Hebrews 10:24
“And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:”
The family relationship and the relationship of the Christian and the church mirror each other. For instance, you show me what type of relationship you have with your spouse and I will show you what type of relationship you have with God. They are a mirror of each other. You show me what type of relationship a Christian has with their church and I will show you what type of relationship a person has with their family. You cannot separate them because one affects the other.
In the verse above, we are commanded to provoke each other. The word “provoke” means, to stimulate, to call into action or to give rise to an emotion. God was showing the Christian what it would take to keep a good relationship with Him and the church. These same actions are needed to provoke strong family relationships.
First, to provoke love in the family, each member of the family must be filled with good works. When family members become selfish and make everything about themselves, then instead of having a family filled with love you will have a family filled with selfishness. You will never have a strong family without each person in the family working to help each other. This is why I believe it’s important that the children get involved in helping their parents around the house. It teaches them to be filled with good works so that love prevails in the family.
Second, if you are going to have strong family relationships, then you must have time together. Verse 25 says, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together…” God is showing the Christian the importance of church attendance and their relationship with other brothers and sisters. If it is important for Christians to assemble together to keep a strong relationship with their church, then it’s important for families to have time with each other.
There are some times I believe that are important for families to assemble with each other. Every family should assemble to have their evening meal together. If at all possible, I believe it would be good to have breakfast together as well. These are times to talk about your day. Furthermore, I also believe you should have daily family devotions. This will provoke spirituality in the family. Moreover, I also believe it’s important to have a family vacation together. This will help the family to enjoy time away from everyone else to build ties together.
Third, strong family relationships are built by exhorting each other. Verse 25 says, “…but exhorting one another…” The family must not be a place where they compete against each other for superiority, but it should be a place where they cheer for every member’s success. Don’t let your family be a place where each member is tearing the other down, but make your family a place where encouragement is present. Every member of the family should know that they at least have their family in their corner.
Friend, you only have one family. I encourage you to strengthen your family. Let your home be a place that is filled with love, encouragement and spirituality. A home that has an atmosphere filled with these things is a home where you will find joy and close bonds.