Parents and Children

**fennywest** Wed 12 May 2010, 10:35 am

Eph:6:1: Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.
Eph:6:2: Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)
Eph:6:3: That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
Eph:6:4: And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
¹ Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. ² “Honor your father and mother.” This is the first commandment with a promise: ³ If you honor your father and mother, “things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth.”

⁴ Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord. New Living Translation[/b]

Parents, teach your children
The values- God-given
To bestow a divine haven.
Let God’s Word light their path
Teach them what is right
To fight the good fight

But unless you are obedient
You can’t command obedience
Because the seed you have sown
Will give the tree you will own
Which will produce the fruit you will eat.
And so the circuit complete.

So sow good seeds to reap fruits good
The easy way is to eat God’s Word as your food.

Children obey your parents
That is God’s commandment
If you want longevity
Authority and prosperity
Hold on to integrity
Abhor illegality

Give your parents respect
Expect God to protect
Guide and provide
Secure your future

Parents and Children
Parenting does not come natural or easy, especially if one grew up in a family were the father is absent to give a good example of the role of a godly father.
In a family were both parents are present, the father should not leave the responsibility of disciplining the children to the woman. Yes, she may chip in from time to time, but the primary responsibility is for the father. He must not abrogate this role to the mother.

A child who learns this at an early age will replicate this in his family and the cycle of good parenting will continue from generation to generation.

Fathers need to understand that they owe it to their children to bring them up to be responsible children and future citizens. They must teach their children the values of life- integrity, hard work, leadership, godliness, respect and obedience to those in authority over them, such as teachers, elders, the government etc.

The children must see the father responding well to the Lord and those in authority because they learn better by the example we show them.

: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

A father must discipline his child- not in anger or exasperation, but fairly and soberly, letting them know why he is disciplining them and doing it in the right way.

He must not provoke them to anger by being overbearing. He must know the mind of Christ and act accordingly.
He must teach them from and early formative years so that they know what is, the mind of Christ. He must not allow them to take their values from the world but from the Word.

Fathers must not instruct their children to disobey the Lord or the Law. That is not the mind of Christ. Paul said: ‘follow me as I follow Christ.’ Parents must therefore ensure that they are following the Lord who is also their parent. If they are not following the Lord whole-heartedly they will be sowing a seed of disobedience from which they will surely reap.

Now, it is true that often despite the best efforts of the father, some children are rebellious, especially in their teenage years when they are trying to discover who they are; they are neither children nor adults (adolescence).

Does it not surprise you that despite the waywardness and indiscipline Samuel saw in the house of Eli; and despite being the one God used to warn Eli that his children were wild and disobedient, Samuel’s children were also wayward? I believe Samuel must have warned them yet they rebelled. So we must do our part and leave the rest to God.

Eli’s Wicked Sons
¹² Now the sons of Eli were scoundrels who had no respect for the Lord
¹⁷ So the sin of these young men was very serious in the Lord’s sight, for they treated the Lord’s offerings with contempt.
²⁵ If someone sins against another person, God^[a can mediate for the guilty party. But if someone sins against the Lord, who can intercede?” But Eli’s sons wouldn’t listen to their father, for the Lord was already planning to put them to death 1 Sam2: 17, 25 New Living Translation

¹⁰ And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!”

And Samuel replied, “Speak, your servant is listening.”

¹¹ Then the Lord said to Samuel, “I am about to do a shocking thing in Israel. ¹² I am going to carry out all my threats against Eli and his family, from beginning to end. ¹³ I have warned him that judgment is coming upon his family forever, because his sons are blaspheming Godand he hasn’t disciplined them.
You can see here that God used Samuel to warn Eli who failed to discipline his children when they were indulging in corrupt practices and blaspheming. Surprisingly Samuel’s children were also greedy for money- accepting bribes and perverting the course of justice.

The question is: did Samuel not warn them or discipline them after being used to warn Eli? Or did he warn them but they rebelled anyway because we all have a will which God will not violate?

As Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons to be judges over Israel. ² Joel and Abijah, his oldest sons, held court in Beersheba. ³ But they were not like their father, for they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes and perverted justice.

⁴ Finally, all the elders of Israel met at Ramah to discuss the matter with Samuel. ⁵ “Look,” they told him, “you are now old, and your sons are not like you. Give us a king to judge us like all the other nations have.” 1 Sam8:1-5

It is true adolescence is a turbulent time for many children but they must not be allowed to do what they want. Children handle the problems of adolescence differently according to their genetic make up. It is the duty of the parent to wisely guide them through this difficult period so that they do not endanger themselves or be a nuisance to those around them. Parents can share there experiences of bad or good choices and consequences in their adolescent years which could help their children in this phase of life.

This is where we not only use our practical and natural tools for parenting but also the spiritual armament of prayer, patience, understanding, faith, love etc. We must realise that it is not by power nor by might but by the Spirit of the living God. We must do our part and leave the rest to God. As we keep our children in our prayers and do what is right and godly, we would see them turn around for good to the glory of God.

Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it. Prov.22:6

Children, obey your parents

Firstly, it is right;
Secondly, that you may live long;
Thirdly, that it may be well with you.

Children are to obey their parent because it is right and proper. It is the Mind of God, the mind of Christ. Our parents are responsible for us. They are to be respected and obeyed. They are not just there to provide for us and make our lives comfortable. They should be obey and held in high regard. As we obey them we are obeying the Lord. And as we obey and respect them we are also sowing a good seed for our future.

Notice that the word of God states that this is the first commandment with a promise. And what is the promise? Long life! It follows that when a child is habitually disobedient to parents they are shortening their life span by implication. Do you want to live long and enjoy the fruit of your labour? If so the word of God says: obey your parents. Hold them in high regard. Serve them, honour them and God will bless you abundantly.

This does not mean that you obey instructions that are clearly illegal or in violation of the word of God. The word of God is paramount and prevails over the word of man. If your parents tell you to do something illegal or against the word of God, what do you do? You can gently tell them that it is illegal or against the word of God. Do not say it arrogantly in a way to put them down. And if you do it rightly you will win them over, over time. pray for them even as you resist to do evil and the Lord will eventually open their eyes to see the truth.

Do you want it to be well with you? Then obey your parents.

Apart from long life there are other good things of life that we all desire- health, prosperity, good relationships, productivity, creativity, wisdom, discretion, academic excellence, having integrity, good reputation, purposeful living, making a positive impact in life that cannot be erased. These are the things that amount to well-being in life. The word of God is telling us that if children listen and obey the godly instructions- mind of God- of their parents, their well-being in life will be secure.

Where we have failed we can repent and ask God to forgive us and give us the wisdom to do it right. May be we grew up in a single parent home or our fathers did not know any better.

We can also pray that the Lord will guide our children in their family that they do not repeat our mistakes.

For children who have been disobedient, they should understand the implications and repent and follow the godly instructions of their parents. They need to realise that they would be pleasing God, elongating their lives and ensuring their future well-being.