loved us.
"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God" (1 John 4:7)
John gives us a picture of what not loving looks like, "if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?" (1 John 3:17). James makes the same claim which is at the heart of his statement that faith without deeds is dead (James 2:15-17). James is in agreement with John about the true children of God, their faith will produce deeds of agape love for His brethren. And so is Paul when he writes faith without agape love is nothing (1 Corinthians 13:2). Jesus puts it this way;
A new commandment I give unto you; that you love one another. As I have loved you, also love one another. (John 13:34)
Paul writes we are knitted together in love, "that their hearts might be encouraged, being knit together in love.." (Colossians 3:14). Paul prays for us to be filled to the fullness of Christ where being deeply rooted in faith and love, we are strengthen so that we can grasp a deeper love of Christ so to be filled to a fullness in Christ (Ephesians 3:15-19; Colossians 2:7). This type of love is what will not separate us from Christ, thus we will grow up into maturity, enduring suffering, persecution, afflictions... (Romans 8:35-37). This type of love we experience as we grow in Christ therefore it should be manifested in the church if we have reached any maturity in Christ.
Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God. (3 John 1:11)
"By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another” (John 13:35).
Why is such emphasis put on loving His brethren? which I argue is the same question why are we to do especially good to the household of faith? A partial answer to the question is that having agape love for one another, the world will see and say we are his disciples thus it is a great evangelistic tool for those seeking agape love. Another reason I gave before, it is a telling sign of being a child of God, so it helps us judge by the fruit of those who claim to be mature.
Jesus is the Chief Shepherd and those who serve him are indebted or obligated to live by his example, to wash the feet of others, to shepherd the flock, watching over it, not lording over in authority, but in humility becoming a servant to all, putting the last first, the great becoming last, not for their own self-interests or selfish gain but to build up the brother (1 Peter 5:2-4, Matthew 20:16, 25-26, Romans 15:1-2). Truly, to be great is to serve Jesus in building up others which means you will have to endure reviling also, entrusting yourselves to the righteous judge.
"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruit" (Matthew 7:15-16).
Fruit of the Spirit is love thus a fruit of being born of God is love for his brethren and John writes those who love God obey his command and he commands us to love one another. We know God because we give, serve..? No, because we love His brethren. "We know that we have passed out of death into life because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death" (1 John 3:14). John states if you hate your brother you are still in darkness, you have not passed from death unto life. The opposite of hate is love and John questions whether we know God if we have worldly goods and see our brother in need and turn our hearts from him. I have seen this time and time again in churches, in the name of Jesus, giving outwardly but not to the brother in need. John does add a condition if I have the worldly goods, but what other conditions can we use to not help my brother in need?
Can we use the excuse that the money will go instead to spreading the gospel, that this is more important than loving my brother or His brethren? John draws a line in the sand, here are the children of God, they practice righteousness and love their brother, "By this, the children of God are distinguished from the children of the devil: Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is anyone who does not love his brother" (1 John 3:10). Why does he add love your brother? because the legalist and the false prophet, the hireling shepherd, the wolf in sheep's clothing, they will distinguish themselves by their lack of genuine love. They will hide behind the authority of Christ, use serving and giving as a means to serve their own self-interests but no matter what authority they claim to have, judge them by their fruit, the fruit of agape love for His brethren is most telling.
"We have powerful indebtedness now to bear the weakness of the powerless and not to please ourselves. Each seeks favor, seek favor with the one nearby, to the extent of his good, towards building him up" (Romans 15:1-2)
The word "the one nearby" here is often translated as a neighbor and certainly, a neighbor is nearby but the focus here is not evangelism of a lost neighbor but the building up of a brother, the one right next to me, in a small group, class, the pew next to me... The word indebtedness means to owe, be indebted, i.e. obliged to rectify a debt ("ought"). We have powerful indebtedness to help my brother, not to please myself. Jesus gave such an example. "For Christ did not please himself but as written the reviling of your reproach has fallen on me... therefore accept one another just as Christ also accepted you, to the extent of the glory of God" (Romans 15:3, 7). What does it mean to serve one another in love? Jesus did not come to please himself but to serve, "who was reviled, not reviling in return, suffering not threatening, now, giving himself to the one judging justly" (1 Peter 2:23). We see why bearing the burden of the weak brother Paul calls the "law of Christ" (Galatians 6:2). So another reason we see why such an emphasis is put on doing good to the household of faith is that agape love builds up.
