The world defines family identity as the communal sense of self, a sense of belonging, values, security, culture, traditions and history shared among parents, children and siblings, connected by blood, mar-riage, or adoption.
In a Christian family: “Our primary source of identity is that we are created in the very image of God Himself and through faith in His sacrifice for our sins, we are included in His family by adoption.” ¹
“Our identity in Christ has nothing to do with the nationalistic idea of Chris-tian identity found in some political circles today. A Christian’s identity is found in Jesus, not in a political agenda or self-expression. When we accept Him as our Savior and Lord, we become an integral part of the family of God. We are part of heaven’s community on earth. And while it may be tempting to base our identity on personality tests and assessments, no human means of identification can compare to finding our identity in a God whose love for us is changeless and forever.” ²
Dedication to God is the foundation of family identity: “The di-rections that Moses gave concerning the Passover feast are full of signif-icance and have an application to parents and children in this age of the world. . . .
“The father was to act as the priest of the household, and if the father was dead, the eldest son living was to perform this solemn act of sprinkling the doorpost with blood. This is a symbol of the work to be done in every family. Parents are to gather their children into the home and to present Christ before them as their Passover. The father is to dedicate every inmate of his home to God and to do a work that is represented by the feast of the Passover. It is perilous to leave this solemn duty in the hands of others.” ³
Parents to preserve family identity through prayer: “Build a fortification of prayer and faith about your children and exercise dili-gent watching thereunto. You are not secure a moment against the at-tacks of Satan. You have no time to rest from watchful, earnest labour. You should not sleep a moment at your post. This is a most important warfare. Eternal consequences are involved. It is life or death with you and your family.” ⁴
Distinct identity of the husband and the wife: “I was shown that although a couple were married, gave themselves to each other by a most solemn vow in the sight of heaven and holy angels, and the two were one, yet each had a separate identity which the marriage covenant could not destroy Neither the husband nor the wife should merge his or her
individuality in that of the other. Each has a personal relation to God.” ⁵
Husbands in tHe family: “Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.” 1 Peter 3:7. “[Husbands:] Do not endeavour to make your wife a slave to your will, but by kindness and an unselfish desire to promote her comfort and happiness draw her into close sympathy with yourself. Give her an opportunity to exercise her faculties, and do not try to warp her mind and mould her judgment till she loses her mental identity.” ⁶
Wives in tHe family: “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord” Ephesians 5:22. There is a difference be-tween a wife’s submission unto her husband as unto the Lord, as op-posed to the wife surrendering her identity. “A woman who will submit to be ever dictated to in the smallest matters of domestic life, who will yield up her identity, will never be of much use or blessing in the world and will not answer the purpose of God in her existence. She is a mere machine, to be guided by another’s will and another’s mind. God has given each one, men and women, an identity, an individuality. All must act in the fear of God for themselves.” ⁷
“When the wife yields her body and mind to the control of her husband, being passive to his will in all things, sacrificing her conscience, her dignity, and even her identity, she loses the opportunity of exerting that mighty influence for good which she should possess to elevate her husband.” ⁸
Children in the family: “Christ retained a perfect identity of character, although surrounded by unfavourable influences, and placed in every variety of circumstances. Nothing supernatural occurred during the first thirty years of his life at Nazareth which would attract the attention of the people to himself. The life of Christ was distinguished from the generality of children. His strength of moral character, and his firmness, ever led him to be true to his sense of duty, and to adhere to the prin-ciples of right, from which no motive, however powerful, could move him. Money or pleasure, applause or censure, could not purchase or flat-ter him to consent to a wrong action. He was strong to resist temptation, wise to discover evil, and firm to abide faithful to his convictions.” ⁹
To each family member: “God has given each of us an identity of our own, which cannot be merged in that of another; but our individual characteristics will be much less prominent if we are indeed Christ’s and His will is ours.” ¹⁰
God has designed the family structure to be composed of the father, mother, and children. A God-anchored family identity is a binder of the family’s oneness in the members’ diversity.
Parents are accountable for the salvation of their family mem-bers: “Lift up your eyes, and behold them that come from the north: where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock? Jeremiah 13:20. It is God’s purpose to save each member of the family. Parents are accountable for the salvation of their family members. Only families whose primary source of identity is God and His will, will see the king-dom of God.
Amen.