September 12, 2024 • 24 mins
How does honoring your parents glorify God and lead to a more joyful life? Join us on "The Takeaway" as Pastor Harry Behrens unpacks the profound insights of Ephesians 6:1-4, shedding light on the biblical mandate for children to obey their parents. You'll discover how this act not only pleases God but also fosters a fuller, more satisfying life. We unravel the crucial role fathers play as reflections of God the Father, emphasizing the need to nurture children without provoking anger, all while guiding them toward a life of obedience and prosperity. With key scriptures like Proverbs 22:6 and 2 Corinthians 1:20-22, we delve into God’s promises and the pivotal role of parental guidance in leading children to Christ.
In addition, we dive into Jesus' teachings on the power of asking in His name, focusing on aligning our requests with God's glory rather than personal gain. Using scriptures from John 14 and Mark 12, we highlight the importance of grounding the church in God's word and loving both God and our neighbors. This episode also covers the Holy Spirit's role as our advocate, the significance of Jesus' humility and obedience, and His exaltation in heaven. Wrap up with a preview of our next episode on effective gospel sharing, and don't forget to send us your feedback and questions to help shape our future content. Tune in to use this podcast as a powerful resource to illuminate your spiritual journey.
Please visit www.chosenbydesign.net for more information on Pastor Harry’s new book, "Chosen By Design - God’s Purpose for Your Life."
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, welcome again to the Takeaway.
I'm your host, pastor HarryBehrens, and in today's episode
we're going to be studyingEphesians, chapter 6, verses 1
to 4, the parent-childrelationship.
Before we begin, I want toinvite you to share any
questions you may have by usingthe Text Us link in the episode
description, as your input isinvaluable in shaping future
(00:21):
episodes.
Here at the Takeaway, we arecommitted to creating content
that supports your spiritualgrowth, and we can only do that
with your feedback, so pleaselet us know your thoughts, as we
would love to hear from you.
So now getting started.
In our last episode, we talkedabout how the marriage
relationship is meant to glorifyGod by how the wife submits to
(00:41):
the husband as the churchsubmits to Jesus, and how the
husband sacrifices for the wifejust as Jesus sacrificed for his
bride, the church.
When we operate like this inthe marriage, it becomes a
witness to the world that welove each other and God.
It's important to realize thatall our relationships in some
way glorify God when our motiveis correct.
(01:03):
When asking people what theycare or are passionate about,
you will often get the answerit's family.
But that doesn't describe themotive or why that is.
They will tell you they lovethem or are passionate about
caring for them and making themhappy, but why?
When we evaluate the motive, wesee that it could be for the
(01:25):
self-gratification thatproviding for them makes you
happy.
I don't think most people thinkbeyond that aspect.
Maybe they see it as a sense ofduty or obligation.
Then they extract what joy theycan from it.
However, when these are themotives, we rob ourselves of
God's greater joy for us.
When these are the motives werob ourselves of God's greater
(01:45):
joy for us, when we shift themotive from any of these that I
just named to the motive ofglorifying God as the primary
reason, we will have a fullerjoy.
That doesn't come from ourexperience with family, but from
God himself.
The reason is that we do whatwe do to glorify Him, for no
other reason.
The benefit will be that yourwife, your husband, children
(02:09):
will all be cared for well,happy and satisfied in you, as
you will find that you becomesatisfied in God.
Most of the issues within ourrelationships come from unmet
expectations that we apply topeople, and this creates a
tension that cripples us.
When we place the expectationon God to fulfill His promises
(02:30):
toward us, as we glorify Him, wewill release anyone else of our
expectations because we are nolonger looking to get something
from them.
Instead, we are looking for ourjoy and satisfaction to come
from God Himself.
That might seem like a stretchfor some people, as most of us
have been taught not to expectanything from God and that we
(02:51):
should sacrifice ourselves forhim, as we don't deserve any
more than what we get.
But that does not capture God'sheart as a giver, as what he
primarily wants to give ishimself.
What he primarily wants to giveis himself.
When we deny God of this, weare in turn robbing him of his
glory.
John Piper said it best God ismost glorified in us when we are
(03:14):
most satisfied in him.
God wants us to be satisfied inhim, and that satisfaction can
be produced in all of ourrelationships.
The marriage relationship is theprimary one, but, as we will
now see, the parent-childrelationship has its place in
glorifying God as well.
So the parent-childrelationship this is a picture
(03:35):
of our position before God, theFather in Heaven.
Fathers must realize they aresupposed to be a representative
or a reflection of the Father inheaven towards their children.
This relationship is one of, ifnot the most, impactful in
leading a child to Christ.
Children look to their fathersas the ultimate example of moral
(03:57):
living, and they imitate thison many levels.
We see it all the time in oursociety, and we can often gauge
parents by their children'sbehavior.
