Welcome to the Family

and we base that view of the church being a family in the word of god which we're going to turn to together right now this is matthew chapter 12 jesus is talking to a large group of people in this chapter and he makes some bold statements about his views on his family which is something he tended to do from time to time he liked to make bold statements and on this day some might have thought he was being just a little bit rude with his own blood-related family his mother and his brothers but i think he was just trying to drive a point home in this passage and he makes it loud and clear we pick up the story in verse 46 it says while he was talking to the multitude behold his mother and brother stood outside they wanted to speak to him then one said to him look your mother and your brothers are standing outside they're seeking to speak with you but he answered and said to the one who told him who is my mother who are my brothers and he stretched

out his hand toward his disciples and said here are my mother and my brothers for whoever does the will of my father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother like i mentioned he just makes a strong point here and when he does that he actually invites all of us everyone who will do his will and obey his plan and his word to be a part of the family of god john the apostle wrote this as well in john chapter 1 and verse 12 to all who did receive him i hope someone receives him today and believes on his name he gave them the right to become children of god children not born of natural descent nor of human decision or husband's will but born of god in other words those who believe on him in his name and those who act on that belief through their obedience now they have the right to become children of god members of the family of now you're in god's family now you're in his household now you're one of his kids and one of his children now because

of your faith and your obedience you're born of god and you're a part of the family of god with all that in mind today i want to present to you a simple thought this morning and i want to personally welcome you to the family today my title is simply welcome to the family welcome to the family before you're seated if you feel comfortable find someone look them in the eyes and say hey welcome to the family and you may be seated welcome to the family from the very beginning god's church was always designed to be and to operate like a family even before the church ever officially began in the first century jesus had already set up and planned how the church was intended to be and that's why in verses like our text from matthew 12 he uses the language that he used which probably confused some and maybe even ruffled some feathers for others he says who is my mother who are my brothers and he stretched out his hand toward his disciples he said

here are my mother and my brothers and i can just picture those disciples kind of looking around you talking about us are you are you related to him i just met him last week i don't know what he's talking about you know a little confused trying to figure out what is he saying here and then he clarifies the statement he said for whoever does the will of my father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother and this point the disciples are like oh okay yeah yeah they're starting to feel a little good about themselves i imagine yeah you know that's me i'm his brother of course another disciple i could see just leans over to a member of the crowd and he says you know jesus yeah like the messiah the great i am robed in flesh he's my brother we hang out regular we eat together i know what he likes to eat usually bread you know there he's telling him everything he knows about jesus it had to feel great to be considered family to jesus christ

himself the spotless lamb the omniscient one the all-powerful god of the entire universe i mean who wouldn't want to be in his family who wouldn't want to be in his household and in his pack of people so to speak i would think that everyone would want to be in that family i'd have to believe that all of us would want to be in jesus household and i would contend that each one of us would want to be one of his brothers or one of his sisters and this is where the church became a reality in fact galatians 6 calls the church the household of faith and romans chapter 12 calls the church and its followers the members of one body first john 3 calls us children of god romans 8 says that we're heirs of god joint heirs with christ jesus himself calls us his brothers and sisters and mother and matthew 7 says he's our heavenly father you read all of this and this is really starting to sound like a family with all this familial language going on then

you read hebrews 2 and 11 and it says this so now jesus and the ones that he makes holy have the same father that's why jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters so when he makes you holy and he makes you more like him which we'll talk about in a minute he starts to call you his brother and his sister you're now part of the family of god and you're counted as a member of the church of the living god which are one and the same today now you're a part of the family that's why you might hear some of us throughout the day you already heard it call each other brother and sister and you're probably wondering what in the world are they talking about why are they saying that is this some kind of code you know brother this and brother we're just trying to reflect the family aspect it's because we're in a family we're part of the church of the living god and if we're all brothers and sisters to jesus that implies we're brothers and

