God's Vision for Family
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New Sermon Series: Family Matters (Because Family Matters to God)
New Sermon Series: Family Matters (Because Family Matters to God)
6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”
Close to God’s heart
Vision Statement
Vision Statement
Vision Statement
Vision Statement
Vision Statement
Vision Statement
Examples of Company Vision:
Identify the company or business behind these vision statements:
Identify the company or business behind these vision statements:
To organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. (Google)
Smarter transportation with fewer cars and greater access. (Uber)
Our vision for commerce is one that is enabled by people, powered by technology, and open to everyone. (Ebay)
..to stay connected with friends and family, to discover what’s going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them. (Facebook)
“Love God Fully. Love Others Unconditionally.”
What is a vision statement?
Vision Statement.
An aspirational description of what an organization would like to achieve or accomplish in the mid-term or long-term future.
An organization’s purpose for existence and activities should be aligned to this overarching vision.
We can easily identify the vision statements of these corporations and all the world’s companies. If there is going to be a vision statement for our families, what will it be?
It is of great wonder that we will be familiar with all the vision statements of these corporations and all the world’s companies. If there is going to be a vision statement for our families, what will it be?
Some say the vision is to procreate.
Didn’t God say in Genesis, “be fruitful and multiply”.
I think my father kinda followed this vision for our family and took it seriously, we are seven children in the family.
Some think that the vision for family is just to multiply, to have children and grandchildren. I have to mention this because there is a big organized religion that believes this is the reason God created sex between husband and wife. So what happens? The thing with vision is this. Since that is this religion’s vision for the family then all their belief system follow that vision. They condemn the use of contraceptives and birth control outside of natural means because they have to follow the belief that God’s vision for sex is merely to have children and not for the enjoyment between husband and wife.
Ramon, is this sermon rated R? I would say when you hear about sex from the pulpit it is rated S - for sacred. I believe that since God created sex, it is sacred if enjoyed by husband and wife within the context of marriage.
I notice that all of you are wide awake.
We’ll be talking more about sex when we get to part of the sermon series in the coming weeks that talks about the husband and wife relationship.
But is God’s vision for the family just to procreate? If I am going to follow that verse in Genesis to the fullest, the next thing it really says is “fill the earth and subdue it”. Guia, there is absolutely no way we can fill the earth.
Obviously, this was God’s vision given specifically to Adam and Eve, the first parents. At that point there were only two of them on the earth. God wanted them to have children and their children to have children of their own and so and so forth. Now we have almost 8 billion people in the planet, 1.3 billion in China alone. Someone ask how did that happen? Did more of Adam and Eve’s descendants move to China? Someone answered, no it is because everything is made in China!
So vision is important especially for our families.
The Bible says in .
18 Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, But happy is he who keeps the law.
Vision - Hazon - which can mean two things, it is both an aspiration and also a revelation.
What is God’s revelation or vision for the family?
The word “family” which is “home” or “household” from the Greek “oikos” which means people living in the same house which in Bible times includes father, mother, children, grandparents and servants. This word is found 113 times in the New Testament.
There is another word for “family” that we are going to explore today which appears only 3 times in the whole New Testament.
THis word is for family is from the root word Patria. This word stresses relationship more and the Fatherhood of God.
It is found in , that Jesus will come from the “family” of David.
In in Peter’s sermon when he mentioned that in Abraham, all the “families” of the earth will be blessed.
And here in , let’s pick up from verse 14:
14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth,
14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Words that I want to catch here today:
“Father”, “Name”, riches, strengthened, power, Spirit, Christ, faith, grounded, know, love, fullness of God.
From here I will state God’s vision statement for family: from the so thats.
Family Vision Statement
“To remain under the Fatherhood of God so that its members are filled with the presence and love of Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit”.
The prevailing situation in homes in our present society is that:
Families do not know God’s vision for our family.
Families have embraced the world’s vision for family.
Families do not know God’s vision for our homes.
I. Families do not know God’s vision for our homes.
This is not a matter of ignorance but rather a lack of leadership or disengagement of the appointed leader of the home to even know.
Leadership is key to knowing and bringing God’s vision to our homes.
According to a survey, unlike previous generations, contrary to a what a lot of people think about them, millennials don’t really look only for personal rewards and short-term goals as much as they stress the importance of someone leading them, according to these competencies:
Competencies of a leader that millennials look for:
a. Strategic Thinking
b. Inspirational.
c. Interpersonal Skills.
d. Visionary.
e. Decisive
f. Passionate.
Inspirational is the power to motivate. The word is catching on the concepts of servant leadership. Our kids no longer appreciate leadership as the “use of authority”. They however will appreciate the power of persuasion.
Visionary is to have new ideas. What millennials don’t want is for their leaders to think in terms of “this is the way we have always done it, so let us just continue doing it”.
Ask powerful questions: One simple yet powerful question is “Why are we doing what we are doing?”
yearly activities..
Definition of Insanity: “Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”.
Passion. Millennials want to see that their leaders passionately believe in what they do.
