What Tribe Do You Belong To?

Some things go without saying.

Like the fact that rice goes with stew, or that the sky is blue — or that siblings from the same parents belong to the same tribe. But apparently, at some point in my life, I needed a reminder of that very basic truth.

It all started the first time I had a casual Instagram chat with someone I really liked and admired. You know that feeling when you’ve admired someone quietly from afar — their posts, their words, their energy — and then one day, they actually reply your comment and then send a DM? That was me that day. I felt like a little child who’d just been handed ice cream.

Now, here’s the context: I already knew his big sister. She was my friend — intelligent, warm, the kind of woman who leaves an impression without even trying. So, naturally, when I stumbled upon her brother’s page, it was easy to follow. And somehow, this random day, we started talking.

When I say I was excited, I mean I was practically grinning at my screen like it held a winning lottery ticket. He wasn’t giving me dry, two-word responses like “lol” or “okay.” He actually took time to type full sentences — complete thoughts, even! I thought, ah, this one has sense and manners too.

Somewhere in between the back-and-forth, the conversation began to die down. And me, not wanting it to end, decided to fan the dying flame with a little “harmless” question.

“So,” I typed, “you’re Ms. H’s younger brother — same father, same mother?”

He replied, “Yes,” and in my mind, I heard it loudly — firm, certain, like he was saying, Yes, obviously.

But I wasn’t done. I wanted to keep him talking. So, I asked again,

“So you’re Igala too?”

He sent a laughing emoji. That should have been my cue to retreat. But no, I pushed.

“What?” I asked. “Answer now!”

Then he typed, “If my big sister is Igala, then…”

And that was when it hit me — the ridiculousness of what I’d just asked. I actually paused and stared at my phone, wondering where my common sense had gone to hide. Because how else could I have asked something so obvious?

Of course, if they share both parents, they share the same tribe. That’s just how it is. That’s how it’s supposed to be — in the natural sense of things.

But as I laughed at myself about that scenario recently, a thought struck me — a deeper one.

In the natural realm, two siblings automatically share the same bloodline, the same roots, the same tribe. But in the spiritual realm, it’s not always so.

My brother’s salvation can’t automatically be appropriated to me. His faith doesn’t cover me by default. Just as I couldn’t inherit another person’s tribe by association, I can’t inherit salvation because someone close to me believes.

It’s an individual thing — personal and intentional.

Each person has to come to the place where they say, “Jesus, I acknowledge You as my Lord and Saviour.” No one can say it for you. Not your parents. Not your pastor. Not your best friend who prays every midnight.

And that realization should humble you.

Because sometimes, we assume proximity equals belonging. We assume that because we’re surrounded by “church people,” we must automatically be part of the same spiritual tribe. But that’s not how it works.

You can live in a Christian home and still not belong to Christ.

You can be fluent in “church talk” and still be a stranger to grace.

You can even serve faithfully in a church department and still not know the One you serve.

It’s sobering.

So yes, while it was foolish of me to ask that young man about his tribe when the answer was obvious, it is not foolish to ask you — what tribe do you belong to?

Because your brother might be an archbishop, your mother might be a deaconess, your family might be the pillar of your church, and yet your name might be missing from the Book of Life.

I belong to the tribe of those who believe in the death, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

I am of them who know the Lord — not just know about Him.

I belong to those who walk in the life of God — Zoe — life as God has it: abundant, purposeful, unending.

And this tribe is open to everyone. But it doesn’t happen by natural birth, or automatically by association. It starts with a decision — your decision.

So if you’re not sure where you belong, don’t make a costly assumption.

Don’t ride on another’s faith. Come to Jesus today.

There’s no better time to... than now.