Family refers to a group of persons related by marriage and blood ties and generally living together in the same household. In the world, the family traditionally consists of a man and his wife and their children. In biblical times, however, the family units were often much larger than the primary family, especially if the man had more than one wife.

In the ancient world, the extended family could include any or all of the following relationships; the man and his wife or wives; his concubines or female slaves, his sons and unmarried daughters; the wives of the sons, grandchildren; aged parents and grandparents. Others living in the same house and considered as part of the family could include servants and their children and aliens or strangers, who attached themselves to the family for a time before moving to another location.

The man making the decisions for the family was designated as "father" although he may not have been the oldest male in the group. These family groups, therefore, could be very large. When Jacob's "family" moved to Egypt from the Promised Land, he was accompanied by 70 people in total.

The people who went to Egypt with Jacob, of his own blood and not counting the wives of Jacob's sons, numbered sixty-six. Joseph's son born to him in Egypt were two in number. The members of the family of Jacob who went to Egypt total seventy. - Gen. 46:26-27 -

God's Design for the Family. The concept of the family as the basic social unit reaches back into the CREATION account found in Genesis chapter 1-2. A man was to be the husband of one wife and was to leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife. However, not everyone in the Old Testament measured up to God's ideal. Sometimes a man married more than one wife. Solomon is a prime example. He had 700 wives and 300 concubines. - 1Kin. 11:3 - In addition, the family system of the Old Testament, with the man serving as the absolute ruling authority, discouraged a man from leaving his parents; he and his wife usually lived with his parents in the same dwelling.

After God created Adam, He declared "It is not good that a man should be alone." - Gen. 2:18 - Then He created woman and united the couple and they became "one flesh." - Gen. 2:24 - Thus, the family was designed by God to provide companionship for the various members of the family. In addition, the institution of marriage was approved and sanctioned by the Lord.

Some Pharisees approached him and to test him they said, 'Is it against the Law for a man to divorce his wife on any pretext whatever?' He answered, 'Have you not read that the creator from the beginning made them male and female and that he said: This is why a man must leave father and mother, and cling to his wife, and the two become one body.' They are no longer two, therefore, but one body. So then, what God has united, man must not divide. - Matt. 19:3-6 -

God's ideal for the family.......................

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Sunday, May 24, 2009

I have through years of reading, pondering, reflecting and contemplating, the 3 things that last; FAITH . HOPE . LOVE and I would like to made available my sharing from the many thinkers, authors, scholars and theologians whose ideas and thoughts I have borrowed. God be with them always. Amen!

I STILL HAVE MANY THINGS TO SAY TO YOU BUT THEY WOULD BE TOO MUCH FOR YOU NOW. BUT WHEN THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH COMES, HE WILL LEAD YOU TO THE COMPLETE TRUTH, SINCE HE WILL NOT BE SPEAKING AS FROM HIMSELF, BUT WILL SAY ONLY WHAT HE HAS LEARNT; AND HE WILL TELL YOU OF THE THINGS TO COME.

HE WILL GLORIFY ME, SINCE ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE. EVERYTHING THE FATHER HAS IS MINE; THAT IS WHY I SAID: ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE. - JOHN 16:12-15 -