Protect The Family

Protecting The Family

My Bible; My Help; My Hope

Nehemiah 4:13–14 (ESV)

13 So in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, in open places, I stationed the people by their clans, with their swords, their spears, and their bows.

14 And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”

"Therefore I position men behind the lower parts of the wall, at the openings. I set the people according to their families, with their swords, and their spears, and their bows. And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, and the leaders, and the rest of the people, 'Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord is great and awesome. Fight for your brothers, fight for your sons, fight for your daughters, fight for your wives, and for your houses.'"

Nehemiah 4:20. "Whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us".

What he's saying is if you'll fight for your family, God will fight for you.

I want to talk to you about the fight for your family, "Fight For Your Family."

The attack in the 21st century is upon the home.

We must understand that the values we cherish and the ideas we hold dear are worth fighting for.

The family is worth fighting for!

It’s worth protecting.

When opposition comes we must to take a stand for our kids, for our marriages, for our homes, for our values.

Nehemiah encountered opposition in rebuilding the walls and said to his enemies in the same chapter, "You'll have no portion here."

He said, "We are rebuilding the walls of our cities because we're going to rebuild our families and homes."

And he said to the enemies: "You have no portion here."

He said, "The city does not belong to you. Our homes do not belong to you, the God of Heaven. He will help us, He will prosper us. And we are committed to our families".

Young couples better settle two things in this day and time: number one, you better be committed to God, and you better be committed to your marriage and your family.

Because if you have any looseness in your commitment to God or your family, the enemy will move in and divide and conquer.

God said, "If you will fight for your family," to Nehemiah and those people, he said, "If you will fight for your brothers and fight," look at Nehemiah 4:14 again. He said: "Fight for your brothers, fight for your sons, fight for your daughters, fight for your spouse.”

"Fight for your houses," and he said, "If you'll fight for your house, fight for your family, then God will fight for you."

Raising kids in today’s world can be challenging to say the least; but the Bible has promised us, that no weapon formed against the home that is built upon the rock will prosper.

Nehemiah rebuilt the walls; no matter what the enemy has done to your family and your home, he rebuilt the walls that still stand today.

If you go to Jerusalem, the walls around Jerusalem that he rebuilt are still standing today.

They pray at that wall that he helped rebuild because a man took a stand and he said, "I'm going to fight for my family."

There's a cause worth fighting for.

Our families are worth fighting for.

It's not easy. It's not easy to hold your family together. It's not easy to raise children in the times in which we live.

Everything seems to be against the family and the home.

But when we decide that our families are a cause worth fighting for, God said, "Then I will fight for you."

Fight for your family.

Fight for your marriage.

Don't give up on it; fight for it.

Fight for your wife.

Fight for your husband.

Fight for your sons and your daughters because Satan is on a rampage.

He wants to destroy the church, but he can't destroy the church without first destroying the home.

The first institution before the nation was the church, and there were races of people before the church.

And before the races of people, God Himself was the only thing to precede the home.

If the family is the number one priority of the Devil, then we better make sure it's the number one priority of our lives.

I thank God for my home.

I'm glad and thankful that God gave me Amanda.

I'm glad God gave me LeighAnna and Cayden.

I'm grateful for them.

I'm thankful that God has blessed me.

The happiest times of our life are with our family.

Enjoy your family.

Love your family because the enemy wants to do everything he can to divide, conquer, and destroy.

He wants to make your family miserable.

He wants to make your marriage miserable.

He wants to make your relationship with your children miserable, and we are not ignorant of his devices.

The Bible says that we're to fight with love.

That's why the Scripture said, "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church."

The husband is the house-band.

He's the band around the house that holds it together.

And you fight with love.

We fight because the Bible says that God will come beside us and fight for our families when we fight.

It's a costly commitment.

It costs you something to hold your family together, your marriage together, and your children together.

The Bible of Noah when he built the Ark for the saving of his family, the Book of Peter, gives us a little bit more insight when it says: "He was the eighth one to go on the Ark."

Now, he had six children and a wife, so here's the point.

When he built the Ark before he could get on that Ark, he went out, and the Bible said he was the eighth to enter.

That means he made sure his children were on the Ark.

He looked around and counted one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, and the scripture specifically stated that he was the eighth one on the Ark.

Why?

Because he was making sure that his family was on the Ark, so that when judgment came down on the Earth, and the flood began to rise, his family was on the Ark.

Ensure your sons and daughters are well; he was the last one, and when the door closed, he knew his family was here. And that's what we're called to do: protect our families.

He wanted to ensure they were on that Ark.

Don't leave it up to the preacher to save your family.

Don't leave it up to the youth director or the youth program or the church or somebody else.

Don't even leave it to the mother or Dad to do your praying.

But get your family; make sure your family is in the Ark.

I loved Joshua's words when he said: "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Job had a job.

The word Job is spelled like a job, and he had a job in Job 1.

He said, "He would build an altar and put a sacrifice according to the number of his household" every day, and it said, "This Job did continually."

I want you to see Job every day of his life; he had ten children, and he had his wife. And every day, he said, "I'm Job, and I have a job.

My job is to, for every one of my children," and he would name that first child, that firstborn child and he would slay an animal, and build an altar, and put that blood on that altar, and call that child's name out before God.

And he would go to child number two, and he put blood on that altar, and build a second altar.

And he did this continually, day after day after day, he was fighting for his family.

