The Family of God

Website Editor • September 30, 2020

From Pastor Ryan Lewis' sermon on Acts 2:42-47:

Suppose you are an orphan about to be adopted into a family.


When you are adopted, you take on the last name of the family adopting you. You become part of that family and are inseparable from it.


The same is true of God’s family.


Ephesians 1:5 tells us that we are predestined for adoption as SONS through Jesus!! If we put our faith and trust in Jesus as our Savior, we are bonded eternally by His name! Together, we are brothers and sisters in Christ; we make up the family of God, the Church.


Like a good earthly Father, God desires for His family to be healthy and to love one another.


Just as the body is one unit comprised of many members (1 Corinthians 12:27), so is a family. In the church, this plays out on two levels: (1) we are part of the global family of God together with every believer on earth; and (2) we are part of a smaller spiritual family, known as the local church.


From Genesis to Revelation, we see over and over again that humans are not designed to work in isolation. We are intended to function together as the family of God. God’s design for the local church and community is to grow us.


Membership within a church body is essential to living this out. While there is no exact formula for church membership prescribed in scripture, there are so many examples of what early churches looked like. Our key passages in Acts (2:42-47; 4:32-34) give us a glimpse of what the very first church looked like and almost every New Testament letter is addressed to a local church. Instruction is given for church leadership and church discipline. New Testament writers must have so understood the importance of belonging to a local church that they didn’t feel the need to address it with one passage.


As modeled in Acts 2, within the large local church body were smaller groups that gathered in homes. These functioned as smaller families within the larger family. They were where people got to live out their faith, be known, and encourage and sharpen one another.


At Crosspoint, community like this is one of our core values. We take it so seriously that you cannot become a member of our church body until you are actively plugged into a community group. It’s too important to miss out on!


Church community is essential for spiritual growth. We simply do not have the ability to conduct our Christian lives alone; we need one another.


“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” - Colossians 3:16


“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” - Hebrews 10:24-25


“Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” - James 5:16


Community groups at Crosspoint are centered around our value of BEING KNOWN. They typically small groups led by a church member or couple that are driven by God’s Word. They are intentional, authentic, missional, and able to council according to Scripture. The goal for community is always for members to grow in closeness to God. This happens best in community.


“Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.” - Colossians 1:28


Pastor Ryan said it well, “Church community is everyday church.”


It’s where we get to go through the everyday ups and downs of life. It’s where we can be authentic and ask real questions. It’s where we step into the mess and be an encouragement. It’s where we can be sharpened.


It’s where we become more like Jesus.


--


If you have been attending Crosspoint (virtually or in-person) and would like more information on community at our church, please reach out! We’d love to get you connected.


Watch this sermon, here .



Arm Yourselves

June 11, 2025
Notes from Ky Martin's sermon on Sunday, June 8, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 4:1-6 Prepare to suffer Is. 50:6-8a I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting. 7 But the Lord God helps me; therefore I have not been disgraced; therefore I have set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame. 8 He who vindicates me is near. The martial language indicates that discipline and grit are needed to live the Christian life, particularly in view of the suffering believers encounter. -Thomas R. Schreiner Some people won’t like you if you follow Jesus When a culture abandons biblical standards, when extramarital sex, cohabitation, and birth outside of marriage become normal, people attack the church for its moral snobbery and judgmentalism. Peter warns us that if we do take a stand, we need to expect slander, not applause. -Daniel M. Dorian This is one of the hardest things a new Christian has to face. Your friends liked you because you shared in “the same flood of debauchery.” It seemed great fun at times, but then you came to embrace Christ… But your friends have not… They will be surprised when you say “No.” -Juan Sanchez. Keep an eternal perspective Our outcome is glorious Suffering is good for us Let’s remember that suffering accomplishes God’s purposes. It exposes what or whom we are trusting (1 Peter 1:6–7). - Juan Sanchez Ecc. 7:2 It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart. Discipleship Questions: Verse 1 tell us to arm ourselves by thinking as Christ did about suffering. How did Christ arm himself for and against sufferings? What does it look like for us to do that? Have you ever lost friendships (or had them change) because you were following Jesus? Do you fear that we (or our kids) will experience greater persecution in the future? If yes, how should we handle that fear?

