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How to honor/dishonor the words of God
- Deuteronomy 6:4-15 are God’s words to His national representative, Israel. Same God in the New Testament says that your home will be a place where the words of God are learned, applied, and honored, or where the words of God are forgotten and replaced by other gods.
- Notice this isn’t a sunday school commandment; it’s for the home.
- Notice it’s not a commandment to the children. It’s for dad and mom to put into practice. Dad needs to learn how to honor God’s words as a dad. Mom has to learn how to honor God’s words as a mom.
- 2 Timothy 1:5 When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also…3:15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
What obedience/disobedience feels like
- I use the phrase “feels like” on purpose because obedience is about getting control of your emotions. Things God says to do you don’t always feel like doing. Things dad and mom say to do you don’t always feel like doing. Obedience is doing what you don’t feel like doing.
- Learned he obedience by the things which he suffered…
- The LORD Jesus Christ obeyed His parents and honored the authorities in his life even though He was God manifest in the flesh.
- So a bribe isn’t obedience. It may be control and manipulation, but it’s not obedience.
- Proverbs 1:7-9 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. 8 My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: 9 For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.
- You’ll also learn what disobedience feels like.
- If dad, mom, grandma, grandpa, are barking out orders they don’t intend to enforce, you’ll learn disobedience has little consequence.
- Proverbs 13:24 He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.
- More often than not we spare the rod and continue to make threats, count to whatever number, raise our voice, make more threats.
- If children don’t respect dad and mom because you’ve fostered this disrespect in your home, honestly, putting them in a sunday school class that’s going to teach them to honor God is useless.
- They’ll learn obedience or manipulation and then apply that to God.
What love looks like
- It will either be a godly demonstration of love or some warped sense of love.
- Children watch how dad and mom love each other.
- Very young children will also assume that love looks like whatever you’re doing to them. Let that sink in a minute. Early on children assume how you treat mom, how you treat dad, how you treat them, is love.
- What’s also true is that you assume what you’re doing is love.
- It’s not just for children. Husbands LOVE your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it; dwell with them according to knowledge. You’ll learn how to apply love the way Jesus Christ did for the purpose of sanctifying it.
- Your love is supposed to improve her.
- Even wives and moms must be taught love. This seems counterintuitive at the surface, but it’s not. Titus 2:3-5 The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; 4 That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.
What responsibility feels like
- To men
- 1 Timothy 3:1-10
- A man named Eli failed to rule his house in 1 Samuel 3:11-14. This can’t be solved with sacrifice. You’ve let things in that the LORD cannot bless. And you’ve put the LORD in a position that if He were to bless your life in these conditions, He would have to contradict Himself and blaspheme His own name.
- With men it’s about the courage to rule well. And the compassion to know how to have oversight.
- To women
- Keeping the home without making yourself crazy.
- The courage to say no.
- Using God’s words to discern what is important and what is not.
- To children
- Learning chores and work ethic.
- If possible, take them with you to work.
People’s sin and selfishness has broken homes. Children still need your example. Moms still need godly examples. Dads still need godly examples. Husbands still need godly examples. Wives still need godly examples.
A few years ago in Death Valley it rained 7” in a very short period of time. Death Valley is the driest place in the United States. That spring there appeared a beautiful bed of flowers across the floor of the valley showing that life still exists in Death Valley, but the climate isn’t conducive to life. Your home is very much like climate control. Parenting is creating the conditions that are conducive to life and conditions in which the Holy Spirit of God can work. Everyone in the home has responsibilities. And you can bring in a spirit of bitterness that will permeate the home. Or create conditions where the Holy Spirit of God can thrive.
