The ENEMY Inside Our Home

Trojan Horse:

In Greek Mythology, during the Trojan war, Greece tries to attack Troy but is unable to enter in or defeat them because of their walls. Recognizing they could not get into this city, the Greeks come up with an idea..and they make what is called the Trojan Horse. The horse was built by Epeius, a master carpenter. The Greeks, pretending to desert the war, sailed to the nearby island of Tenedos, leaving behind Sinon, who persuaded the Trojans that the horse was an offering to Athena (goddess of war) that would make Troy impregnable. Despite the warnings of Laocoön and Cassandra, the horse was taken inside the city gates. That night Greek warriors emerged from it and opened the gates to let in the returned Greek army.

What on the surface appeared as a gift, and was presented as a blessing, carried with it…inside of it, the means by which to destroy the city. There were unseen people and intentions, and so they let the enemy in themselves…unaware of the danger lurking there in. The enemy was in thier city, and once in…they were unprepared for the fight.

What would be your course of action if you knew there was a predator inside your home waiting to harm your family? What if I told you this enemy did not come through the back door, but the front. And that just as the trojan horse comes disguised as a blessing…the enemy in our home disguises itself by what it says it can offer.

This enemy is called technology.

In his book “God, Technology, and the Christian Life”, Tony Reinke writes:

Technology is applied science and amplified power. It’s art, method, know-how, formulas, and expertise. The word technology is built on the root techne- or technique. We amplify our native powers through new techniques.

Noah and the animals could never outswim a global flood, so God designed a ship. The people of Babel couldn’t live in the sky, so they engineered a tower. Today, elevators in downtown Dubai carry people into the stratosphere. Jacob and his sons dug wells by hand and shovel, but Union Pacific blasted trails through the mountains with dynamite. Today, dinosaur-sized augers grind out underground tunnels for millions of telecom cables. And the smartphone extends the popping electrical explosions in our brains, through our thumbs, to our phones to become little digital ones and zeroes that we broadcast in messages to influence the world.

Hear me, technology is not bad in and of itself, however, if we are not careful, they can easily tempt us, distract us, consume us..and lead our hearts and minds away from God. How do we protect ourselves from the danger of technology which all of us already have in our home. The message is not to remove all technology from your home, the message here is to redeem it. And repurpose what we do and what we consume of it…in a way that protects our family.

Welcome to Week 4 of our series called FIGHTING FOR YOUR FAMILY.  Through this series we are hoping to encourage you and help strengthen your family by taking a look at 6 areas where the FAMILY is under attack. In WEEK 1 we looked at A Mother’s High Calling. In WEEK 2 we looked at A VISION for Parenting. And LAST WEEK looked at What Marriage Is and What It Isn’t. And today we are going to look at The ENEMY Inside Our Home.

Before we jump into today’s message I want to remind you of God’s promise of protection. Our enemy is crafty and one of the ways he is attacking our homes is through technology. The sad part is many of us are not even aware of what is happening. So as we prepare to pray for God to protect us, here are a few of God’s powerful promises:

Proverbs 18:10 (NIV) The name of the Lord is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.

Psalm 138:7 (NIV) Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life. You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes; with your right hand you save me.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV) 5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Psalm 91:9-10 (NIV) 9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, 10 no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent.

Let’s PRAY!

Experts believe that the average age in which a child is being exposed to illicit content is now 11 years old or younger. It is believed that this is due to the easy access we now have to technology and the online world. 

In middle school, when we had a computer for the first time in our home…or in Highschool when we added new unrestricted channells….I was given access to things I was not prepared to handle.

It is amazing how addictive entertainment has become and how technology has only enhanced that possibility of addiction. .

When we consider the amount of money being made behind so much of our entertainment it is no wonder we find such easy access through social media, apps on our phone and other online connections.

It is as if the producers of this content want us to be addicted so that they have a consumer for life. What’s even more interesting is that it appears that our modern conveniences and American lifestyle is actually feeding our addictions with entertainment and technology by giving us more leisure time which has led to boredom.

Because we are bored, we are seeking more ways to be entertained in order to overcome our boredom. It is a perfect storm that is leading to massive entertainment addictions. If this is the case we need to be aware of this danger and seek to protect our families from this enemy.

Social Media

Cellphones/Internet

Movies

Music

Video Games

We are entertainment addicts with more possibilities than we can steward well. We have in our phone, within our hand access to so much, the ability to type, create, watch…but again, Technology doesn’t care if you should do something. It only asks, can we do it.

