To Parents Prov. 1:8 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO

We have spoken in the prior broadcasts to young ladies and to young men.  Now we are going to preach to parents.  There are many wise things we can see in the Bible and that we can apply from life that will help you with your children.  In the last days, children are disobedient to their parents and so these principles should be followed but be aware that your children may still go contrary to sound wisdom, training and discipline.

Parents should:

Teach your children the Bible – Deut 6:6-8 – you are the principle Bible teacher in your children’s lives.  Don’t leave this work to them or to the teachers and preachers at your church.  You do it.  And you live it so that they will have you as an example to follow.  Joel Dunbar said that the Bible was real to him and his siblings because it was real to their mother at home as well as at church.

Always honor and respect each other – Eph 5:33 – parents have a tendency sometime to run each other down, especially in front of the children.  Don’t do this unless you want your children to despise your spouse.  They will see how you treat him or her and they will follow you.  And they will likely do the same to their spouses when they marry.

Agree explicitly on training and discipline – Prov 1:8 – “the instruction of thy father… the law of thy mother.”  Your children should find that going to one parent is the same as going to the other.  You should be agreed on how you are going to handle your children.  Children exploit disagreement between parents to their own advantage.  The father may say that the mother is too lenient or she may say that he is too harsh.  Settle these differences.

Be careful where you send your children to school – Prov 19:27 – in certain schools, particularly colleges, children are exposed to philosophies and cultures that may drive them away from the Lord and cause them to err from the words of knowledge.

Never back children against appropriate authorities – Deut 21:18-21 – the Old Testament treatment for a disobedient and stubborn, drunk and gluttonous child was rough.  Nevertheless, notice how the parents and the elders of the city agree that the child is bad.  Parents today agree with the bad kids against the elders of the city.  This will never work.  If a child is disobedient at school then the problem is with the child and not the teacher.  Back the teacher.  And never lie to the teacher so that your child can get credit for something he didn’t do.

Never give children everything they want – Prov 30:15 – children will never have enough.  They will pester you to death for more.  And in the end they will despise you.  It is good for them to learn the meaning of the word “no” and to learn to live with the results of that word.  As a matter of fact, give them what they need, not what they want [Is 7:15].

Avoid catering to whiny children – 2 Sam 13:6-7 – Amnon pretended to be sick so that David would permit Tamar to come see him.  This was a plot to lie with her.  David should have never given in to his whining.  As parents you need to be wiser and tougher than that.

Never cushion your children’s fall – Gal 6:7-8 – mothers particularly are bad about throwing mattresses down on the ground to cushion the fall of their children.  When your child sins and gets caught then let him worry about how to deal with it.  Don’t you cover for him.  Let him feel the full brunt and weight of what he has done.

Conclusion: It goes without saying that you should love your children.  In addition, you should follow these simple principles in raising your children so that you can avoid the typical pitfalls that have trapped others.