Raising Children to be Faithful to God #2 By Robert C. Archer

Short Series “Raising Children to be faithful to God” Deut. 6:4-12, 20

1. Example – Show Them the Importance of the WAY “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart”

2. Teaching – Show Them the WAY Parents must teach their children diligently Deal with the problems they face Internet In school: bullies, cheating, language Drugs, alcohol, promiscuity, etc. Dating Sex

2. Teaching – Show Them the WAY Help them to understand, “the why” V. 20 “When your son asks you in time to come, saying, `What [is the meaning of] the testimonies, the statutes, and the judgments which the LORD our God has commanded you?’ Then you shall say to your son…

2. Teaching – Show Them the WAY Answer their Questions Why do we go to church so much? Why can’t I dress like other kids? Why can’t we do what other kids do? Why is education so important?

3. Protection – Warn Them of the Dangers along the WAY Money (1 Tim 6:6-10) Pride – King Saul (1 Sam. 13:9) Immorality – King David (Psa. 51:1-4) Internet (Matt. 5:28) Marrying the wrong person – King Ahab 1 Kings 21:25 25 But there was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the LORD, because Jezebel his wife stirred him up.

Discipline Includes Teaching Training Punishment

Discipline includes Teaching (Deut. 6:7) Instruction Encouragement Counseling Warning

Discipline includes Training (Prov. 22:6) The original root word is the term for “the palate, the roof of the mouth, the gums.” In verb form, it is the term used for breaking and bringing into submission a wild horse by rope in the mouth. The term was also used in the days of Solomon to describe the action of a midwife who, soon after helping deliver a child, would dip her finger into the juice of chewed or crushed dates, reach into the mouth of the infant, and massage the gums and the palate within the mouth so as to create a sensation of sucking, a sense of taste... Then she would place the child in its mother’s arms to begin feeding from the mother’s breast. So it is the word used to describe “developing a thirst.” So in training we are trying to develop a thirst for the things that are right. BRETHREN WE ARE IN A BATTLE!

How can we train? Example (Gal. 6:10; Jas. 1:27; Matt. 25:31-46) Involvement (Heb. 10:24)

Discipline includes Punishment Must be meaningful “He who spares his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him promptly” (Proverbs 13:24, NKJV). “Chasten your son while there is hope, And do not set your heart on his destruction” (Proverbs 19:18, NKJV)

Discipline includes Punishment Must be meaningful “Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him” (Proverbs 22:15, NKJV). “Foolishness” that tendency toward rebellion and disobedience and mockery. Note the rod of correction Must be consistent

Punishment must be fair Children are different Two things that make a child: inheritance and environment Don’t compare

Punishment must be fair If not it can destroy (Eph. 6:1-4; Col. 3:21) Don’t stay on a child Don’t make a big deal out of mistakes Punishment is not to relieve our frustrations Don’t make unreasonable demands

Punishment must be fair Can be different When a child gets older, they don’t respond well to spankings, but other things will get their attention! Grounding, loss of privileges, CAR, etc.

Love – Tell Them that God Has Provided the WAY Jno. 3:16; Rom. 5:8