sisters of one another if we're children of the same heavenly father that makes us brother and sister we're all in his family which makes us family with one another now thankfully we still use real names around here nicknames i get called ypb from time to time someone recently called me pb and j i'll explain that later but our language reflects the fact that this is a family this is the household of god it also reflects how they referred to each other all throughout the new testament you read it all over the place paul and the other writers called one another brother and sister they were a family they did life together they ate together they lived together they prayed for one another they rejoiced with one another and they wept with one another one verse said they had all things in common and they even sold their possessions to help one another in need they were a family in every sense of the word this is what the church was designed to

be and i want to pause here and i want to tell someone today that this is more than just another church on the side of the road this morning this is more than just another congregation or another sunday morning assembly this is a family this is a community this is the body of jesus christ we are his children we are his brothers his sisters and brothers and sisters of one we are a family we do life together we help one another we share with one another we pray with one another we weep with one another and we rejoice with one another we have small groups and connect groups with one another and we have great care and concern for one another this is god's church this is the family of god which are one and the same today we are a family that's why my daughter milo you'll probably see her running around at some point today she's always running and i'm always chasing but she's got aunts and uncles all over the church this church building this church

family she's got several that are related by blood and the rest are just related by spirit there's no telling how many aunts and uncles and uh adopted grandparents she has throughout the church in fact i thought she might even get a little confused and look at someone are you my uncle or no and you and okay one day though when she gets older she's gonna realize she's just part of a family that spans this entire sanctuary and really one that spans the entire globe this morning it's god's church it's his family and you are welcome in his family you are welcome in his household you are welcome in this body of believers at apostolic pentecostal church you are welcome to be a part of the family of god so welcome to the family we want to welcome you to the family you know i've said it before but i'll say it again it's so fitting here today my prayer for the last several years has been that individuals and members of our community would come into

apc looking for a church and that they would leave apc having found a family this is what the church has always been designed to be and we want to be the family of god to anyone and everyone that would come our way you are welcome in this family and not just because i said so today but more importantly you're welcome because he said so today he being jesus i certainly personally would want anyone and everyone to be a part of this family but more than that our heavenly father the head of the family he's the one who's really giving the invitation today because or you can be a part of this family simply because he said so a couple years ago my brother-in-law roger started coming around our family shortly after he began to date my little sister before they got married a couple years ago the first time we ever met him we all went to this brazilian steakhouse nearby and we decided that as the brothers and the self-proclaimed protectors of the

family we needed to vet this guy as concerned brothers typically do we need to make sure to filter and figure out who he really is got some brothers in the room there yeah so we planned it out we actually planned it out we were going to place him right in the middle of all of us guys at the table me my brother and my brother-in-law and we proceeded to pepper him with questions determine whether he was worthy truly worthy to date our sister i can't remember all the questions we asked him but it was definitely more than a few there's nothing too invasive though just things like what's your net worth social security number you know what do you believe about the godhead what are your hopes and dreams nothing too crazy but i think he got the point the picture as concerned and considerate brothers consider it we wanted to make sure that he was up to the standard that we had arbitrarily set five minutes before we got to the table we want to be

sure he was up to snuff a worthy candidate for the family now obviously he passed the test he's in the family he made it roger if you're watching today we love you you passed thank god but the truth is today it didn't matter a whole lot what we thought you see in our family whether or not you were allowed to date one of the daughters depended a whole lot on what my dad had to say in other words if dad approved you dating them you were in if if dad gave the word you were all set if he signed off on it you passed and assuming that the person this daughter or sister actually liked you you were a part of the family at that point if dad invited you into the family that was all that you needed to hear at that point can i tell you today you are in because he says you're in you're invited because he says you're you are welcome here because our heavenly father says that you're welcome this is his church this is his family this is his body and this

