Fear The Lord In Parenting
Notes
Transcript
Intro; Former President George H.W. Bush was asked this question, “What is your greatest accomplishment in life?” President Bush might have mentioned his success during World War 2 as a Navy pilot. He might have called to mind his 8 years as Vice President under Ronald Reagan. He might have mentioned his own successful presidency. He might have spoken of his time as the head of the CIA, or of his years as U.S. Ambassador to China. He could have bragged about his success during Operation Desert Storm. But, when answering this question, President Bush revealed his heart as well as his priorities when he said, “My greatest accomplishment is that my children still come to see me.”
What a statement! When everything else in life is weighed and considered in light of its importance; there is no greater ministry than that given to parents. Your children are your greatest investment in the future. Apparently, Mr. Bush had done right by his children. They responded to his investment in their lives, and they will remain a legacy to his life even after he is gone.
I believe the greatest opportunity of a christian parent is to “Fear the Lord” so that their children will do the same!
This morning I want us to talk about “Fear The Lord In Parenting”
Text; Deut. 6:1-9
1 “Now this is the commandment, and these are the statutes and judgments which the Lord your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess,
2 that you may fear the Lord your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you and your son and your grandson, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged.
3 Therefore hear, O Israel, and be careful to observe it, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the Lord God of your fathers has promised you—‘a land flowing with milk and honey.’
4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!
5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.
7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Moses is speaking to the nation of Israel as a whole, and Moses is telling them how to successfully exist as a nation. It is the truth that needs to be said over and over and over again: that no nation is any stronger than her families. And so, in the same paragraph, while Moses speaks of the national life, he speaks of the family life.
1. Parents to Fear the Lord; 1-2
1. Parents to Fear the Lord; 1-2
A parents primary responsibility is to “fear the Lord”.
3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth.
5 Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; They shall not be ashamed, But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.
Heritage- a valued object you have recieved [children]
Moses tells the nation of Israel how they can strengthen the family through the heritage of children;
4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!
5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.
Jesus reminds us of how to strengthen the family;
Matthew 22:36–40 (NKJV)
36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”
37 Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
John 7:38 (NKJV)
38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”
It is impossible for me to transfer to my child a principle that I don’t personally embrace myself. The same is true of our love for God. I cannot convey a love for God to my children if that love for God does not permeate [sponge] my lifestyle.
If we really love our children, as parents we are to walk in the awareness and awe of God’s holiness, majesty and justice! We are to place the Lord’s will above everything in our lives and that of our children.
2. Parents Prepare your Kids for the Future; 7-9
2. Parents Prepare your Kids for the Future; 7-9
The best way to prepare your kids for the future is to live Christ before them today.
There are three commands by Moses of what a parent needs to do for their kids;
Teach them Diligently- to whet or to sharpen.
You cannot sharpen a knife once and think it will stay sharp for a lifetime of normal use. It has to be sharpened often. We must constantly and consistently transfer God’s truth to our children.
It is a mistake to believe that our children will automatically pick up that commitment just by bringing them to church. There has to be the intention to capture our children for Christ in the home.
17 As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.
Talk with them often- life in our home needs to be a journey with Jesus!
Talk means to have conversations with, not lecture or preach too, [because I said so]. We need to be creative of how we can bring God into our daily conversations to teach our kids the Fear of God. [Raining/Noah’s ark, Sports/race of faith, Easter/Resurrection eggs]
Be a Testimony- Verses 8-9 deal with the parents personal walk with the Lord
Kids will learn exactly what they observe in our life. They need to know that God is real at home and He blesses faithful people. If they see us enjoying the blessings of the Lord, they will want the same things for their own lives.
Adrian Rogers gives some good stats about being a good testimony of Christ before your kids. “You see, a child has about 108,000 waking hours between infancy and maturity [birth to 18 years]. Now we say everybody else influences the child. But if he’s an average child who is a Sunday School goer in an average Bible Belt community, he will spend about one thousand hours in Sunday School and in church. He will spend seven thousand hours in the public schools, and he will spend 100,000 hours under the supervision of his parents. So there’s no one to pass the blame off to.”
[Illus.] Everything went to hell in a hand basket when they took prayer out of school. Do you pray with your kids at home?
Well they took the Ten Commandments out of the public square. Do you have them hanging in your home?
They don’t even put up a nativity at the courthouse anymore. Do your children know that Christmas is about Jesus and not Santa Clause?
6 Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.
The training we give our children should whet their appetites for the things of God. We should lead them in a way that they develop a hunger and thirst for righteousness in God instead of for the things of the world.
The problem with most children is that they turn out just like their parents!
Are you preparing your children for life that they will Fear the Lord?
3. Parents Reap Rewards; 2-3
3. Parents Reap Rewards; 2-3
Moses names four rewards that Israel would reap if they Fear the Lord and obey His commands. These are specific to the nation of Israel in the context, but common sense tells anyone that if they Fear the Lord, there are blessings.
Prolonged Days- conquer the enemy [physically/spiritually]. Under David’s rule and the beginning of Solomons there was peace in Israel. But when Solomon began to serve other gods, Israels days were numbered in the land.
America will not fall to a physical enemy, but a spiritual one!
Be Well with You- enjoyment of life. They would have the peace of God because of peace with God. Obeying God improves the quality of life!
John 15:11 (NKJV)
11 “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.
Multiply Greatly- This goes beyond just numerically, but includes spiritually as well. Do you realize that every nation on earth is known by what they believe or worship, not by their population?
5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine.
6 And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”
Land Flowing with Milk and Honey- this describes the richness and fruitfulness of the land. Milk was a staple food and honey a luxury, so “a land of milk and honey” would provide all that the people needed. There would be adequate pastures for their flocks and herds and sufficient plants in the fields for the bees to obtain pollen. How could the people not love and obey Jehovah when He blessed them so abundantly?
America is a land of milk and honey. How could we not love and obey God who allowed us to be born in this plenty and freedom that we enjoy?
25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
Close;
Francis Xavier, the famous Catholic leader said, “Give me the children until they are seven, and anyone can have them afterward”—“Just give me a child until he’s seven, when he’s responsive, and let me put something into his heart, and I’ll put something there that no one can take out.”
Simply put, “It is far easier to build a child that to repair an adult!”
It is far better to raise a religious fanatic than a heathen.
Now, how would you feel if your child grew up to be a Christian just like you?
Would you be pleased with that? Or, are there areas that need the Lord’s attention?
We have all made mistakes, but there is help, forgiveness and renewal for those who “Fear the Lord In Parenting”