For I give you sound teaching; Do not abandon my instruction. Proverbs 4:2
Here is another call for fathers to be the spiritual leaders of their homes - and the primary Bible teacher in their children's lives. The father here is speaking to his sons. Here is something we desperately need to recover in our day - that spiritual mentoring of sons by their fathers. I work with men every week - and I see in their eyes the pain they feel because this did not happen in their lives. There is something missing in the "man's experience" when he is not mentored by his father. We find in so-called primitive cultures that the fathers train their sons and bring them through a "coming-of-age" ritual. These boys know then they have left the world of youth and moved into their roles as adults - as men. For the most part our boys have no idea when this happens - and as a result we have a plethora of 20-60 year old boys running around in our world making tremendous messes of their lives - and the lives of their wives and children.
The father her says to his son these amazing words, "For I give you sound teaching." The church today - if sound teaching is offered at all - is considered responsible to teach our children and our youth the things of God. These things are needed, but they are only to be suplemental to what is happening in the home. If our children do not hear these things from their fathers - what the church does will not replace it. We need to grasp that our children are most likely to become - not what we want them to be - but what we actually are. If the father does not teach his sons the things of God - no youth pastor will ever completely fill that role. Most likely the boys growing up in that home will mirror his level of commitment to the things of God. This is why it is imperative that fathers take their roles with their sons very seriously.
The father offers to his sons sound teaching in the Word. For the father who does this for his sons - they have an inheritance that goes far beyond silver and gold. They have a foundation that will stand the test of time - and if they follow their father's example - they will wind up blessing multiple generations of their family. For a society that does this - there is a sound foundation that will bless for years to come. Our founding fathers took such a role very seriously - with their own families - and with our nation as a whole. Look at the blessings that have come even into our day because of their faithfulness.
The father also instructs and commands his sons not to abandon his teaching - literally, his law. Here is another biblical principle that we need to recapture. College professors and liberals today infect our children with the thought that it is the height of ignorance to simply believe what their parents taught them - especially when it has to do with religious beliefs. They save their greatest vitriol for Christianity and belief in God. The result of swimming in such moral and educational bilge water is that our children too often abandon their faith during these years and walk in ways that they regret for years to come.
Oh dads, your role is far greater than you could ever imagine! YOU are responsible for giving your sons "sound teaching." The King James calls this "good doctrine" and this is so very accurate. Take your role seriously fathers! Make time in your life to know good doctrine yourself. Even if your father did not take this task seriously - you start something wonderful in the future generations of your family. Spend time with your sons and daugthers teaching them the things of God. Implant within them good, sound doctrine from the Scriptures - as well as an example your children want to follow long after they leave your home.
We live in a day where the "Tea Party Movement" is seeking to restore the nation our forefathers gave to us. They do so pointing to the Constitution and the restoration of limited government. Being a patriot as well as one who believes strongly in our form of government and freedom - I applaud these efforts. But, they will ultimately fail if our nation is not also restored to her former religious - and by that I mean Christian - heritage. We cannot be governed by the United States Constitution alone. Our forefathers realized that first and foremost they were governed by the Law of God in their hearts. They spoke of how limited government could exist because the 10 commandments initially governed the human heart - and limited wickedness in society. Without this "inner-law" governing the hearts of Americans and their leaders - no external law can reign in society - without it being adversely affected by the inner wickedness of the fallen human heart. This is where government will never be able to fill the void of godly fathers. Without dads teaching their sons the things of God - at least teaching and modeling for them a life governed by the commandments of God - society will inevitable fall apart. Without dads who teach their sons and daughters the gospel of Jesus Christ. Without their hearts being transformed so that Law is written on their hearts - evil will gain ascendency in our individual lives - in our corporate structures - and in our governing bodies.
What I would love to see is that the Tea Parties not just speak to the abandonment of the Constitution - but also speak to the abandonment of our children by their fathers. When I say this - I am not speaking of the fathers who physically abandon their children - although I see this as part and parcel of our spiritual decline. I speak of how the fathers of the United States have abandoned their children spiritually - expecting government and the church to fill a role God never intended them to take. Only a revival of godly fathers fulfilling their roles in their families will truly turn the next generation around in our land. May the Lord have mercy on us - and bring about a revival of fatherly proportions.