When we lead our childrenastray, we in turn rob them of
the promises that God has forthem, which are prosperity and
long life.
Just as we receive theassurance of salvation and our
(04:19):
obedience to God, the childreceives the promise of long
life and prosperity andobedience to the parent, which
will lead to obedience to theLord as long as the father does
not provoke his children toanger.
Proverbs 22, verse 6.
Train up a child in the waythat he should go.
Even when he is old, he willnot depart from it.
(04:39):
2 Corinthians 1, verse 20 to 22.
For all the promises of Godfind their yes in Him.
That is why it is through Himthat we utter our amen to God
for His glory.
And it is God who establishesus with you in Christ and has
anointed us, and who has alsoput His seal on us and given us
(05:01):
His Spirit in our hearts as aguarantee.
Now, continuing with the ideathat we are to be imitators of
Christ.
We now look at the child-parentrelationship presented by Paul
in Ephesians 6, verses 1-4.
Honor your father and yourmother.
This is the first commandmentwith a promise that it may go
(05:25):
well with you and that you maylive long in the land.
Fathers, do not provoke yourchildren to anger, but bring
them up in the discipline andinstruction of the Lord.
Now that promise is from thesixth commandment written by God
in Exodus, chapter 20, verse 12.
Honor your father and yourmother, that your days may be
long in the land and that theLord, your God, is giving you.
(05:48):
Matthew, chapter 18, verses 1to 6.
Who is the greatest?
At that time, the disciples cameto Jesus saying who is the
greatest in the kingdom ofheaven?
And calling to him a child.
He put him in the midst of themand said Truly, I say to you,
unless you turn and become likea children, you will never enter
(06:11):
the kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself likethis child is the greatest in
the kingdom of heaven.
Whoever receives one such childin my name receives me.
But whoever causes listen tothis whoever causes one of these
little ones who believe in meto sin, it would be better for
him to have a great millstonefastened around his neck and to
(06:32):
be drowned in the depth of thesea.
The Lord Jesus.
He takes this relationshipextremely seriously, because
children are vulnerable andeasily manipulated.
Parents have the highest levelof influence on their children
and God designed it this way sothat we would train them up
properly.
He says it would be better fora millstone to be tied around
(06:54):
our necks and thrown into thesea when we don't.
That's a pretty harsh statementand since it is coming from
Jesus, we can assume that he istaking this topic seriously.
To say that drowning in thedepths of the sea would be
better and since it is comingfrom Jesus, we can assume that
he is taking this topicseriously To say that drowning
in the depths of the sea wouldbe better is indicating to us
the severity of God's wrath thatwill come upon us for leading
(07:17):
children into sin.
So instead, we are to use ourinfluence over our children to
lead them to Jesus and trainthem up in God's word so that
they will never depart from thefaith.
In turn, when the children areobedient to their parents, they
have a promise from God that hewill give them a long life and
prosper them.
This relationship is anotherexample of the Lord's submission
to the Father and should bemodeled on our part as well.
(07:39):
John 14, verse 31,.
But I do as the Father hascommanded me, so that the world
may know that I love the Father.
And John 12, verse 50 says andI know that His commandment is
eternal life.
Jesus opened a way for us tohave a relationship with the
(08:02):
Father, just as he did InEphesians, chapter 5,.
We are told to imitate God.
The parent-child relationshipis another way we can do that.
So what does a healthyfather-son relationship look
like?
We have two ways to look atthis.
The one perspective is ourrelationship with God as the
child, and the other perspectiveis our relationship with our
(08:26):
children as the parent.
Now, we can't be an example ifwe don't have a healthy
relationship with God to startwith.
We must understand thisrelationship, to imitate God, so
that our children will see himwhen they see us, just as we see
the Father when we see Jesus.
The question is have we knownHim or do we know Him?
We will briefly examine John,chapter 14 to try and capture
the perspective Jesus gave us.
(08:48):
I can't stress enough howimportant it is that we
understand how God loves us sothat we can imitate Him.
You know, throughout my yearsas a parent, I looked to my
Father in heaven as an examplewhen disciplining my children,
for example.
When my years as a parent, Ilook to my father in heaven as
an example when disciplining mychildren, for example, when they
did something wrong, I would domy best not to react to the
situation out of anger.
Instead, I would do as myfather has done for me I would
(09:10):
be patient with them and askthem if they understood what
they did.
We would discuss the situationand then I would make them aware
that they had to walk throughthe repercussions of their
actions, which could have beenany number of things based on
what they did.
Then I would tell them that Iwouldn't fix the problem, but I
would walk with them through it,that I would not leave them nor
(09:32):
forsake them.
My boys would always feel theweight of dealing with these
repercussions, whether it beasking for forgiveness, giving
back something they took orpaying for something they broke.
I always ensured they felt thefull weight of their sin by
walking through therepercussions and not rescuing
or fixing it for them.
