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Family of God
All Christians are a part of one spiritual family. God is the father. Christians are the children of God. Christians are brothers and sisters. Therefore, Christians are to love one another the way brothers and sisters love one another (see: Romans 12:10).
Jesus also called his disciples his brothers (see: John 20:17). That is, Jesus loved them like they were his brothers.
Sometimes, a person who taught someone else about Jesus called that other person a “son” or a “child.” For example, the apostle Paul called Timothy his son (see: 1 Timothy 1:2; see also: Philemon 1:10; Titus 1:4). Paul also called the Christians in Corinth his children, and he called himself their father (see: 1 Corinthians 4:14-15).
See: Spirit (Spiritual); God the Father; Children of God; Son of God; Apostle
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In the New Testament, the apostles often used the word “brothers” to write about Christians. When the apostles wrote about other Christians as “brothers,” this word often was used to write about both men and women (see: James 2:1; 1 John 2:9-11). A few times in the New Testament, the apostles used the word “sister” when writing specifically to another Christian who was a woman (see: Romans 16:1; Philemon 1:2).