He was saying to demons, he was saying to wrong relationships, he was saying to drugs and alcoholism, "Get away from my family, I plead the blood of Jesus over my children, one after another after another."

And people say that's old-fashioned, that's old school.

You call it what you trust in psychology, and you trust in a child book that you read that somebody who didn't have children wrote.

And we weren't trying to live for Jesus, but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

I've learned that that old stuff works, that they may drink from the rivers of rebellion, and they may go down the wrong path, but if you put enough blood on 'em and enough prayer on 'em and enough intercession on 'em, no hell hole can hold 'em.

God will bring them out. If you'll fight for your family, God will fight for you.

Give Him great praise if you believe I'm preaching the truth.

We're not going to let hell raise our children; we're not going to let gangs raise our children.

We're not going to let Hollywood raise our children.

We need to raise our children, and we need to put them on the altar.

He put his wife and his children on the altar, which Job did continually.

That's your job. Your job is to cover your family.

Keep a close watch on your children.

Often, people fail to fight. But if there is ever a cause to fight for, it is our families.

Often, people fail to fight, but if there is ever a cause to fight for, it is our families.

Ahab and Jezebel were reckless in their lifestyle.

They were godless in their ways and listened to this.

They had 70 children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Seventy.

And the Bible said that when judgment came, an army invaded and cut off the heads of all of their children and their grandchildren and their great-grandchildren.

And killed 70, the whole family was blotted out.

There's another man in the Bible, and the only other man in the Bible that I could find that has 70 children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, and his name was Obed-Edom.

We're not told his wife's name.

And they had 70 children, just like Ahab and Jezebel had 70 children and great-grandchildren.

Who was Obed-Edom?

He was the man who moved the Ark of the Covenant into his home.

David danced behind that Ark, but it was Obed-Edom that brought it into his home, and for three months, it stayed in his home.

All 70 of those children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren exposed to the Ark of the Covenant in their home, in the presence of God, were so touched by it that none failed to work in the temple.

The Bible said all 70 worked in the temple.

From bloodline to bloodline, the blessing flowed.

From generation to generation, the blessing flowed.

Obed-Edom made the choice to protect his family and that brought blessings to his family tree.

It is time we recognize the importance of our families and realize that it is one of God's greatest blessings.

It is within the family that love, faith, and values are nurtured and passed down.

But in a world full of challenges, temptations, and distractions, protecting our families has become a crucial responsibility.

How do we protect what God has entrusted to us?

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### 1. **We Pray**

*Scripture Reference:* Philippians 4:6-7 – *“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God… will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”*

Prayer is the foundation of spiritual protection. Through prayer:

- **We intercede for our loved ones.** Ask God to guide and protect their hearts.

- **We gain wisdom.** God reveals how to address challenges specific to our family.

- **We build unity.** Families that pray together are strengthened against division.

**Application:** Make family prayer a daily practice. Pray over your children, spouse, and home.

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### 2. **Read and Study God's Word**

*Scripture Reference:* Psalm 119:105 – *“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”*

God’s Word equips us with the wisdom to navigate life’s challenges. When families are anchored in Scripture, they are less likely to be swayed by worldly influences.

- Teach your children to love and respect God’s Word.

- Use the Bible as your guide for family decisions, values, and problem-solving.

- Memorize Scripture as a family—it builds spiritual strength.

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### 3. **Have Godly Leadership**

*Scripture Reference:* Joshua 24:15 – *“As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”*

Leadership begins with you.

Whether you're a parent, spouse, or sibling, your actions set the tone for the family.

- **Parents:** Be intentional in setting a Christ-centered example.

- **Spouses:** Support one another in faith and build a foundation of trust.

- **Siblings:** Encourage and build each other up.

**Challenge:** Ask yourself, “Am I modeling godly behavior for my family?”

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### 4. **Have Boundaries**

*Scripture Reference:* 1 Corinthians 15:33 – *“Do not be misled: ‘Bad company corrupts good character.’”*

In today’s culture, families face constant external influences through media, peers, and societal norms. Setting boundaries helps protect against negative influences.

- Monitor what enters your home—movies, music, and social media.

- Encourage relationships with those who uplift and encourage godly values.

- Teach discernment so your family can recognize and resist unhealthy influences.

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### 5. **Show Love and Grace**

*Scripture Reference:* Colossians 3:13-14 – *“Bear with each other and forgive one another… And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”*

Love and grace create an environment where family members feel secure. Mistakes will happen, but a family built on forgiveness and understanding will overcome them.

- Show unconditional love, just as Christ loves us.

- Teach your family to extend grace, creating unity and trust.

- Resolve conflicts quickly—don’t allow anger or bitterness to take root.

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### Conclusion:

Protect your family requires intentionality, prayer, and reliance on God. Proverbs 4:23 reminds us that everything flows from the heart. Protect your family’s heart—its spiritual foundation—by staying rooted in prayer, Scripture, godly leadership, boundaries, and love.

**Call to Action:** Commit today to being a guardian of your family’s spiritual health. Ask God to guide you in creating a home that honors Him and serves as a light to the world. Together, let us declare: *“As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”*

**Closing Prayer:**

Heavenly Father, thank You for the gift of family. Help us to be vigilant in protecting our homes, not just physically, but spiritually. Fill our hearts with wisdom, courage, and love as we strive to honor You in all we do. Protect our loved ones and guide us daily in Your truth. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.