We have the ability to post videos and create content at a whim.share pictures, ideas..but should we be posting is another question.

We have the capacity to watch and consume content from songs to movies from all different types of genres..but should we is another question.

Our capabilities have outraced our morality.

The reality is that our ethics will never catch up to our techno-possibilities.- Reinke, Tony. God, Technology, and the Christian Life

The problem is, we have more possibilities through technology than our ethic can catch up to. And we are destroying ourselves. Technology has opened doors we are not prepared to walk through, and not prepared to steward well.

And families have allowed the trojan horse of technology into thier homes, have not been stewarding the content they consume, watch, listen to, time given to it..and so we are on paper a more blessed people becaues we have more than our grandparents did, but we are a more cursed people because there are open doors to wicked content within our homes that we are leaving open.

What are some reasons why we are allowing this to happen? It could be one of four reasons:

As parents we are caught in the same cycle ourselves therefore, it becomes hard to tell our kids not to do something that we ourselves are engaged in. -We ourselves are addicted.

Another reason could be we are in denial. We know it is a huge problem but we tell ourselves if we just ignore it maybe it will go away or that maybe it will get better with time. -Its no big deal

A third reason could be due to the powerful current of the culture. The cultural current can be very strong and hard to swim against. Sometimes it is just easier to give into it. After all, everyone else is doing it and we don’t want to seem odd. -Its easy. Its convenient

Lastly, we don’t understand the spiritual implications this will have on our lives and families. We tend to think of the world in just physical terms and forget that there is a spiritual component to our lives.

So how do we navigate this issue being that technology is such a vital part of our lives and it isn’t going away. Let me share with you THREE TESTS we need to consider when thinking about how much entertainment media we should allow into our lives and our homes. This is something we need to teach our children if we want to help them navigate life in this new world.

#1 - The CONTENT TEST

1 John 2:12-17

1 John 2:12–17 NIV

12 I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. 13 I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. 14 I write to you, dear children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one. 15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. 16 For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

1John 2:12-14 begins with a reminder to the readers of who they are in Christ. They are forgiven, they have overcome the evil one, you are children of God and have a good Father, the word of God lives in you.

He says remember who you are, and remember whose you are.

Simply put if you are a child of God, if you have overcome the evil one, if you are a lightbearer…live it.

A child of God would not continue to llive as a slave to sin. An overcomer would not invite the enemy back into thier home. If God lives in you, you would not make your life and your home into a place of defilement.

He says, in light of who you are..do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love for the father is not in them.

Lets clarify here, is not saying we should not love our families, or legitimite good things in this life. The “do not love” here is about what you love most. It is about the type of things you love

John here echoes the words of Jesus who says:

Luke 14:26 NIV

26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple.

How can Jesus at one point tell us to love our family, and another point not love the world or anything in it. How can he tell us to love him, and hate our family.

Simply put, Jesus means that your love for him must be so superior to any other good thing in this life, that the distance between love for him and love for it..is like the distance between love and hate.

Love for Jesus is a different type of love. It is not just that Jesus is at the top of the love scale, Jesus is a different scale, a different category. It is the difference between I “love” popcorn and I “love” my wife. Same word..but the difference between the two is not just a difference in amount but a different type of love altogether! And I would gladly give up popcorn if I had to choose.

And so John says, do not love the world or anything in it! He says, Jesus must remain as the master of your heart.

He continues, for the world appeals to the lust of the flesh, the eyes, and the pride of life. These desires lead you astray.

The point here is that, every desire must be submitted to Christ. And every good thing must be secondary to our desire for Christ.

Whatever we use technology for, it must be for the feeding of our spirit, rather than our flesh. It must be redeemed for God’s purpose, not your own. It must point to Him..soften our heart to his purposes, not harden it.

Philippians 3:7–8 NIV

7 But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ

Paul writes here, and we preached on this months ago, that every worldly advantage is of no use..because it is Christ I need. The things I thought could benefit me, could not. I am out to gain Christ!

So technology is not bad in and of itself, but we must test whether the content we watch, consume, post..is ultimately a tool to draw us nearer to Christ, or further away.

Does the content we consume make us more anxious, or peaceful.

More jealous, or content.

More prideful, or prayerful

More distracted, or focused.

More selfish, or humble.

Does it please me, or God?

