Gen. 2:24 (law of first mention): Man leave his mother and father and cleave unto his wife, and the two shall be one flesh (emotionally, physically, mentally; three types of relationship); children were not yet created, yet God said “It is good.”--this points to the fact that the Husband-Wife relationship is most important in home, not the Parental relationship.
Eph. 5:22-24, The man should love his wife as Christ loved
the church (a woman wants to know her husband sacrifices things on her behalf;
he ought to make a big deal out of things she is interested in; he ought to
remember special dates—the best way for a husband to remember his wife’s
birthday: forget it once) and the woman
should submit to her husband (hupotasso); Three styles of leadership: Authoritarian, Passive, and Authoritative;
God’s four institutions each have a leader; 1 Pet. 3:7, the success of a
marriage falls on the shoulder of the husband (he has the
responsibility)—giving honor to the wife may imply a great deal of humility and
self-sacrifice; in any marriage over five years, almost any problem can be
attributed to something either the husband is doing or not doing.
Broad is the way that leads to destruction.
Use blindfold—the Bible says we walk in darkness
Children will choose selfishly
Prov. 22:6, Train up a child in the way he should go…
Target: off a little
at start, off a lot at finish
It’s easier to bend a sapling; give us a child until the age
of 7
Do not neglect to pray together as a family. Children need to hear their parents pray aloud. (I like for my children to walk in on me when I am reading or praying)
Prop open the eyelid (“He that watches over you shall
neither slumber nor sleep”)
Use Shield
Ph’p 4:7
Remember those times you called up scripture when you were
tempted?
Jesus read scriptures at 5, and a short time later began
memorization
Judge yourselves
We should talk to our children about the Lord in the
morning, at night as we go to bed, at mealtimes and when we ride in our cars.
Deuteronomy 6:4-7 is a sobering command for parents who desire to raise their
children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord: "Hear, O Israel: The
Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and
with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give
you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about
them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down
and when you get up."
Utilize the
four natural “teaching moments” that occur throughout the course of an average
day. Most families today live in a constant whirlwind of activities. Often both
Mom’s and Dad’s work schedules must be considered. Many single parents juggle
the demands of two jobs. Every parent is called, nevertheless, to obey the very
practical directives of the Deuteronomy command. Talk to your children about
God’s goodness as you “sit at home” together to eat a meal. Ask each
child to share one blessing from his day with the rest of the family. As you
hug them goodnight, or tuck them into bed, pray with them. As they “lie
down,” take five minutes to read them a Proverb from the Bible, or an Arch
book, for example. Arch books are individually published Bible stories that are
beautifully illustrated, and written in poetry form. Best of all they are
short. As you “drive along the road” (most of us don’t walk to our
destinations anymore,) quote scripture verses together. Keep an index card
taped to your car dashboard with a short Bible passage written on it. You may
need several weeks to memorize it together, but make an effort to commit a
small portion of it to memory each time you “drive along the road.” A
fifteen-minute family devotional plan is an excellent place to start. Finally,
teach them the ways of God as you “get up.” Formulate a simple, solid
plan for family worship and set aside a block of time each morning to begin
your day with Christ, as a family unit. Begin with fifteen minutes and as you
implement your plan, progressively build from there if you choose to increase
your devotion time. You will be encouraged by the spiritual dividends that will
result from your time investment in family worship.
Proverbs
14:12
In WWII, the "Lady Be
Good" (a B-24) was flying home from Naples, Italy to Benghazi, Libya. Their instruments told them they were
directly over their base, but they were hours ahead of schedule and assumed the
instruments were wrong. Depending upon
their own senses, they flew some 400 more miles before crashing in the
desert. Most of the men managed to walk
60 or 70 miles. One even made it 125
miles. All died there in the
desert. They were 400 miles past their
target. Their instruments were
correct. They were even tested after
finding the wreckage. What they did not
know is that a tail wind put them way ahead of schedule. They did not have much knowledge of jet
streams at that time. They should have
relied on their instruments.
Men should rely on the Bible, and
not their own senses. "There is a
way that seems right unto man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."
Pastor Gillming took six buses down
the wrong way and ended up on a dead end street, having to turn the buses
around in a small area. He trusted in
his own sense of direction and paid no attention to the street signs. We take our eyes off the signs (Bible), trust
in our own selves, and end up at a dead end in life.