"all the ones believing that Jesus is Christ are born of God and all the ones loving the Father loves also his begotten. In this knowing that we love the children of God, whenever we love God and obey his commands. For this is the love of God that we keep his commands and his commands are not burdensome." (1 John 5:1-3)
This is amazing scripture. Who are born of God? those who believe in Jesus. Who are the ones who love the Father? the one born of God. Who loves God's children, the brethren of the Son of Man? the ones who love God and obey his commands. What commands in context is he referring to? to love his brethren, to love one another. We can not obey God without loving his brethren thus if we say we love God and do not love his children we do not love God and we are not born of God. It is difficult to argue your way out or find some excuse not to love your brother even if it is something done in the name of Jesus, like spreading the gospel.
... we all have knowledge, knowledge puffs up but love builds up. If someone presumes to know something not yet known as he ought to know, now, if someone loves God, he is known by God. (1 Corinthians 8:1-3)
Another amazing verse. If you think you know God but do not love your brother but tear him down with your knowledge, then you do not know as you ought to know God or possibly you are not known by God. What did Jesus say of those who he knows, or are known by him? He said they help his brethren, the one who was a stranger they took in, the one who was hungry they fed, the one who was naked they clothed, the one was in a ward, hospital, or prison they visited (Matthew 25:37-40). "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me." (Matthew 25:29). There is just too many scriptures that compare loving God with loving His brethren and that loving God is through obedience to his command to love one another.It is the law of Christ to lift the burden of a brother, think about that. To cause him to stumble is not building him up in love. Remember what Jesus said "And whoever welcomes a little child like this in My name welcomes Me, but if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. Woe to the world for the causes of sin. These stumbling blocks must come, but woe to the man through whom they come" (Matthew 18:5-8). The welcoming of the little child is the welcoming of the one who believes in Him and it is like welcoming Jesus himself.
If we think we have knowledge of God but use that knowledge in a way that doesn't build up my brother but causes him to stumble, then it is not the knowledge of God, of love that builds up, it is the knowledge that puffs up (1 Corinthians 8:1). Faith works in love, or we are strengthened in faith energized by love (Galatians 5:6). Over all the other virtues we could have, love is most important as it is the bond of maturity. (Colossians 3:14). Truth is the word of God that increases our faith, and truth in love the body grows up into mature adulthood, so love is the bond, the unity that keeps it together. Thus faith works through love to strengthen the body. Jesus said with this type of unity in love, the world will know he is from God, "I in them and You in Me--that they may be perfectly united, so that the world may know that You sent Me and have loved them just as You have loved Me" (John 17:23).
And do not neglect to do good and share with others, for with sacrifices like that God is pleased. (Hebrews 13:16).
In context, he is talking about the church, do good and share with your brother in need, such is a sacrifice pleasing to God. The rich are not to "set their hope on the uncertainty of riches but on God who furnishes riches to the extent of pleasure; to do good, rich in good deeds, existing generous, sharing, laying up for themselves a good foundation for the coming age so that we seize hold of what truly is life." (1 Timothy 6:17-19). Usually this first verse is quoted out of context, like, "God has given me all these earthly riches for my enjoyment," but if we read the next verse, it is to "do good, be rich in good deeds, sharing" and he is talking about being good to the household of faith. If you have worldly goods and see your brother in need and turn your heart from him the love of God is not in you, no matter how you try to justify it. And churches do, well we gave to the church or missions, we gave to this or that... but not the brother in my church in need, who some how we turn our hearts away from, why? John argues this is not the love of God, which implies we are doing all these other things for the wrong reasons, for the glory of men, to promote our own self interests...
Serving one another in love is imitating Jesus. Why is there such an emphasis on loving one another and being especially good to His brethren, the household of faith? We have seen that agape love is very important in the growth of the church, so we grow up into maturity, love is the bond that truth works in. The church is strengthened in faith energized in love. We are deeply rooted in faith and love so we can grasp the deeper love of Christ that will fill us into the full measure of Christ. Through this deep love, nothing can separate us from God, thus we will endure as good soil that bears fruit that glorifies God.
Another reason is it protects us from false ministers, as we are told to distinguish the children of God from the children of the devil because those born of God love His brethren. These will do good to His brethren, to the household of faith. Thus we can judge or discern the false minister by their lack of fruit of love for His brethren.
But most importantly it is our love and unity that the world will see and want to be a part of, we are a testimony of followers of Jesus by our love for one another. The world will know Jesus is from God by our unity of love for one another and the world will know we are his disciples by our love for one another. Pretty powerful scriptures.
therefore then having the opportune time labor to do good for the benefit of all, now, most of all for the benefit of the family of faith. (Galatians 6:10)
Here is the point, we do good to all people so that all may see our good works and glorify God on the day of visitation, so the elect may come to know Christ, we spread the gospel, we do outreach to the community, we feed the poor, we help widows and orphans... But especially we do we do good to the brethren of Jesus, our brothers in Christ, the family or household of God. Think about it, this is our family, people we will spend eternity with. What we do to his brethren we do to Jesus himself, that says it all. Most of all do good to the household of faith.