Social Media- Many of us are addicted to the social internet because we are addicted to attention and affirmation. We seek to be attention rich because we are joy poor. In our sin, we believe we are to be the hero and center of our lives, and if we play the social internet game correctly, we can find the attention and affirmation online that we so desperately long for off-line.-Terms of Service- Chris Martin

Even though social media isn’t bad in itself, it does something to our souls. We begin to crave the attention it provides, rather than the attention God provides.

This is why its so hard when we pray to put our phones away. Because even when we are trying to give God our attention, there is a craving in our hearts for the attention the world provides.

Pornography- We use technology and internet to give our eyes and hearts access to images which gratify our flesh. And it flows out of a craving for intimacy which can only be satisfied by God.

Movies/Netflix/Shows- We escape into these things which numb our souls…we hide in these stories rather than take time to be still to see what God is doing in the story of our life! I had to catch myself because I was recently watching a movie, and there was quite a bit of killing in it…and I recognized, it didn’t bother me at all.

That technology and media can make us numb to brutal realtizies, and harden our hearts.

Its not a coincidence that when kids see youtube videos or tiktoc clips, or influencers cuss, fight, trivilize sex, violence, life…kids start to trivialize them in their lifes. It is no big thing to fight, cuss, lie..because that is the entertainment we consume.

You can not love movies and films of violence and hate, and them at the same time encourage peace and love in your home.

This is just entertainment, not reality- One writer said it this way

I was reading an SMU journal article called “The Blurring of Lines between entertainment and reality”He writes, Those were the only three options for entertainment at the beginning of this century.Television. Radio. Cinema.

A content creator is someone who creates entertaining or educational material that is then released through a certain medium like social media platforms, the internet, live events, radio, cinema, television, and even printed materials.

What we presently see online represents a state in which “content creator” individuals make videos, post vlogs, and share photos that people engage with as a form of entertainment.

We spend hours a day on social media platforms, whether it may be Instagram, Facebook, or video-sharing platforms like Youtube and TikTok in which we swipe through endless feeds of influencers’ Italian Summer Holiday or content creators’ Moving In Vlogs. This is not to say that the content being produced is insignificant or faulty. Instead, when considering this material, I am inclined to ponder the extent to which this created content is being perceived as entertainment as opposed to a means of human connection. In a way, it seems like social media has become the new Reality TV: follow real people as they take on the bustling world around them and encounter exaggerated drama and happenings.

We have been pulled into an endless cycle of exploration focused on the blending mediums of entertainment and reality, never quite sure which is which or which way is out.

We are losing ourselves in media entertainment, led by a rapid descent into triviality.

Our lives through posts and content become “reality tv” so the line between reality and etertainment has been blurred. Technology has made us into heroes of our own stories where we are at the center.

And it is having a drastic effect on the world in which we live.

Think about it- Just last year, kids were tearing off bathroom sinks for a tic-toc trent. Punching/hitting teachers for a trend.

Even, Donald Trump, regardless of how you feel about him, you can see how he, who was an entertaiment television personality…becomes president, which 20-30 years ago, a person from that world would not have been expected to be president or operate in that circle.

How because the line between entertainment and reality is diminishing.

I was watching a movie last weekend, called “Civil War” which is about a divided america taken to its extreme..and it was hard to enjoy it as a movie..because it felt so real.

My point is that the line between entertainment and reality is more and more blurred..and if you can not see how these images, videos, platforms are more than just enterntainmeet, but our actively shaping our culture and world, you are missing it.

Kids are not watching videos and leaving it, they are watching things and living it.

Andrew Fletcher famously said, “Let me make the songs of a nation, and I care not who makes its laws.”

It is entertainment which shapes the heart of a nation. What has the eyes of a nation has the heart of the nation. What has the ear of the nation, becomes the voice of a nation. What has the eyes and heart of your home, will become your home.

So what sort of content are you watching or creating?

This also means we need to be very mindful of the posts we make, the posts we like..and our presence on social media.

I recently talked to another buddy who was a beliver, and I told him.. i said your social media I see alot of you, but not alot of God.

That platform is an opportunity..how are we using it?

Games, movies, shows..are you aware of the effect it has on your heart?

Are you feeding the lust of the eyes, desires of the flesh?

1 John 2:15–17 NIV

15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. 16 For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

He says do not love the world!

And he says the world and its desires pass..but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

One of the surest signs that you are feeding your flesh..is the way you are living. What you are doing!