family is open to whoever our father says it's open to john 1 which we read earlier says to all who did receive him to those who believed on his name he gave them the right to become children of god that being the case you have every right to be in this family as you receive and believe on him you have every right to be here today you have every opportunity to join his family and his church in fact you've got the same right to this family that i do or that anyone does no matter your background no matter your past no matter your failures no matter your shortcomings no matter your misgivings no matter what you've done where you've come from because of jesus christ and his love for you his death on the cross for the sins of the world you have every right to be called one of his and be a part of the household in the family of god today you are not disqualified i want to help someone here you are not ineligible you are not disqualified because

of something in your past because of the cross and because of his death you are covered today you're you're able to you are eligible you're welcome today you're invited not just by us and we do but more importantly you're invited by the one who died for your sins and died to cover your past and died to change your name like we sing about and call you out of the grave you are welcome into his household in the family of god galatians 4 says but when the fullness of time had come he's god sent forth his son born of a woman born under the law to redeem those who were under the law that we might receive the adoption of sons and daughters and because your sons god has sent forth the spirit of his son into your hearts crying out abba father therefore you're no longer a slave but a son you're not an outcast today you're a son or daughter you're not cut off today you're a son or daughter of the king and if a son then an heir of god through christ

because of what he's done for us and his death on the cross you can be called a son or daughter today you can be a part of the family with all its rights and privileges you can be a son or daughter of the king of kings and the lord of lords himself who we all call abba or father and no matter who you are and where you've come from you are welcome in the family of god you're welcome in his household you're welcome in his church you're welcome in his family and that's whether you feel worthy to be welcomed or not i thought about it this week in my own personal family my siblings and i often joke about who the favorite sibling is who is the favorite child of my parents probably all of us have done that at some point maybe not maybe it's just us we talk about it here and there we have varying opinions about who it is who wins the favor of my mom my dad in fact pastor rivers even joined in uh to the discussion he has his own opinions about who

he thinks it is he says that it's me that i'm the chosen child the preferred sibling and i can neither confirm nor deny this but knowing my parents it's highly likely that they're telling the truth that none of us really are the favorites that we're all equally special to mom and dad and seeing how they love and care for each one of us it kind of drives that point home all the more but today i'm so thankful in the family of god there's not even room for a debate romans chapter 2 verse 11 just kind of sums it up for us it says there's no respect to persons with god other translations say there's no partiality with god god shows no favoritism god has no favorite child or preferred children he shows no favoritism instead when he came he died on the cross it was for you and it was for me and it was for everyone on planet earth past present and future that's why the bible says god demonstrates his love toward us that while we were still sinners

he died for us when you were cut off from the family cut off from him and distant from him he died for you he loved you even when we were living in sin and darkness he died for our sins even when we didn't care to be a part of the family he made a way for us to be a part of his family anyway so you may not feel like the favorite child today maybe you feel distant from god feel like you've messed up beyond all reconciliation no no he's not talking to me because i couldn't join the family i've gone too far i've messed up too much but i want to remind you this morning he made a way for you to be a part of his family and his church you've got access to the family of god he made a way for you to be counted as one of his a member of his household which means you are welcome in his family today where he shows no favoritism and whether you've been here five minutes or 50 years you can be a member of the family of god i feel his presence here i just

want to pause here can we just thank the lord for his grace for what he's done for us that he made a way for us oh can we thank him for his covering for the cross that made a way for every one of us to receive grace and his help and strength thank you lord that we've got access to grace through the cross and access to the family of god we love you and we thank you today jesus name he made a way for every one of us to be considered a son or daughter of god in a joint heir with him through his death his burial's resurrection he opened the door for us to become a part of his family in his church and just like with any family i recognize it's oftentimes a process for someone to become acclimated and adapt into a new household or a new family group i'll present for example today my own family rather my wife's family don't worry it's okay they're my in-laws and i love them but i started to come around the garcia crew it was totally different when

