For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 2 Peter 1v5-7 ESV

There is something wonderful about family life. Every family has it’s ups and downs, it’s fall outs and fall ins, it’s times of strained tensions and it’s times of fun and enjoyment of each other’s company. Even when there are times of strained relations, when one member of the family is in trouble, the others rally round in support. That is brotherly kindness, and that is what Peter is encouraging us to develop in our relationships with other Christians.

Christian kinsmen may be of another culture, country, and denomination, but they are still brothers and we must learn to love them as our own kin. There is no room for racism or superiority in the family of God. There is no class system, no caste system, no-one superior to anyone else because of their wealth, or social standing.

James 2v1-13 gives a stern warning to Christians to show no partiality to anyone. Every human being is of equal worth in God’s eyes. Whether rich or poor, black or white, well educated or ignorant, God loves and died for everyone of us, and we need to live for the sake of each other.

In Romans 12v10 Paul exhorts us to “Love one another with brotherly affection. Out do one another in showing honour.”

John 13v34-36 records Jesus’s command: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

I recently visited a new church and was greatly impressed by the sermon. The Pastor stated how he loved to preach orthodox theology, but felt the need to preach orthodox community. What a challenge that is to the church in the western world.

As Christians we should not be going to church, we should be being the church! Being the church means living in close fellowship with each other, being hospitable to one another and being ready to reach out and help one another in whatever way we can.

Brotherly kindness grows in community, not apart from it. We can all put on our spiritual faces and adopt polite churchy behaviour for the Sunday services and midweek meeting, but that is not being the church. Brotherly kindness means being open and available to help and encourage other believers. It means going out of our way and our comfort zones to build healthy relationships with fellow Christians. It means bearing one another’s burdens, (Galatians 6v2), not just by praying for them, but in practical ways as well.

It means really hurting when another brother hurts.

It is empathy, not sympathy.

It means being there in the good times and the bad.

It means correcting and admonishing as well as praising and applauding.

Christian faith works. It works hard for other people, and it works hard to bring glory to God. Faith in God means faith in His Word, which means working towards brotherly kindness, which fulfils the law of Christ.