Second prevailing situation in our families:
2. Embraced the world’s vision for the home.
II. Embraced the world’s vision for the home.
If God has a vision for our homes, well the world does too. What is the world’s vision for our families?
It is everything opposite God’s vision.
The world envisions our homes devoid of the Vision of God.
The world envisions our homes devoid of the Vision of God.
Dr. David Jeremiah had a beautiful sermon series “I never thought I’d see the day”. The world has not only regressed from biblical precepts but evil has become normative in our society.
One key factor is the break down of the family. The Devil’s strategy is to attack our families. Destroy the family and he destroys the fabric of society.
We see a society where marriage vows are only good until the next divorce.
Where the role of fathers has been diminished and they have become mere caricatures in publications and TV shows.
Where the presence of a husband and a wife can be replaced by mere partners.
Where being an absentee father has become a means of entitlement. The Bible clearly said in that he who does not provide for his own, especially his own household has denied the faith and is worse than infidel.
The Bible says:
20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!
Fathers, husbands, Wives, mothers, children let us all fight to reclaim our families from the world and back to God’s vision for it.
You don’t even have to look at the Bible to see the model of a Christian home. During the time of Colonial America, the puritans and the era after it.
Talk about the time when families are required to study the Bible. The civil magistrates of that time will actually come in and send a father or a husband to prison...
This kind of society will be called old fashioned, old school, worse - intolerant in our time. But they get it! They embraced God’s vision for the family.
People back then got it!
Embrace God’s vision for our families.
2. God’s vision
Family Vision Statement
2. God’s vision
“To remain under the Fatherhood of God so that its members are filled with the presence and love of Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit”.
It is not only for the older members of the family, it is also for our children.
This should be a Shared vision, the unifying force in our families.
The word of God has lost its way in society.
The word of God has lost its way in society.
There is no dysfunctional family only dysfunctional people.
Family should be
How does God make His way back into our families?
It start with the leaders our familesmaking their way back to God.
Reclaiming our families to God’s vision.
Our affections will have to turn towards God
Our affections will have to turn towards God
Stir up a passion that we steer our families back into God’s original design.
David Brainerd
I am very sensible there may be great joys arising even to ecstasy where there is still no substantial evidence of their being well-grounded.
But in the present case there seemed to be no evidence wanting … This sweet and surprising ecstasy appeared to spring from a true spiritual discovery of the glory, ravishing beauty, and excellency of Christ. (p.280)
Nobody talks this way anymore. “The Ravishing beauty and excellency of Christ”.
What is lost is that sense of the awe of Christ, that He should be all in all, he should be the fulfillment of all our lives, the desire above our highest desire.
Paul said “The Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ”.
1. By connecting to the greater spiritual family.
2. Through the Spiritual Disciplines.
- By connecting to the greater spiritual family.
The church.
Most Christians regard the church as “the spiritual family” and call the home “the biological family”.
Importance of a community of families that will grow together. that is the strength of Crosswind, let us enhance and leverage that strength.
Most Christians divorce the two, they are different people in the church and the family. They regard the church as “the spiritual family” and call the home “the biological family”.
Truth is not regarding our families as spiritual in itself is a mistake.
Families should not be a battleground where people suffer defeat. There is no dysfunctional family only dysfunctional people.
There is no dysfunctional family only dysfunctional people.
Family should be the “training ground” for discipleship.
Christianity 101 is meant to be taught or it is meant for us to lead someone else. Don’t have to look far start with the person in your family, parents start with your child...
Imagine if Christianity 101 is taught in every home in CrossWind church. How wonderful that would be!
Will bring joy to Pastor Bob and Mama Maryanne. It will surely bring tears and joy to me as your pastor.
We talk about revival in the church but listen to how the Bible talked about a future revival that is to come:
5 “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”
Spiritual Revival in the context of family.
- Through the Spiritual Disciplines.
The world can only lure our families if our affections are set to the world.
Illustration of Youtube videos that are viral.
The ones that are the most crude, sexual and even violent are the most viral and popular.
These are because we have to kill the natural affections inside of us to the things of the world and the world system.
How do we do that? through prayer and study of his word.
Our affections will have to turn towards God.
Stir up a passion that we steer our families back into God’s original design.
David Brainerd (1718 - 1747) - American Missionary to the Native Americans
I am very sensible there may be great joys arising even to ecstasy where there is still no substantial evidence of their being well-grounded.
But in the present case there seemed to be no evidence wanting … This sweet and surprising ecstasy appeared to spring from a true spiritual discovery of the glory, ravishing beauty, and excellency of Christ. (David Brainerd)
Nobody talks this way anymore. “The Ravishing beauty and excellency of Christ”. The glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
What is lost is that sense of the awe of Christ, that He should be all in all, he should be the fulfillment of all our lives, the desire above our highest desire.
God reaching down to the recesses of our souls, grabbing our hearts, turning it around, so that our affections.
Introspection.. closer to Jesus the higher our awareness of our need for Him
This is the beginning of reclaiming God’s vision for our families.
We are a church that will Pursue God with a passion in behalf of our families.
Paul said “The Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ”.