i was used to with the de long family they could attest to this in fact i remember mariah specifically warning me before a birthday party while we were dating she said now listen my family is crazy she looked me in the eyeballs don't get scared she said they might get a little loud in a little while this is before a cuban birthday party a cuban themed birthday party just for reference she said you'll be fine just don't say anything to anybody don't look in their eyes don't breathe she didn't say those last couple things but she did say everything else and i can honestly say i went there i'm looking over my shoulder you know what's going to happen and i loved it it was incredible there was some craziness there were some things i was not used to but i remember thinking i want to be a part of this family this is awesome i love this family and i want to just pause here and i would encourage somebody in this service today i know you might experience

some things in a pentecostal and church and family that you're just not used to i know we get a little wild in our worship and our praise i know we get a little crazy i i just call us the lively bunch we can get expressive and demonstrative when when we worship the god who saved us and the god who rescued us from sin and darkness in our past but i want to help you this morning we know it might be different from what you're used to but we're hoping that you see and you feel and you encounter the presence of god and the value of the family of god this morning we're hoping you experience the same life-changing power that has changed every last one of us and we're praying you look past what you're not used to and you see the hand of god at work in his family and like i experienced at that birthday party we're hoping you feel the same and you know what this is awesome this is a family i want to be a part of it this is a group of believers i want

to know a little more i want to experience god's glory and power and presence just like they are as we go closer to god together i want to be a part of his family like i said i know it's always an adjustment always a process when you join a new family i had to get used to my wife's family and vice versa they ate different foods than i ate now i love puerto rican food praise the lord they had more birthday parties than i had ever experienced now i love the birthday parties and i had never played so many board games in all my life before i came around the garcia family now i love the board games you can ask them i was in it friday night i was i was passionate about that game it was an adjustment a change a process and the same is true in the family of god there's a change that happens when you join his family there's a process that takes place when you become a part of the family of god there is transformation that will happen when you become

a child of the king of kings and just like when you join any family there's a life change that happens when you join his family the book of acts chapter 2 spells it out for us pretty plainly in the middle of the chapter the apostle peter starts to talk to the listeners about jesus who he really was he explains that whoever calls and believes on the name of the lord shall be saved he tells them the lord intends to pour out his spirit on all flesh and his power on everyone that was gathered there and that jesus died and was raised from the dead now he's both lord and christ in verse 37 it says all those who were hearing this were stirred in their hearts they were pricked in their hearts they just heard about jesus and who he was and what he planned to do for i feel like someone here today is being stirred and you're recognizing wow there's an invitation today that god's calling me to join his family so they asked peter and the disciples men

brothers the family language what should we do how should we respond to all of this what do we do in light of this invitation this opportunity to become a part of the family of god in verse 38 peter spells out the process in the plan from he says repent turn away from sin turn towards god do and about face you're heading this way today i need you to turn this way not just away from your past but start to run towards god ask for his forgiveness and mercy which he is faithful and just to give you turn away from any pastor darkness and turn towards him be baptized he says in the name of jesus for the remission or the washing away or the cleansing of all your sins be washed and cleansed from your sins and your past be purified and set free from any stain any darkness in your life it may not sound possible but it is today you can be baptized in his name and every sin washed away and that heavenly father will personally cleanse you be liberated

from your past mistakes and failures and then he says and you shall receive the gift of the holy ghost you'll receive the spirit of god the power of god you'll receive the infilling of his spirit with the evidence of speaking in a heavenly language speaking in other tongues just like they did all throughout the book of acts and other places in the bible you'll receive the experience of pentecost the promise that the prophet spoke about you'll receive the gift of the holy ghost which i believe someone's going to receive today and you'll become a part of the family of god in the church of the living god then he follows it up by saying this promise the spirit this opportunity to join the family of god it's for you it's for your children and for anyone that's a far off even as many as the lord our god would call in other words anyone that wants to can obey this plan and process of salvation and become part of the family of god anyone the lord