Proverbs 4:23 NIV

23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

I remember when I went to my grandmas house growing up..I couldn’t watch certain stuff. I couldn’t listen to certain music. But at my other grandmas I could..and it was that house that me and my cousins got into the most trouble and did the most stuff at.

Steward well the screens and access you give technology and what you watch.

You can not keep watching movies where they curse God in your house and expect to bless and honor God in it too.

You can not say I want to live holy while single, and save myself for my spouse..and watch movies and shows with nudity

What do you watch, what do you post, what do you listen to, what do you spend your time on..is it feeding the flesh, or your spirit?

Test the Content!

#2 - The CONTROL TEST

1 Corinthians 6:12 NIV

12 “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything.

1Corinthians says, I will only do that which is beneficial for others and brings glory to God. I am not a slave to things, but rather I master them. I use my freedom for God’s glory, I use my freedom for the uplifting of others.

I am not a slave to anything to be used for lesser purposes.

Paul says, I use my freedom for God’s glory.

Technology affords new possibility…Paul says, I will not allow what I can do, to outrun what I should do.

And how does we know what he sould do?

1 Corinthians 6:15 NIV

15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never!

I am for Christ!

Another way to tell when your relationship with technology has become a problem is when you become addicted to it. When it serves your purposes, rather than God’s. When it dictates the terms to you.

Can you quit it for a period of time and do without it?

Do you need to have it?

Do you set the terms or does that entity have you in its grasp? This is what idols of our heart do.

They seek to control us! We think we are free when in reality we are actually slaves and it is our master.

What has a deep grasp on your emotions?

For me, I had to recognize that college basketball was becoming a problem. Not because its bad, but because it started to make me anxious, frustrated…I’d check the scores, updates, teams.

Social media can be this way.

Video games can be this way. It is like you have to have it and it distracts you from more important things in your life. 

Do you set the terms for your entertainment, or does it set it for you.

Today, the goal of the attention economy is not just to learn about human behavior but to influence or, often more maliciously, to manipulate human behavior. Martin, Chris. Terms of Service: The Real Cost of Social Media (p. 76).

Social Media, entertinment is not just seeking to influence, but master you.

I’ve seen kids flip out over not being able to play video games or be on a laptop or ipad.

I have seen people freak out over having to have thier phone at all times.

How many times have we said..I’ll just watch 1 or 2 episodes. And then a full season later, we are like man what happened! I needed to pray, now I don’t have time. I needed to read, now I don’t have time. I needed to spend time with my family..but I got distracted!

Why is it so hard to pray for 15 minutes..but so easy to watch tv for hours?

“Entertainment is the devil's substitute for joy. The more joy you have in the Lord the less entertainment you need.”- Leonard Ravenhill.

Vice versa…the less joy we find in God, the more etertainment we will seek in other things.

So the question is, does it control you, or do you control it.

Be mindful!

Let me show you biblical example of what it looks like when technology serves our purposes vs God’s purposes:

Genesis 6:11–14 NIV

11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. 12 God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. 13 So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. 14 So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out.

God gives Noah this design and tells him to build, and then seal it with pitch/or tar. This tar is an example of technology, taking human creation and using it for God’s purposes. Technology, amplified native power through new technique..and this ship was a new technological feat by which God said, use this tar to seal it and keep it secure.

On the flip side.

Genesis 11:2–3 NIV

2 As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. 3 They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar.

They set out to build thier own creation, that they can get to the heavens. And we see the same word, Tar. Tony Reinke in God, Technology, and the Christian writes:

“The citizens did not start out deciding to build a city and tower,” theologian Alastair Roberts points out. “They start off by discovering a new technology, fired bricks, and having discovered the technology, they decide to build a tower and city. There is something about technologies that open our imagination to new possibilities, preceding our sense of what can or should be done.”5 Out of the novel tech (fired bricks) and the natural discovery (tar) come new urban dreams of what is now possible. 4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” 5 And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. Reinke, Tony. God, Technology, and the Christian Life (pp. 35-36). Crossway. Kindle Edition.

Let us make! Let us build! Rather than guidance by what God told them to build as Noah did.

Taking tar but using it for different outcomes. One for God’s glory and human salvation, Other for mans glory and thier exaltation.

To reject God’s commission to spread across the globe, man engineers a tower into the sky. Before long, God notices the rebellion, descends from heaven, bends down to his knees, puts a cheek on the ground, and squints to see this tower and measure its height. (This is divine sarcasm.) And then he responds.Reinke, Tony. God, Technology, and the Christian Life (p. 36). Crossway. Kindle Edition.