But I also ensured they felt mylove for them by walking with
(09:56):
them through the situation.
They knew they would never beabandoned and left alone to
figure it out themselves.
They always had me to look to,so they knew what to do next or
to explain why these were therepercussions.
I never allowed my anger to bethe motivator.
Instead, I tried to let my lovefor them be the driving force,
as I wanted them to see that howI was treating them was how God
(10:18):
had treated me.
God never came down out ofheaven and slapped me in the
face or hollered at me, but hiswords reminded me that he was
slow to anger, quick to forgiveand required me to deal with the
repercussions of my actions.
I was always to ask forforgiveness and restore whatever
needed to be restored, aboveand beyond what was lost or
(10:40):
destroyed in the first place.
Because of this, my boys grewup knowing I loved them and
meant business when restoringwhat was destroyed.
They knew that they never hadto go at it alone and that I
would guide them through thesteps to make these things right
.
Another advantage ofdisciplining like this is that
it ensures proper justice.
That means that when my boysasked for forgiveness and tried
(11:04):
to restore what was lost, theother party that was wronged
couldn't unjustly attack them,require more from them than what
was required or take revenge onthem by my presence.
They knew as well as the peoplethey wronged that they couldn't
do anything that wasn't morallyproper.
Had my boys stepped out of line, I was there to correct them
(11:24):
and ensure they did the rightthing.
Had the people they wrongedstep out of line, I was there to
protect my boys with all mystrength.
That ensured justice was doneand that they felt loved while
being disciplined.
That is precisely how ourFather in heaven has dealt with
us and requires us to be thatexample to our children.
Being a parent is a greatresponsibility and privilege,
(11:46):
and we should desire the bestfor our kids.
The only way we could do that isto know the Father ourselves,
just as Jesus has shown us inJohn chapter 14, verses 7 to 14.
Jesus has shown us in Johnchapter 14, verses 7 to 14.
If you really know me, you willknow my father as well From now
on.
You do know him and have seenhim.
(12:08):
And Philip said Lord, show usthe father, that will be enough
for us.
And Jesus answered don't youknow me, philip, even after I
have been among you such a longtime?
Anyone who has seen me has seenthe Father.
How can you say show us theFather.
Don't you believe that I am inthe Father and that the Father
(12:30):
is in me?
The words I say to you, I donot speak on my own authority.
Rather, it is the Father livingin me who is doing his work.
Believe me when I say that I amin the Father and the Father
living in me who is doing hiswork.
Believe me when I say that I amin the Father and the Father is
in me, or at least believe onthe evidence of the works
themselves.
Very truly, I tell you whoeverbelieves in me will do the works
(12:51):
I have been doing, and theywill do even greater things than
these, because I am going tothe Father and I will do
whatever you ask in my name sothat the Father may be glorified
in the Son.
Here he is talking aboutspiritual works, not physical
(13:14):
miracles like he did.
The idea is that more will cometo Jesus and be saved through
the church than through hisworldly ministry.
We are his body and theFather's spirit is in us, like
it was in him when we are bornagain and filled with his spirit
.
The spirit reveals the Fatherand his will, which is to save
(13:35):
this lost world by inviting themthrough the preaching of the
gospel by the church.
In verse 13, we see Jesus saidthat we could ask for anything
in his name and that he would doit.
Many believers have taken thisscripture out of context and
applied it completely wrong.
They think that because theyend each prayer with in the name
(13:55):
of Jesus, it automaticallyimplies he will do it.
They don't realize that Jesusdidn't implies he will do it.
They don't realize that Jesusdidn't say he would do anything
that they ask, period.
He said he would do anything.
They asked to glorify theFather in the Son.
Our motive needs to be one thatdesires to glorify God, and
then Jesus will give us whateverwe ask.
(14:16):
That, however, is rarely thecase and the reason we see
powerless churches all around.
They have no idea what it meansto glorify God because they
aren't grounded in the truth ofhis word, which tells us what
his will is and what exactly itis that glorifies him.
We aren't to decide forourselves what we think will
(14:36):
glorify God.
We are to know based on what hehas told us in his word.
So what is it that glorifiesGod?
John, chapter 14, verses 15 to21.
If you love me, keep mycommands and I will ask the
father and he will give youanother advocate to help you and
be with you forever the spiritof truth.
The world cannot accept him,because it neither sees him nor
(14:59):
knows him.
But you know him, for he liveswith you and will be in you.
I will not leave you as orphans.
I will come to you.
Before long the world will notsee me anymore, but you will see
me because I live.
You also will live.
On that day you will realizethat I am in my Father and you
(15:20):
are in me and I am in you.
Whoever has my commands andkeeps them is the one who loves
me.
The one who loves me will beloved by my Father, and I too
will love them and show myselfto them.