would call can become one of his and become a member of his family and today i'm so thankful he's calling you and he's calling your children and he's calling me and he's calling my children and every last person in the building every last one of us can repent be baptized in his name and receive the gift of the holy ghost and romans 8 tells us what happens then it says for as many as are led by the spirit of god they're the sons of god for you didn't receive the spirit of bondage again to fear but you receive the spirit of adoption by whom we cry out abba father when you receive his spirit you call him father from now on you're in his family the spirit himself bears witness with our spirit we're children of god and of children than heirs heirs of god and joint heirs with christ so when you're led by and you receive the spirit of god you become adopted into the family of god and when you become adopted into his family you are a genuine son

or daughter of god and in the process you also become a joint heir with him you're not just called a son or daughter but you experience all the rights and privileges of being a son or daughter of the king of kings and lord of lords that doesn't just come this doesn't just come with a title and a membership designation only but this family of god comes with an inheritance as well paul says we're joint heirs with him we get the same inheritance as everyone else same benefits as someone who's been in this family five years or 50 years and beyond we are equal partners and members of the family of god simply put you are welcome to the family today and there is an inheritance waiting on you this morning when you decide to receive the spirit of god and that spirit of adoption that's freely offered you have an inheritance waiting on you today i started thinking about this earlier this week we start talking about receiving an inheritance from someone

our eyes light up what in fact if someone called us right now and said we've got this incredible inheritance for you it's just waiting on you to come get it waiting on you to come receive it we'd be hanging up grabbing a pulled pork sandwich and some corn on our way out and peeling out of the parking lot after service though after service if someone told me it was waiting on me to come get it i would not hesitate especially considering what our inheritance from our heavenly father actually is this morning let me tell you about your inheritance life and life more abundantly peace that passes all understanding joy unspeakable and full of glory overcoming power from the spirit of god the hope and promise of eternal life with him deliverance from our past mistakes deliverance from your past failures forgiveness of every sin and every spiritual even the sin that just came to your mind and you thought no no not that one forgiveness of every last

sin in every debt you're covered because of your heavenly father right standing in a healthy relationship with him an inheritance that is eternal and incorruptible one that never fades and that is endless and where earthly inheritance often involves infighting and lawyers and discord along with the possibility that there will never be enough to go around the inheritance we gain from our heavenly father peace love joy goodness compassion grace hope just to name a few it is endless and plentiful today there's enough for everyone in the family it's secure it's abundant and it's yours today if you want it so blessed be the god and father of our lord jesus christ first peter one says who according to his abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of jesus christ from the dead to an inheritance incorruptible undefiled that does not fade away reserved in heaven for you who are kept by the power of god through

faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time it's already reserved for you and for those who are kept by his power through their faith and walking through the plan and process of salvation you have an invitation an inheritance today one that you can come and receive this morning giving thanks to the father colossians says who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance you may have disqualified yourself but i want to tell someone right now you are not disqualified not because i said so but because he said so he's called you son or daughter and he's got something waiting on you an inheritance that will last forever i want us to stand this morning i feel the presence and the power of god here calling someone and beckoning them i want to say again there's an inheritance waiting for every person in the room today you just have to come and receive it through the process of repentance baptism in jesus name receiving a spirit

and becoming a part of the family of god this is the invitation this morning as we welcome you to the family of god in just a moment i'm going to open this altar space for anyone that wants to come and take up the lord on his invitation we do this each service apc in order to pray with one another nor to step out in faith and in order to pray as a church family so that anyone who wants to be a part of the family of god and respond to his word today can be invited to come and receive it so i want to welcome anyone who wants to come to join us in just a moment both any guests in any church family that want to respond but before you come i want to tell you that if you have never received the gift of the holy ghost if you've never repented of your sins if you've never been baptized in jesus name you can experience that today and i'll add you should experience that today it's for you and it will change your life or if you need the peace of god

his strength his joy his deliverance his help any part of that inheritance that you need is offered to you today you can come and receive all of these things and more