Genesis 11:6–9 NIV

6 The Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.” 8 So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9 That is why it was called Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth.

Man’s increasing ambition and power don’t threaten God; they threaten man himself, because “the more power they are able to concentrate, the more harm they will be able to do to themselves and the world.”Reinke, Tony. God, Technology, and the Christian Life (pp. 37-38). Crossway. Kindle Edition.

So who is the master of the technology in your hand. Who is in control. Are we building towers in the sky for our own advancement and glory, or arks for God’s glory and the world’s salvation.

This building of the tower was after the flood, why do you think they did it?

knowledge of the flood meant that the postflood people all knew that God judged sinful humans who spurned him and rebelled against his will. Everyone knew it. So if you’re going to build a tower to dethrone God and break free from him, you’d better be ready. Ready for what? Ready for judgment. Ready for God’s rage to once again pour down from the skies in catastrophic flooding. So you harden your bricks with fire, and you glue them with tar. You make your tower watertight. And only then do you stand on the top of the roof, look up into the blue heavens, raise your fist, and say: “Good luck washing us away now!” -Reinke

The idea is that thier misuse of this advancement, was rooted in rebellion and idolatry.

Most of the time we use technology like its what can save us.

Which would hurt you more…to go a day without scripture/your bible..or your phone.

Which would hurt you more, no screens or no prayer.

Does technology control you, or do you control it?

Test your heart. So not only the content test, but the control test.

#3 - The CLOCK TEST

Ephesians 5:15 (NIV) Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.

The NKJV says it this way. Which, btw, I feel is a better translation of the original Greek.

Ephesians 5:16 (NKJV) Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

The idea is that we have many activities that are in competition for our time and we must buy that time from a whole host of other opportunities that are competing for our attention in order to do the best thing. We need to ask ourselves this question,

“Considering the eternal implications, is this which is consuming so much of my time the best investment of my time?

Screen time check

Erwin Lutzer says this,  “What is it about the entertainment industry that is so important to us in meeting certain needs in our lives that apparently we feel God is unable to meet?”

Is God truly our one thing most needful or have we settled for something far less satisfying and didn’t even realize it? Btw it's not the stuff that is the problem, the problem is our heart and how we treat the stuff.

Consider what the Psalmist says!

Psalm 16:11 (NIV) You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

Psalm 107:8 (NIV) 8  Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind,9 for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.

Let's not settle for temporary things thatnever satisfy when God has something more. Let’s not allow the world to spoil our appetite for God by trying to fill the boredom in our lives with meaningless activity that really has no eternal value.

So its not just about the content, its not just about the conrol it has..it is also about the clock. How much time do you spend on it?

Compare that time to time with God.

We’ve talked about stewarding out time well for multiple series, so I won’t belabor the point..but the reality is, no matter how good that thing is..if it costs you time with God, if it replaces your time with God..if it replaces your attention to Him or in prayer..It will destroy you.

What are some steps we can take to protect our home from this thief that comes to steal, kill and destroy. What actions do we need to take to protect our children from this enemy in our home? Let me give you

4 Action Steps we need to take to disarm the thief in our home:

Recognize the spiritual nature of the conflict.

Acknowledge WE are at WAR!

This is serious. It requires immediate action. We are at war and the enemy has already penetrated our camp. We need to think like a warrior. We need to be diligent like warriors. We need to dress like warriors.

Ephesians 6:10–12 NIV

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

We cannot fight this battle in the flesh.

We can’t fake our way through it. We need to understand that it is a spiritual battle we face and we must fight with spiritual weapons. One of the mistakes we make as human beings is we tend to compartmentalize life into two categories. The physical and the spiritual. Satan loves that! We need to see everything in life from a spiritual lens. The two are very much intertwined together. There is not one without the other. Our enemy fights in the spiritual realm and he must be engaged with spiritual weapons. But if you don’t think you are in a battle, you never see the need to pick up those weapons let alone know how to use them. The conflict we face is not with those who produce the entertainment or with technology itself. It is with Satan who knows how to manipulate such things to destroy your heart and the heart of your children spiritually. Recognize we are at WAR and know who the enemy is

Technology is a subtle thing…it doesn’t have to come in the back door. We let it in the front! You can’t pray over your home, and then sit on a screen watching whatever we want, posting whatever we want, doing whatever we want!