So it's not a matter ofobligation but should be one of
(15:40):
desire, like my example earlierwith my children, they followed
my commands to repent and torestore and, as a result, they
glorified me.
They listened to me out of loveand trust, so that I could do
the right thing for them.
You could argue that they wereobligated to do these things.
But as they learned that myheart was for them continually
(16:04):
and it was good, they shiftedfrom obligation to desire.
Now, of course, we all startwith commands as something we
are obligated to do.
But in time, as we learn aboutthe one who gave the commands
and why he did, we learn to lovethe command giver and start to
desire his commands, becausethey bring us life and are not
(16:25):
distractions.
They make right what we didwrong and restore what we lost.
That's what God's commands doand we should desire them.
Mark, chapter 12, verses 30 to31.
And you shall love the Lord,your God, with all your heart
and with all your soul and withall your mind and with all your
strength.
The second is this you shalllove your neighbor as yourself.
(16:48):
There is no other commandmentgreater than these.
John 14, 22.
Then Judas, not Iscariot, saidthey thought the Messiah was
coming to reveal himself to thewhole world and conquer.
Judas couldn't understand thisyet, as Jesus was only coming
(17:08):
for his own which the Father hadgiven him.
As Jesus was only coming forhis own which the Father had
given him.
We were given to him before thefoundations of the world and he
was coming to redeem us tohimself, as the Father commanded
.
John 14, 23-24,.
Jesus replied Anyone who lovesme will obey my teaching.
My Father will love them and wewill come to them and make our
(17:29):
home with them.
Anyone who does not love mewill not obey loved us.
1 John 4, 19.
Jesus told us we had heard andknown of the Father that was the
(17:51):
Father's plan, that they wouldmake their home with us and that
we would be the temple of God.
1 Corinthians 3.16.
Do you not know that you areGod's temple and that God's
Spirit dwells in you?
And John 14.25-28.
All this I have spoken whilestill with you.
But the Advocate, the HolySpirit, whom the Father will
(18:13):
send in my name, will teach youall things and will remind you
of everything that I have said.
Peace, I leave you with mypeace.
I give you.
I do not give to you as theworld gives.
I do not let your hearts betroubled and do not be afraid.
You heard me say I am goingaway and I'm coming back to you.
(18:40):
Jesus is returning to the Father, where he is equal to, not less
than, the Father.
In the flesh he humbled himselfand became less than the Father
to accomplish his will, but inheaven he is seated with the
Father.
Philippians 2, verses 7 to 10.
(19:01):
But made himself of noreputation and took upon him the
form of a servant and was madein the likeness of men and being
found in fashion as a man.
He humbled himself and becameobedient unto death, even the
death of the cross, whereforeGod also has highly exalted him
and given him a name which isabove every name, that at the
name of Jesus every knee shouldbow of things in heaven and
(19:22):
things in earth and the thingsunder the earth.
Jesus then said in John 14,29-31, I have told you now,
before it happens, so that whenit does happen you will believe.
I will not say much more to you, for the Prince of this world
is coming.
He has no hold over me, but hecomes so that the world may
learn that I love the Father anddo exactly what my Father has
(19:46):
commanded me.
We are as little childrenbefore the Father in heaven.
The adversary, the devil, comesat us and is allowed, so that
the world will know that we lovethe Father when we do exactly
what he tells us to out of lovethrough our suffering.
It shows the world andourselves that we have genuine
love for God.
We don't strive to be obedientchildren.
(20:07):
We are obedient because we lovehim and we love him because he
first loved us.
Obedient because we love himand we love him because he first
loved us.
That is how we imitate God byloving others as we love him and
he loves us.
To love others this way, youmust know the Father and
understand his love for you, howhe has loved you and the impact
that it has made on you.
We must all experience God'slove for us in a real way,
(20:30):
beyond intellectual knowledge,as knowledge itself doesn't
produce a relationship.
It just allows us to know theone who is inviting us into the
relationship and tells us how tohave that relationship.
It requires us to take a stepof faith, to walk in the
knowledge he has given us andapply it so that our
relationship becomes real.
Could you imagine knowing aboutyour spouse and all their
(20:52):
desires and yet never meetingthem?
To be told we have been boughtwith a great price, saved from
our sin, and never meet the onewho paid the price, would be sad
.
The Bible introduces us to himand prepares us to walk by faith
and meet him.
It won't be until you meet theliving God in a way that brings
you to your knees, that you willbe changed.
(21:14):
Paul had this experience on theroad to Damascus, and the
disciples had it when he showedhimself to them, risen from the
dead.
The question is have you methim?
Do you desire to meet him?
Or are you like the Israeliteswho told Moses you go up on the
mountain and meet God, becausethey were afraid?
God is inviting each one of usinto his presence.
(21:36):
We just have to step into it.
So what are you waiting for?
Let's pray.
Father, thank you so much foryour word today.
