Surely you remember that glorious earworm:
We are family
I got all my sisters with me
We are family
Get up everybody and sing
We are family
I got all my sisters with me
We are family
Get up everybody and sing
First of all, I dislike disco . . . for me it was a constant reminder of my two left feet and my inability to dance. Second of all, it was the rallying call of the Pirates as they did the impossible and beat my Orioles. Yet, I have to give the ‘79 Pirates their due . . . in the end they came together like a family and won it all.
That is what family does . . . despite differences and disagreements, family comes together for the well-being of the whole. Family watches out for one another . . . family takes care of each other . . . family has each other’s back.
In Harper Lee’s book, To Kill a Mockingbird, she writes: “You can choose your friends but you sho’ can’t choose your family . . .” Family we are stuck with because we are related to; and, as such, we can’t run away from our responsibilities. After all, to quote those disco queens--Sister Sledge, “We are family!”
In our scripture reading this morning, the Apostle Paul makes a reference to this idea of family . . . the family of God. In this reference he tells us that we are the sons and daughters of God . . . adopted . . . specifically chosen by God to be the children of God. The apostle writes: “And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit himself testifies that we are God’s children.” In other words, all of God’s creation--all of humanity--is family. You and I . . . everyone we encounter . . . are brothers and sisters. And, because we are there are serious implications of what it means to be family.
It means that we are invested in the wellbeing of the family . . . that we are working towards what is best for each and every member of the family . . . that we have each other’s back. Throwing it back to that second part of Jesus’ call to each of us, we are to love others as we love ourselves when it comes to being family.
Earlier, when I shared the quote from Harper Lee’s book, To Kill a Mockingbird, I didn’t share the whole quote. The quote goes on to say: “You can choose your friends but you sho’ can’t choose your family, an’ they’re still kin to you no matter whether you acknowledge ‘em or not, and it makes you look right silly when you don’t.” I think Ms. Lee sort of wraps it all up and hits us with a two-by-four with the second half of that quote . . . family is more than a label we apply to a group of people. Family is family through thick and thin, and how we relate to that family shows the world a whole lot about ourselves . . . after all, we are family.
Maybe I am seeing this idea of family too simplistically. Maybe family is more complicated than I see it. Yet, once we take away all the pontificating and rationalizing of what it means to be family, family really comes down to how we relate and treat one another . . . how we love one another. In the end, I am pretty certain that that is the way that Jesus would view family.
Which throws us back to the second half of Harper Lee’s quote . . . whether we like it or not, to ignore our family makes us look pretty silly in the eyes of our family, the world, and especially God. We are family . . . each and every one of us. We are family . . . those individuals we encounter on a daily basis. We are family . . . those people who live on the other side of the world. We are family because we have been chosen . . . we have been created . . . and, we have been called by God to be brothers and sisters. There is no denying that fact.
The Apostle Paul also points this out in his understanding of family. The rest of the apostle’s quote quote goes like this: “And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” With Jesus as the example we see how family is . . . we see what it means to be family . . . how to relate and treat one another as sibling in God’s family. It has its high points, and it has its low points . . . but through it all we remain family. We get it all . . . the good and the bad.
I am fairly certain that Harper Lee did not come up with the axiom about us not being able to pick our family . . . I think that was around a long time before she ever wrote her book. When it comes to family, you get what you get. When it comes to God’s family there can be no denying that we are told in the scriptures that we are the children of God . . . each of us created in the image of God . . . chosen. We do not have any say in the makeup of this holy family. It just is what it is. And, despite it all, that is what we have been given to work with. To deny our family would sure make us look silly in the eyes of others and especially in the eyes of God.
The ‘79 Pirates didn’t quite use the Sister Sledge song as it was written. They changed the lyrics slightly when they added a word to the original song to include everyone. They sang:
We are family
I got all my brothers and sisters with me
We are family
Get up everybody and sing
Through the Spirit’s presence we are reminded that we are family . . . each and every one of us . . . throughout the world. We are brothers and sisters. Together . . . when we work towards the well-being of each and every one of us . . . nothing can stop us from realizing our potential as the children of God. In doing this we become the family of God . . . we realize the Kingdom of God. Whether or not it is disco, we should heed the words of Sister Sledge when they sing out:
We are family
I got all my brothers and sisters with me
We are family
Get up everybody and sing
Yeah, get up everybody and sing . . . the Spirit calls us to family. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment