Be Fruitful and Multiply

Children’s Sermon

Hold up a bag of seeds

How many of you know what these are?

Seeds

What do seeds do?

They grow stuff

Why did God create plants in a way that they could grow more?

So we don’t run out

Did you know that God created people the same way? He created us to make more people.

God has given you daddy’s and mommy’s to teach you about God.

And about what God says is right and wrong. And how to live.

In fact, today is a day for you to thank your mommy for all she does for you, and for teaching you.

Make sure when you go home you thank your mommy for all she does.

Intro

Continuing our journey through Genesis 1. We see that we are image bearers of God, and now we are seeing that God desired His image bearers to populate the earth.

This is part of the dominion mandate. To fill the earth.

When this command was given, it was expected that they would fill the earth with worshippers of God! Adam would teach his sons, his sons would teach their sons and so forth.

Not only was the call to be fruitful, but that the fruitfulness would produce Godly offspring.

But then we had the fall. Not only did we stop producing Godly offspring, but now their is pain in childbearing.

Children Are A Blessing

Today people to often don’t see children as a blessing. They see the children as a distraction, or an inconvenience.

People are having abortions many times becasue of how it will interfere with their own lives.

We as Christians, should see raising children as a blessing, and a holy mandate.

We have been given the responsibility to raise image bearers of God!

Are we raising them to follow God, to keep His commands, to reflect God’s glory.

Or are we raising them to live for themselves.

To do what makes them happy.

To be little narcissists.

Psalm 127:3-5

They are a heritage from the Lord!

One day, you will die off. But your family name will live on through your children.

Are you training them to carry your name well.

v.4

Like arrows in the hands of a warrior.

Why? Because if we raise our kids correctly. When they are grown they will be warriors, going into the world to do battle against the enemy!

They will stand strong for the truth, telling others to follow Jesus.

The more kids we have, the more weapons of war we have to over power the forces of darkness.

In a democratic republic like we have, this means there are more people to vote on issues that are Godly.

There are more Christians running for political offices, and more Christians to vote for them.

On school boards, there are more believers to make judgement based off of the truth of scripture.

There are more Christians starting businesses, who are giving money to endeavors that glorify God.

Do you see how the fruitfulness of Christians can change the world.

From the bottom up.

It all begins with how we raise them at home.

Descendants Being Cut Off Is A Curse

Children are a blessing, one of the strong curses that is repeated in scripture is I will cut you off.

1 Kings 14:10

1 Kings 14:10 ESV

10 therefore behold, I will bring harm upon the house of Jeroboam and will cut off from Jeroboam every male, both bond and free in Israel, and will burn up the house of Jeroboam, as a man burns up dung until it is all gone.

This means they die without descendants. Their name isn’t remembered, and their agenda isn’t spread.

We see the culture doing this to themselves.

Through abortion, they aren’t procreating. Through homosexuality, they aren’t procreating. Through the trans movement, they aren’t procreating.

They are a curse unto themselves, cutting off their name from the earth.

Children Must Be Trained

We are all broken image bearers, so when we are fruitful, what naturally comes out is a nature that is counter to God.

Deuteronomy 6:6-9

You are to teach your children diligently!

At all times, not only once a day.

It shall be apart of life for you.

We train them because they are apart of the covenant people of God.

Therefore we raise them as covenant people, to know God’s law and to live in a way that honors God.

I think the most under appreciated job in the world, is the stay at home mom.

The question Sarah is asked is, what do you do? Are you just a stay at home mom?

Like raising the next generation isn’t a big deal.

Proverbs 22:6

Proverbs 22:6 ESV

6 Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

Hanak, it is a verb meaning to train, or to dedicate.

This is really interesting, it is the word used in

2 Chronicles 7:5

2 Chronicles 7:5 ESV

5 King Solomon offered as a sacrifice 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep. So the king and all the people dedicated the house of God.

Solomon is giving an offering, to dedicate the temple to the Lord.

When we are told to train, it means the same word as this dedicate.

Recognize, our kids are to be set aside as something special to God.

We are to realize that they are God’s children, set apart for Him. We have the privilege and responsibility to raise them to follow God.

When we train, dedicate them unto God, they will not depart from it.

My heart breaks for some of you. Because you trained your kids to follow God. You raised them in the church, and now they are wayward.

Your kids are in my prayers. That the seeds that have been planted, will bloom and bring them back.

To those of us with young ones, how much training are we doing?

When we are at home, is the word of God in our minds, in our actions, written all over our house that we are the people of God.

Do you teach your kids:

Of the love of God.

That everything we do, is to be done in worship to God.

Our behavior is to be good, so it is honoring to God.

Not to be saved, but becasue we are.

I think sometimes, we lack the diligence in training that we should have.

Are we doing family devotions?

Are we leading our kids in repentance?

Are we leading our kids in loving our spouses?

These are all things that come into play when we speak of training them.

To those of you who don’t have kids in the home anymore. Titus tells the older women to train the younger women how to love their wives and children.

Titus 2:1-5

Luke 6:40

Luke 6:40 ESV

40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.

Who are your kids teachers?

When you send your kids to public school, by the time they graduate they will have 17,000 of influence over them.

This is why I like homeschooling.

If you are sending your kids to public school, does the time you spend, the influence you have top the influence that peer and teachers have?

They will, be just like their teachers.

Do you know their teachers?

I saw a sticker, it said “teachers rule the world.”

Christians are multiply by having kids, The world multiply’s through the classroom.

We cannot continue to send our kids to Caesar for their education and be surprised when they come home as Romans. - Voddie Baucham

We are to be fruitful, and multiply. God didn’t expect kids to figure it out on their own. He gave them parents. To teach and direct them. Being fruitful entails raising kids that will follow God, becasue we have done our due diligence.

Multiplying Through Evangelism

When the command was given to fill the earth, the intent was that the earth would be filled with those who follow God.

We almost see a re-capitulation of this commandment (though in a slightly different way) in the new covenant with the great commission.

The driving force behind this is Jesus saying that all authority on heaven, but also all authority on earth has been given to Him.

Matthew 28:19-20

Matthew 28:19–20 ESV

19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Go- fill the earth

Make disciples of all the nations- Be fruitful & multiply.

Baptizing them- A sight that they are part of the covenant people of God and a demonstration that they are going to die to themselves, and follow Jesus.

Teaching them to observe- The same thing we do with our kids.

Train them to follow God.

Our job, our goal as Christians should be to see people worshiping and giving praise to God!

Whether it is discipling our kids, or discipling others.

It takes effort on our parts.

We as believers must be diligent to work, and direct with our intentions.

Benediction

Praise to God who causes us to be fruitful and fill the earth. This week, may you have renewed strength to disciple those who God has placed in your charge. Go with the Lord and may He bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you