I thank you for the model thatyou have given us of the
parent-child relationshipthrough you and Jesus, and that
you are inviting us into thatrelationship, that you desire it
(21:57):
, that you desire for us to knowyou the way Jesus knew you, and
that we would glorify you as achild glorifies their parents
when they act accordinglyBecause, as children, their
parents when they actaccordingly Because, as children
, we are an example of who ourparents are.
Father, you are calling us tobe that example for you, that we
(22:19):
would resemble you and, in turn, glorify you.
God, jesus, I thank you thatyou gave us the ability to ask
for anything in your name thatwe can live a life that models
that, that makes it possible forus to do that when we can't do
it in ourselves.
So thank you for giving us away.
We love you and we thank you inyour precious name, jesus, amen
(22:43):
.
Now I want to thank you forjoining us today, and I hope
this message helped you take astep closer in your relationship
with Jesus and that you have abetter understanding of just how
much God loves you and wantsyou to know him.
In our next episode we're goingto look at the master-servant
relationship and how thisrelates to us in the workplace.
This is the last area of lifeanyone wants to be in, let alone
(23:04):
be an example for Christ in.
Most of us just want to go inand do our nine-to-five and go
home.
We see our jobs as a means toprovide for our needs and wants,
but God wants us to see it as amission field.
This is an environment that hasthe potential to be an
effective and fruitful missionfield if we would just allow God
to work in us and through us.
(23:25):
Instead, we tend to fight Godand suppress the truth because
of fear or selfishness, when weshould realize that we are all
called to ministry and that theworkplace is not only a mission
field that is ripe for thepicking, but that God placed you
there specifically for that andis providing for you through it
(23:46):
.
At the same time, we are to be apeople that share the gospel in
all areas of life, and in ournext episode, we will discuss
just how to do that in aneffective, god-glorifying way.
Now, before we go, I want toencourage you to send us a text
message from the link providedin the description of this
episode.
We would love to hear yourfeedback and questions you may
(24:07):
have from today's show, as ithelps us produce future episodes
that are beneficial to you.
In addition, please feel freeto use this podcast as a
resource to help others andshine a light into the darkness.
God bless, and we'll see younext time on the Takeaway.
Hello, welcome again to the Takeaway.
I'm your host, pastor HarryBehrens, and in today's episode
we're going to be studyingEphesians, chapter 6, verses 1
to 4, the parent-childrelationship.
Before we begin, I want toinvite you to share any
questions you may have by usingthe Text Us link in the episode
description, as your input isinvaluable in shaping future
(00:21):
episodes.
Here at the Takeaway, we arecommitted to creating content
that supports your spiritualgrowth, and we can only do that
with your feedback, so pleaselet us know your thoughts, as we
would love to hear from you.
So now getting started.
In our last episode, we talkedabout how the marriage
relationship is meant to glorifyGod by how the wife submits to
(00:41):
the husband as the churchsubmits to Jesus, and how the
husband sacrifices for the wifejust as Jesus sacrificed for his
bride, the church.
When we operate like this inthe marriage, it becomes a
witness to the world that welove each other and God.
It's important to realize thatall our relationships in some
way glorify God when our motiveis correct.
(01:03):
When asking people what theycare or are passionate about,
you will often get the answerit's family.
But that doesn't describe themotive or why that is.
They will tell you they lovethem or are passionate about
caring for them and making themhappy, but why?
When we evaluate the motive, wesee that it could be for the
(01:25):
self-gratification thatproviding for them makes you
happy.
I don't think most people thinkbeyond that aspect.
Maybe they see it as a sense ofduty or obligation.
Then they extract what joy theycan from it.
However, when these are themotives, we rob ourselves of
God's greater joy for us.
When these are the motives werob ourselves of God's greater
(01:45):
joy for us, when we shift themotive from any of these that I
just named to the motive ofglorifying God as the primary
reason, we will have a fullerjoy.
That doesn't come from ourexperience with family, but from
God himself.
The reason is that we do whatwe do to glorify Him, for no
other reason.
The benefit will be that yourwife, your husband, children
(02:09):
will all be cared for well,happy and satisfied in you, as
you will find that you becomesatisfied in God.
Most of the issues within ourrelationships come from unmet
expectations that we apply topeople, and this creates a
tension that cripples us.
When we place the expectationon God to fulfill His promises
(02:30):
toward us, as we glorify Him, wewill release anyone else of our
expectations because we are nolonger looking to get something
from them.
Instead, we are looking for ourjoy and satisfaction to come
from God Himself.
That might seem like a stretchfor some people, as most of us
have been taught not to expectanything from God and that we
(02:51):
should sacrifice ourselves forhim, as we don't deserve any
more than what we get.
But that does not capture God'sheart as a giver, as what he
primarily wants to give ishimself.
What he primarily wants to giveis himself.
