A Family that Fears the Lord Part 4

Living in Father’s Arms

Deuteronomy 6:4–9 ESV

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

This message may not present any deep theological revelations to some of you. But the intent is to present some very practical principles to help you grow your family and grow in God’s family.

When you read or hear the Shema, what do you hear? Do you hear a big powerful dominant deity demanding compliance? Do you hear religious parameters for one to abide? Or do you hear the heart of a loving Father giving life instruction to those whom He loves and seeks to protect from the wages of sin?

How we hear has a lot to do with the attitude of our hearts. Proverbs 4:23 admonishes us:

Proverbs 4:23 ESV

Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.

The hearing of a child is much different than the hearing of a mature son or daughter. When the child hears the correction of a loving father, his heart tells his ears that his father is strict, hard, demanding, robbing him of his liberties and imposing undue restrictions, boundaries, limitations and prohibitions. But the mature son or daughter hears wisdom, guidance, instruction, and direction for success in life and righteousness. He or she recognizes that they are invested in and valued. That the goal of any discipline is the enrichment of the relationship with increased times of mature impartation and development. They are grateful seeing that the father was molding and shaping, guarding and guiding in the way of life.

Proverbs 3:11–12 ESV

My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.

You see, in the Father’s arms is life. Outside of those arms we are left to our own dysfunction and destruction.

The Father’s family business is molding hearts and minds for righteous relationship. But you cannot mold what you do not first model.

If you did not or do not have such a father, you need a spiritual one. If you had a man in your life, biologically or spiritually, that was abusive or present but absent, or lacking in integrity and compassion, then you need healing in your soul. And the one to do just that is your Heavenly Father. He is a perfect Father. He is the original Father.

Israel comes out of Egypt having only known the oppressive, dominant, abusive leadership of a Pharoah. But God wanted to show them the way of a father that He might have relationship with them and they with their sons and daughters.

It is hard to have any relationship with a rebellious or childish hearted person. The rebellious heart grows hardened. This is why God commands to guard your heart with all vigilance. Note it does not say diligence but vigilance. Vigilance is an aggressive war term. Because it is a constant battle to fight the flesh and fallen nature to prevent the heart from growing cold, self-centered and opposed to the way of the Father. In 1 Peter 2:11 and in Galatians 5:17 the Apostle tells us:

1 Peter 2:11 ESV

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.

Galatians 5:17 ESV

For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.

When you learn and teach your children to live in Father’s arms there is peace, healing, safety, right relationship (with God and others) , and life. This is the intent of the shema.

Our biggest problem in this life is not sin as much as it is self. If you die to self, the temptations of sin lose their power. The antidote to self is surrender to Christ and sacrificial service to others. If you teach your children to control self (thoughts, emotions, and conduct), discipline self (do what needs done when it needs done no matter how difficult), sacrifice self in sharing and serving (giving that cost them something), surrender self to the authority of the Father (obedience in righteousness knowing and doing what is right regardless), then they will have less trouble as adults learning to die to self leading to less dysfunction in life.

Again, these concepts not only apply to the raising of children but also to the discipling of believers in Christ.

In the Deuteronomy 6:4-9, there are four key words I want to look quickly at:

Teach - Shinnan (Shnn שָׁנַן) meaning to sharpen as a sword; to inculcate or impress through steady and consistent repetition.

This is how we grow into the maturity of Christ. The steady, faithful, consistent receiving of the Word of God into our hearts and minds. It is that which molds and shapes us keeping us vigilant against unrighteousness and our defenses sharpened. This is how Father raises His sons and daughters and this is how we are to raise ours.

Talk - Dibar (דָּבַר) meaning to lead and to guide, to direct and bring into order with just words.

Notice this definition says nothing about yelling and screaming out of rage. It says nothing of degrading or profane and abusive language. It does not discredit a firm or stern word of correction. It does not negate letting a child know the displeasure of a father or mother and the severity of their disobedient actions. But it does imply a mature and intentional choice of words and tone that leave an impression to correct wrong of the heart and mind and provide instruction on doing the right.

Bind - Qashar (קָשַׁר) meaning to permanently join oneself with a covering, like a girdle or like a bride and groom bound in covenant.

Folks, from the beginning in Genesis, Father God was a covering for us. Man rebelliously chose to leave that covering and take hold of sin. Christ has come to bring us back under the covering of the Father’s love and safety. The Law does not inhibit us from living, it instead gives great liberty to truly live.

Like the responsibility of a parent to “protect” your children from dangers of themselves and others, so God the Father provides this protection when we live in His arms or under His protection of His Law of Righteousness.

Many of your parents did not protect you from everything from sinful lifestyles to sexual predators. And that has scarred your soul. But Father is here to heal those. And parents, you have a God given obligation to do all due diligence to protect your children physically, emotionally and spiritually. Discipline is part of it. Righteous instruction in accordance with God’s ethical and moral standards is part of it. But you also must employee discernment, wisdom and sound judgement. Do not just leave your children with anyone or let them run everywhere out of your sight because it is convenient for you. You will fail them.

Write - Khtav (כָּתַב) meaning to imprint a precept like writing a prescription.

What I have intended to do in this very message is just this. To write you a prescription for the healing of your soul through the understanding of the Family ways of our Father. The desire is that you will in turn write upon the hearts and minds of others God brings into the family.

The wrong prescription could be harmful or even fatal to someones growth and relationship with God. Let us take the prescriptions Father God has already written and teach it, talk it, bind it and walk it in our lives daily. Help us build Father’s Family.