What Is the Purpose of Children?

Introduction:

We have learned so far from God’s word, that for men to be a godly leader it must begin with the Man and His God. We see that this relationship is paramount to everything else as he develops spiritual disciplines such as prayer, reading and studying God’s word, living in obedience to God’s word by living holy lives and mortifying besetting sins.

We saw next that this relationship with God and the development of the essential spiritual disciplines necessary for a godly, will also translating into a God glorifying essential relationship between the Man and His Wife. In which we learned from God’s word that marriage originated with God as a covenant between one man and one woman and God, making it the first institution he established, and doing so before the fall. We saw that because of the fall, mankind has sought to defy the permanence of marriage by seeking ways around its covenant through divorce. We also saw that God’s institution of marriage was to be an antitype of Christ and His church, making it the greatest of all human relationships. We learned the our wives our to be our number one human priority and our to be honored and protected as the weaker vessel. Finally we saw that marriage is so permanent, that even if our spouse is an unbeliever and defies our leadership, if she chooses to remain with us, we are to continue in what God has given us to do.

What we will look at next in our quest to become the godly leader God has ordained us to be, is something that flows from the man and his relationship with his wife, and that is children. So we look at God’s word for guidance as we look at four lessons on the purpose of children, how to teach our children, what to do if our children reject our teaching, and what is our responsibility to our grandchildren.

So we begin with answering the question, What is the Purpose of Children? In order to answer that question, we will seek guidance from Psalm 127.

Text: Psalm 127

Psalm 127 ESV

A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon. 1 Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. 2 It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep. 3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. 4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. 5 Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

Main Idea: Because Children are a gift from God, we must look at them as an extension of us to reach into our dark world.

I. The Vanity of Self-Effort (1-2)

A. Useless to build Apart from God (1)

(1) Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.

builds the house. The primary reference is to the actual building of a residence, but as a “Song of Ascents” written by Solomon, it is natural to think specifically of the temple. Furthermore, in the light of the second half of the psalm, the house refers to the family as well as to a physical structure.

watches over the city. A city is not secured by its defenses, but by the protection of the Lord. The psalm would remind pilgrims that Jerusalem was not a place of magical protection and security, but that all depended on the Lord.

B. Useless to work without sleep (2)

(2) It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.

These verses share their theme with the wisdom in Proverbs, which promotes diligence but clarifies that diligence is neither greed nor restless anxiety.

The Sabbath commandment (Ex. 20:8–11) is a gift to enable God’s people to live by faith, requiring them not to work all the time, as they trust him for their future well-being.

II. The Reward of Children (3-5)

A. Children are a heritage from the Lord (3)

(3) Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.

children are a heritage from the Lord. - The psalm concentrates on sons, who had the power to provide for their father in his old age, but the second part of this verse includes all children, male and female alike.

heritage (hereditary property) from the Lord (Yahweh) - legal aspect

fruit of the womb a reward - physical aspect and focuses on actual naturally born children of one’s wife, as a reward from the Lord for obedience.

B. Children increase our effectiveness (4)

(4) Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. - as an arrow extends the warrior’s effectiveness, going beyond his physical and spacial limitations. So children become an extension of our effectiveness in the world, going beyond our own limitations.

C. Children increase our influence (5)

(5) Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them - a full quiver is relative to the size of the quiver thus I believe symbolizing what God has ordained for the specific family.

He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate - the influence of a family on their children will carry its influence outside the home, into the world, and even as a visible display of the man’s diligent teaching and example.

enemies in the gate - the place where justice was administered. It will be hard for the enemies (who are assumed to be unfaithful) to intimidate such a man.