When we deny God of this, weare in turn robbing him of his
glory.
John Piper said it best God ismost glorified in us when we are
(03:14):
most satisfied in him.
God wants us to be satisfied inhim, and that satisfaction can
be produced in all of ourrelationships.
The marriage relationship is theprimary one, but, as we will
now see, the parent-childrelationship has its place in
glorifying God as well.
So the parent-childrelationship this is a picture
(03:35):
of our position before God, theFather in Heaven.
Fathers must realize they aresupposed to be a representative
or a reflection of the Father inheaven towards their children.
This relationship is one of, ifnot the most, impactful in
leading a child to Christ.
Children look to their fathersas the ultimate example of moral
(03:57):
living, and they imitate thison many levels.
We see it all the time in oursociety, and we can often gauge
parents by their children'sbehavior.
When we lead our childrenastray, we in turn rob them of
the promises that God has forthem, which are prosperity and
long life.
Just as we receive theassurance of salvation and our
(04:19):
obedience to God, the childreceives the promise of long
life and prosperity andobedience to the parent, which
will lead to obedience to theLord as long as the father does
not provoke his children toanger.
Proverbs 22, verse 6.
Train up a child in the waythat he should go.
Even when he is old, he willnot depart from it.
(04:39):
2 Corinthians 1, verse 20 to 22.
For all the promises of Godfind their yes in Him.
That is why it is through Himthat we utter our amen to God
for His glory.
And it is God who establishesus with you in Christ and has
anointed us, and who has alsoput His seal on us and given us
(05:01):
His Spirit in our hearts as aguarantee.
Now, continuing with the ideathat we are to be imitators of
Christ.
We now look at the child-parentrelationship presented by Paul
in Ephesians 6, verses 1-4.
Honor your father and yourmother.
This is the first commandmentwith a promise that it may go
(05:25):
well with you and that you maylive long in the land.
Fathers, do not provoke yourchildren to anger, but bring
them up in the discipline andinstruction of the Lord.
Now that promise is from thesixth commandment written by God
in Exodus, chapter 20, verse 12.
Honor your father and yourmother, that your days may be
long in the land and that theLord, your God, is giving you.
(05:48):
Matthew, chapter 18, verses 1to 6.
Who is the greatest?
At that time, the disciples cameto Jesus saying who is the
greatest in the kingdom ofheaven?
And calling to him a child.
He put him in the midst of themand said Truly, I say to you,
unless you turn and become likea children, you will never enter
(06:11):
the kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself likethis child is the greatest in
the kingdom of heaven.
Whoever receives one such childin my name receives me.
But whoever causes listen tothis whoever causes one of these
little ones who believe in meto sin, it would be better for
him to have a great millstonefastened around his neck and to
(06:32):
be drowned in the depth of thesea.
The Lord Jesus.
He takes this relationshipextremely seriously, because
children are vulnerable andeasily manipulated.
Parents have the highest levelof influence on their children
and God designed it this way sothat we would train them up
properly.
He says it would be better fora millstone to be tied around
(06:54):
our necks and thrown into thesea when we don't.
That's a pretty harsh statementand since it is coming from
Jesus, we can assume that he istaking this topic seriously.
To say that drowning in thedepths of the sea would be
better and since it is comingfrom Jesus, we can assume that
he is taking this topicseriously To say that drowning
in the depths of the sea wouldbe better is indicating to us
the severity of God's wrath thatwill come upon us for leading
(07:17):
children into sin.
So instead, we are to use ourinfluence over our children to
lead them to Jesus and trainthem up in God's word so that
they will never depart from thefaith.
In turn, when the children areobedient to their parents, they
have a promise from God that hewill give them a long life and
prosper them.
This relationship is anotherexample of the Lord's submission
to the Father and should bemodeled on our part as well.
(07:39):
John 14, verse 31,.
But I do as the Father hascommanded me, so that the world
may know that I love the Father.
And John 12, verse 50 says andI know that His commandment is
eternal life.
Jesus opened a way for us tohave a relationship with the
(08:02):
Father, just as he did InEphesians, chapter 5,.
We are told to imitate God.
The parent-child relationshipis another way we can do that.
So what does a healthyfather-son relationship look
like?
We have two ways to look atthis.
The one perspective is ourrelationship with God as the
child, and the other perspectiveis our relationship with our
(08:26):
children as the parent.
Now, we can't be an example ifwe don't have a healthy
relationship with God to startwith.
We must understand thisrelationship, to imitate God, so
that our children will see himwhen they see us, just as we see
the Father when we see Jesus.
The question is have we knownHim or do we know Him?
We will briefly examine John,chapter 14 to try and capture
the perspective Jesus gave us.
(08:48):
I can't stress enough howimportant it is that we
understand how God loves us sothat we can imitate Him.
You know, throughout my yearsas a parent, I looked to my
Father in heaven as an examplewhen disciplining my children,
for example.
When my years as a parent, Ilook to my father in heaven as
an example when disciplining mychildren, for example, when they
did something wrong, I would domy best not to react to the
situation out of anger.
Instead, I would do as myfather has done for me I would
(09:10):
be patient with them and askthem if they understood what
they did.
We would discuss the situationand then I would make them aware
that they had to walk throughthe repercussions of their
actions, which could have beenany number of things based on
what they did.
Then I would tell them that Iwouldn't fix the problem, but I
would walk with them through it,that I would not leave them nor
(09:32):
forsake them.
My boys would always feel theweight of dealing with these
repercussions, whether it beasking for forgiveness, giving
back something they took orpaying for something they broke.
I always ensured they felt thefull weight of their sin by
walking through therepercussions and not rescuing
or fixing it for them.
But I also ensured they felt mylove for them by walking with
(09:56):
them through the situation.
They knew they would never beabandoned and left alone to
figure it out themselves.
They always had me to look to,so they knew what to do next or
to explain why these were therepercussions.
I never allowed my anger to bethe motivator.
Instead, I tried to let my lovefor them be the driving force,
as I wanted them to see that howI was treating them was how God
(10:18):
had treated me.
God never came down out ofheaven and slapped me in the
face or hollered at me, but hiswords reminded me that he was
slow to anger, quick to forgiveand required me to deal with the
repercussions of my actions.
I was always to ask forforgiveness and restore whatever
needed to be restored, aboveand beyond what was lost or
(10:40):
destroyed in the first place.
Because of this, my boys grewup knowing I loved them and
meant business when restoringwhat was destroyed.
They knew that they never hadto go at it alone and that I
would guide them through thesteps to make these things right
.
Another advantage ofdisciplining like this is that
it ensures proper justice.
That means that when my boysasked for forgiveness and tried
(11:04):
to restore what was lost, theother party that was wronged
couldn't unjustly attack them,require more from them than what
was required or take revenge onthem by my presence.
They knew as well as the peoplethey wronged that they couldn't
do anything that wasn't morallyproper.
Had my boys stepped out of line, I was there to correct them
(11:24):
and ensure they did the rightthing.
Had the people they wrongedstep out of line, I was there to
protect my boys with all mystrength.
That ensured justice was doneand that they felt loved while
being disciplined.
That is precisely how ourFather in heaven has dealt with
us and requires us to be thatexample to our children.
Being a parent is a greatresponsibility and privilege,
(11:46):
and we should desire the bestfor our kids.
The only way we could do that isto know the Father ourselves,
just as Jesus has shown us inJohn chapter 14, verses 7 to 14.
Jesus has shown us in Johnchapter 14, verses 7 to 14.
If you really know me, you willknow my father as well From now
on.
You do know him and have seenhim.
(12:08):
And Philip said Lord, show usthe father, that will be enough
for us.
And Jesus answered don't youknow me, philip, even after I
have been among you such a longtime?
Anyone who has seen me has seenthe Father.
How can you say show us theFather.
Don't you believe that I am inthe Father and that the Father
(12:30):
is in me?
The words I say to you, I donot speak on my own authority.
Rather, it is the Father livingin me who is doing his work.
Believe me when I say that I amin the Father and the Father
living in me who is doing hiswork.
Believe me when I say that I amin the Father and the Father is
in me, or at least believe onthe evidence of the works
themselves.
Very truly, I tell you whoeverbelieves in me will do the works
(12:51):
I have been doing, and theywill do even greater things than
these, because I am going tothe Father and I will do
whatever you ask in my name sothat the Father may be glorified
in the Son.
Here he is talking aboutspiritual works, not physical
(13:14):
miracles like he did.
The idea is that more will cometo Jesus and be saved through
the church than through hisworldly ministry.
We are his body and theFather's spirit is in us, like
it was in him when we are bornagain and filled with his spirit
.
The spirit reveals the Fatherand his will, which is to save
(13:35):
this lost world by inviting themthrough the preaching of the
gospel by the church.
In verse 13, we see Jesus saidthat we could ask for anything
in his name and that he would doit.
Many believers have taken thisscripture out of context and
applied it completely wrong.
They think that because theyend each prayer with in the name
(13:55):
of Jesus, it automaticallyimplies he will do it.
They don't realize that Jesusdidn't implies he will do it.
They don't realize that Jesusdidn't say he would do anything
that they ask, period.
He said he would do anything.
They asked to glorify theFather in the Son.
Our motive needs to be one thatdesires to glorify God, and
then Jesus will give us whateverwe ask.
(14:16):
That, however, is rarely thecase and the reason we see
powerless churches all around.
They have no idea what it meansto glorify God because they
aren't grounded in the truth ofhis word, which tells us what
his will is and what exactly itis that glorifies him.
