For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection (2 Peter 1:5-7).

Since the fall into sin, we have been faced with the question, “Where is your brother?” Intuitively, we know the answer. And yet with Cain, we often reply, “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9). This dark thread of sibling conflict weaves its way through the Old Testament.

Consider the decades long feud between Esau and Jacob that had Jacob running for his life. Joseph’s brothers were so jealous of the special treatment he received from dad, they planned to kill him. In the end, they didn’t, but they did sell him as a slave. When they reconnected with him in the throne room of Egypt, they were petrified he would seek revenge.

There were also David’s brothers who thought he acted all high and mighty. There was deadly conflict among David’s children. God might have asked all these folks, “Where is your brother?” They would all have answered, “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”

Into the New Testament, the rivalries continue. Now its Jesus’ disciples squabbling over which of them was the greatest. I wonder if some of Jesus’ comments aren’t in response to this long history of family feuding. His famous foot washing scene is introduced with ‘Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end” (John 13:1). It ends with Jesus’ command, “Now that I have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet” (13:14).

It seems clear enough that when Jesus’ followers are asked, “Where is your sister? Where is your brother?” we should be answering, “Right here with me, because I have been taking care of them.”

Our virtue for today is ‘mutual affection’. You may know it by another rendering, “philadelphia”, literally, ‘brotherly love.’ In the ancient world, it was used to describe blood brothers, sons of the same father. Maybe the phrase, ‘blood is thicker than water’, harkens back to this word. Family sticks together, always.

Philadelphia is now used to describe the relationship between fellow believers. We all have one heavenly father, drawn into His family through the blood of Jesus Christ. His blood is powerful, breaking down the dividing walls of hostility to create one new family in his body. As Jesus washed our feet, we are to wash each other’s feet. There is just no way around this, we are the keepers of our siblings. John puts it bluntly, “Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar” (1 John 4:20).

We have already said several times that these virtues are bracketed by faith and love. They are rooted in faith and demonstrated in love. Tomorrow we will say more about this love. For today, recall Paul’s summary, “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love” (Galatians 5:6). Not just the nice siblings, those easy to love. Philadelphia requires us to get up close and personal where we can see the warts and wrinkles and smell the foul odours and love them still.

What will that look like for you today?

So, as you journey on:

Grace and peace to you many times over as you deepen in your experience with God and Jesus, our Master. Grow in grace and understanding of our Master and Savior, Jesus Christ. Glory to the Master, now and forever! Amen! (2 Peter 1:2; 3:18).