Joshua 24:15 NIV

15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

Address your own heart and put yourself in a posture to pursue holiness.

We need to PREPARE for BATTLE!

Ephesians 6:13 (NIV) 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

We must put on JESUS! His righteousness! His truth! His peace! His word! His faith! We must be honest about our fleshly weaknesses and then set proper boundaries to help us with those areas. It should disturb us enough to take whatever action is necessary against the things that rob us of our appetite for God. If it doesn't, that should trouble us!

Hebrews 12:14 (NIV) Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.

If there are some things that we are unwilling to give up, unplug or limit access to and they damage our heart or our families, then are we any different than the rich man whom Jesus asked to go and sell everything he had and give it to the poor?

Matthew 19: 16-22 (NIV)16 Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” 17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” 18 “Which ones?” he inquired. Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’[c] and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’” 20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?” 21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, Here, Jesus is calling the man to holiness! go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Pursue holiness!

If you set out asking the question, how close to the line can I get..you will set yourself up for failure. If you ask, whats the worst I can do, i can watch…you are asking the wrong question.

Pursue Holiness! Should I post it? Is it Holy?

Should I watch it..Is it promoting Holiness?

His money was an idol in his heart keeping him from God and it had to be removed for him to receive Jesus! Prepare for BATTLE - put on JESUS! Stand in HIS righteousness and in HIS holiness!

Set FAMILY standards based on your personal convictions as guided by God’s word and don’t let the culture pressure you to compromise.  

BE VIGILANT!

Ephesians 6:14-17 (NIV) 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

For young families begin setting those standards early on. Don’t wait until you get there. When will your kids be allowed to have smart phones? What will be the allowed use of those devices?

When will your children be allowed to date? What will be your policy for allowing them to sleep over at another friend's house? What will be the established curfew? As a parent we do not want to navigate these important issues on the fly and we certainly don’t want to base it on what their friends are allowed to do or on what is convenient and comfortable. Don’t be intimidated by the “You don’t trust me” card! If your kids say that to you, this is how you respond. “That’s right, I don’t trust you because I don’t trust myself. The Bible says that my heart is desperately wicked.” Therefore I have to set boundaries for it according to God’s word.

And then stand firm! Not on your wisdom, but God’s! Stand firm in His truth! Stand firm in His peace!! Stand firm in faith! Stand firm in the word of God and shape your child’s heart to do the same!!

We have to Acknowledge WE are at WAR. We need to PREPARE for BATTLE. We need to BE VIGILANT!

We need to lean on God for HELP. 

Don’t Go it ALONE!

Remember you need to walk in Christ! This is a spiritual battle requiring spiritual power and the spiritual weapon of PRAYER!!

Ephesians 6:18 (NIV) And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

Rules without relationships lead to rebellion.

Prayer is necessary for maintaining our relationship with God. Pray for one another in the church! Lean upon God in prayer! Pray together as a family as we navigate the challenges and as we work through the boundaries and the attempt to protect and shape our children’s hearts! Pray through confrontations and ask God for wisdom. Pray for our family to resist temptations and pray for repentant hearts and restoration when we break boundaries and when we sin against each other. We need God’s help!!

Here is the reality! We are at war but the battle has already been won. We have victory in Jesus! May we walk in that victory and may we teach our children to do the same.

John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Our goal as parents isn’t to keep our children from the world. Our job is to help them understand how vulnerable their little hearts are to temptation and to teach them how to protect their hearts as they encounter the world. We must teach and prepare them for the spiritual battles that we all face and how God is the true satisfier of all that the heart longs for in life.

Invitation:

First of ALL Parents, where are you when it comes to entertainment and technology? Do you pass the test?

CONTENT?  Is the content you are consuming feeding the Lust of the FLESH, Lust of the EYES and The PRIDE of Life?

CONTROL? Does it have control of you or do you have control of it?

CLOCK? Does it consume too much of your time robbing and stealing from other important matters?

Do you recognize you are at war? Do you have a warrior mindset? Are you preparing like a warrior?

Are you VIGILANT? Are you TRUSTING GOD through strategic prayer?

What promise do you need to claim today for your family?

Proverbs 18:10 (NIV) The name of the Lord is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.

Psalm 138:7 (NIV) Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life. You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes; with your right hand you save me.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV) 5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Psalm 91:9-10 (NIV) 9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, 10 no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent.