Sometimes we may hear claims that the family is the most basic, or foundational, or fundamental covenantal unit.
We have shown, in many prior posts on this site, that this is not the case.
Actually, THE most basic “covenantal unit” is Jesus Christ Himself. Consider the words of Paul, as they are taken from Gal. 3:16: “Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, ‘And to seeds,’ as of many, but as of one, ‘And to your Seed,’ who is Christ.”
So, Jesus Himself, the God-Man, is the essential covenantal entity.
From Christ, and through Him, then, come the “seeds,” the children of Abraham, who also exercise faith in Jesus, just like Abraham did. These people become the Body of Christ, the church.
Families *within* the church, (viz., baptized, covenanted members of the local church), then constitute a subset of the church—and they are, indeed, a legitimate “covenantal unit.”
But, this special status is not due to their being a family. The earth is full of families who have no love for Christ, His gospel, or His church. Their standing as a redeemed sub-community is based on their being in the Redeemer; and this is demonstrated in their faithfulness to His church.
The Forum for Ecclesiocentricity is designed to educate Christians and non-Christians alike to understand the Biblical teaching concerning the Church (the "Puritan" church in particular), with regard to its principal role on the earth. When this is achieved, it is hoped that the Church would then be in a better position to convey Christ's redemptive virtues to the civil government (state), and the family. (You may email me at: markjhenninger@gmail.com)