Here is another call for fathers to be the spiritual leaders of their homes - and the primary Bible teacher in their children's lives. The father here is speaking to his sons. Here is something we desperately need to recover in our day - that spiritual mentoring of sons by their fathers. I work with men every week - and I see in their eyes the pain they feel because this did not happen in their lives. There is something missing in the "man's experience" when he is not mentored by his father. We find in so-called primitive cultures that the fathers train their sons and bring them through a "coming-of-age" ritual. These boys know then they have left the world of youth and moved into their roles as adults - as men. For the most part our boys have no idea when this happens - and as a result we have a plethora of 20-60 year old boys running around in our world making tremendous messes of their lives - and the lives of their wives and children.
The father her says to his son these amazing words, "For I give you sound teaching." The church today - if sound teaching is offered at all - is considered responsible to teach our children and our youth the things of God. These things are needed, but they are only to be suplemental to what is happening in the home. If our children do not hear these things from their fathers - what the church does will not replace it. We need to grasp that our children are most likely to become - not what we want them to be - but what we actually are. If the father does not teach his sons the things of God - no youth pastor will ever completely fill that role. Most likely the boys growing up in that home will mirror his level of commitment to the things of God. This is why it is imperative that fathers take their roles with their sons very seriously.
The father offers to his sons sound teaching in the Word. For the father who does this for his sons - they have an inheritance that goes far beyond silver and gold. They have a foundation that will stand the test of time - and if they follow their father's example - they will wind up blessing multiple generations of their family. For a society that does this - there is a sound foundation that will bless for years to come. Our founding fathers took such a role very seriously - with their own families - and with our nation as a whole. Look at the blessings that have come even into our day because of their faithfulness.
The father also instructs and commands his sons not to abandon his teaching - literally, his law. Here is another biblical principle that we need to recapture. College professors and liberals today infect our children with the thought that it is the height of ignorance to simply believe what their parents taught them - especially when it has to do with religious beliefs. They save their greatest vitriol for Christianity and belief in God. The result of swimming in such moral and educational bilge water is that our children too often abandon their faith during these years and walk in ways that they regret for years to come.
Oh dads, your role is far greater than you could ever imagine! YOU are responsible for giving your sons "sound teaching." The King James calls this "good doctrine" and this is so very accurate. Take your role seriously fathers! Make time in your life to know good doctrine yourself. Even if your father did not take this task seriously - you start something wonderful in the future generations of your family. Spend time with your sons and daugthers teaching them the things of God. Implant within them good, sound doctrine from the Scriptures - as well as an example your children want to follow long after they leave your home.
We live in a day where the "Tea Party Movement" is seeking to restore the nation our forefathers gave to us. They do so pointing to the Constitution and the restoration of limited government. Being a patriot as well as one who believes strongly in our form of government and freedom - I applaud these efforts. But, they will ultimately fail if our nation is not also restored to her former religious - and by that I mean Christian - heritage. We cannot be governed by the United States Constitution alone. Our forefathers realized that first and foremost they were governed by the Law of God in their hearts. They spoke of how limited government could exist because the 10 commandments initially governed the human heart - and limited wickedness in society. Without this "inner-law" governing the hearts of Americans and their leaders - no external law can reign in society - without it being adversely affected by the inner wickedness of the fallen human heart. This is where government will never be able to fill the void of godly fathers. Without dads teaching their sons the things of God - at least teaching and modeling for them a life governed by the commandments of God - society will inevitable fall apart. Without dads who teach their sons and daughters the gospel of Jesus Christ. Without their hearts being transformed so that Law is written on their hearts - evil will gain ascendency in our individual lives - in our corporate structures - and in our governing bodies.
What I would love to see is that the Tea Parties not just speak to the abandonment of the Constitution - but also speak to the abandonment of our children by their fathers. When I say this - I am not speaking of the fathers who physically abandon their children - although I see this as part and parcel of our spiritual decline. I speak of how the fathers of the United States have abandoned their children spiritually - expecting government and the church to fill a role God never intended them to take. Only a revival of godly fathers fulfilling their roles in their families will truly turn the next generation around in our land. May the Lord have mercy on us - and bring about a revival of fatherly proportions.
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