I Believe That We Will Win

June 3, 2025
Notes from Lance Shumake's sermon on Sunday, June 1, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 3:18-22 Jesus suffered and died in order to bring us to God Jesus conquered death by his resurrection “A wonderful text is this, and a more obscure passage perhaps than any other in the New Testament, so that I do not know for a certainty just what Peter means.” —Martin Luther Problem #1 - he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison —Jesus preached through Noah to those who lived at that time (1 Peter 1:10–12) —Jesus proclaimed His victory to evil angels (see Genesis 6:1-4) Problem #2 - baptism now saves you —Scripture is clear - we are saved by grace not works —baptism pictures our salvation from God’s judgment through the resurrection of Christ “The waters of baptism, like the waters of the flood, demonstrate that destruction is at hand, but believers are rescued from these waters in that they are baptized with Christ, who has also emerged from the waters of death through his resurrection. Just as Noah was delivered through the stormy waters of the flood, believers have been saved through the stormy waters of baptism by virtue of Christ’s triumph over death.” —Thomas R. Schreiner, 1, 2 Peter, Jude —in baptism we are appealing to God for a good conscience "This appeal is an act of the heart looking away from itself and from all human instruments and calling on God, appealing to God, for grace to save.” —John Piper —in baptism we are pledging to God to live in a manner worthy of the gospel Jesus ascended to heaven and now reigns over everything “We can face suffering as Christians with confidence rather than panic, and hope rather than despair, because the road marked with Christian suffering is, no matter what its twists and turns are, the road to vindication and glory. The God who vindicated Jesus will vindicate you, and he will sustain your faith until that day.” –Juan R. Sanchez, 1 Peter For You Discipleship Questions: How does Jesus’ death and resurrection encourage us when we suffer? Why did we need Jesus to suffer and die to bring us to God? How does Jesus’ victory over death give us eternal hope? What are your thoughts regarding some of the problems in this passage? How does what Peter says about baptism elevate the importance of baptism? When were you baptized and how does this passage inform your understanding of baptism? How does knowing our victory is secured help us with all the things this life throws at us?

Who Can Be Against Us?

May 27, 2025
Notes from Ky Martin's sermon on Sunday, May 25, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 3:13-17 Nobody can (truly) hurt Christians Psalm 118:6 The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? Rom. 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? The train of thought is as follows: “No one will be able to harm believers on the future day if they are zealous for good” (v. 13). Indeed, even present suffering is not a sign of punishment but of blessing both now and especially in the future, on the day when God rewards his people with eternal life. -Thomas R. Schreiner Honoring Christ Erases Fear Share your faith with strength and gentleness Embrace balance Be prepared to share The truth of the gospel is a public truth that can be defended in the public arena. This does not mean, of course, that every Christian is to be a highly skilled apologist for the faith. It does mean that every believer should grasp the essentials of the faith and should have the ability to explain to others why they think the Christian faith is true. -Thomas R. Schreiner Be prepared to suffer “I’ve spent a number of years in India and Africa where I found much righteous endeavor undertaken by Christians of all denominations; but I never, as it happens, came across a hospital or orphanage run by the Fabian Society [a British socialist organization], or a humanist leper colony.” -Malcolm Muggeridge Be bold! We will likely suffer as Christians in this world, but that suffering is slight and temporary compared to the eternal inheritance that awaits us. The worst thing that can happen to us is that we die and receive our promised inheritance. Can you imagine how emboldened Christians would be if we only believed what Peter is saying? -Juan R. Sanchez Discipleship Questions: Does the fact that nobody can (truly) harm us comfort you? What would change if we lived like we really believe that? Are you a more confident person as someone who knows Christ? Does your security in Christ embolden you to take some risks in life, knowing that the worst that could happen is death? How equipped / prepared are you to give a reason for the hope that you have? What would grow your confidence and competence in that? Have you considered joining Michael Clark one day for evangelism at the harbor? Well….you should….
Show More