We aren't to decide forourselves what we think will
(14:36):
glorify God.
We are to know based on what hehas told us in his word.
So what is it that glorifiesGod?
John, chapter 14, verses 15 to21.
If you love me, keep mycommands and I will ask the
father and he will give youanother advocate to help you and
be with you forever the spiritof truth.
The world cannot accept him,because it neither sees him nor
(14:59):
knows him.
But you know him, for he liveswith you and will be in you.
I will not leave you as orphans.
I will come to you.
Before long the world will notsee me anymore, but you will see
me because I live.
You also will live.
On that day you will realizethat I am in my Father and you
(15:20):
are in me and I am in you.
Whoever has my commands andkeeps them is the one who loves
me.
The one who loves me will beloved by my Father, and I too
will love them and show myselfto them.
So it's not a matter ofobligation but should be one of
(15:40):
desire, like my example earlierwith my children, they followed
my commands to repent and torestore and, as a result, they
glorified me.
They listened to me out of loveand trust, so that I could do
the right thing for them.
You could argue that they wereobligated to do these things.
But as they learned that myheart was for them continually
(16:04):
and it was good, they shiftedfrom obligation to desire.
Now, of course, we all startwith commands as something we
are obligated to do.
But in time, as we learn aboutthe one who gave the commands
and why he did, we learn to lovethe command giver and start to
desire his commands, becausethey bring us life and are not
(16:25):
distractions.
They make right what we didwrong and restore what we lost.
That's what God's commands doand we should desire them.
Mark, chapter 12, verses 30 to31.
And you shall love the Lord,your God, with all your heart
and with all your soul and withall your mind and with all your
strength.
The second is this you shalllove your neighbor as yourself.
(16:48):
There is no other commandmentgreater than these.
John 14, 22.
Then Judas, not Iscariot, saidthey thought the Messiah was
coming to reveal himself to thewhole world and conquer.
Judas couldn't understand thisyet, as Jesus was only coming
(17:08):
for his own which the Father hadgiven him.
As Jesus was only coming forhis own which the Father had
given him.
We were given to him before thefoundations of the world and he
was coming to redeem us tohimself, as the Father commanded
.
John 14, 23-24,.
Jesus replied Anyone who lovesme will obey my teaching.
My Father will love them and wewill come to them and make our
(17:29):
home with them.
Anyone who does not love mewill not obey loved us.
1 John 4, 19.
Jesus told us we had heard andknown of the Father that was the
(17:51):
Father's plan, that they wouldmake their home with us and that
we would be the temple of God.
1 Corinthians 3.16.
Do you not know that you areGod's temple and that God's
Spirit dwells in you?
And John 14.25-28.
All this I have spoken whilestill with you.
But the Advocate, the HolySpirit, whom the Father will
(18:13):
send in my name, will teach youall things and will remind you
of everything that I have said.
Peace, I leave you with mypeace.
I give you.
I do not give to you as theworld gives.
I do not let your hearts betroubled and do not be afraid.
You heard me say I am goingaway and I'm coming back to you.
(18:40):
Jesus is returning to the Father, where he is equal to, not less
than, the Father.
In the flesh he humbled himselfand became less than the Father
to accomplish his will, but inheaven he is seated with the
Father.
Philippians 2, verses 7 to 10.
(19:01):
But made himself of noreputation and took upon him the
form of a servant and was madein the likeness of men and being
found in fashion as a man.
He humbled himself and becameobedient unto death, even the
death of the cross, whereforeGod also has highly exalted him
and given him a name which isabove every name, that at the
name of Jesus every knee shouldbow of things in heaven and
(19:22):
things in earth and the thingsunder the earth.
Jesus then said in John 14,29-31, I have told you now,
before it happens, so that whenit does happen you will believe.
I will not say much more to you, for the Prince of this world
is coming.
He has no hold over me, but hecomes so that the world may
learn that I love the Father anddo exactly what my Father has
(19:46):
commanded me.
We are as little childrenbefore the Father in heaven.
The adversary, the devil, comesat us and is allowed, so that
the world will know that we lovethe Father when we do exactly
what he tells us to out of lovethrough our suffering.
It shows the world andourselves that we have genuine
love for God.
We don't strive to be obedientchildren.
(20:07):
We are obedient because we lovehim and we love him because he
first loved us.
Obedient because we love himand we love him because he first
loved us.
That is how we imitate God byloving others as we love him and
he loves us.
To love others this way, youmust know the Father and
understand his love for you, howhe has loved you and the impact
that it has made on you.
We must all experience God'slove for us in a real way,
(20:30):
beyond intellectual knowledge,as knowledge itself doesn't
produce a relationship.
It just allows us to know theone who is inviting us into the
relationship and tells us how tohave that relationship.
It requires us to take a stepof faith, to walk in the
knowledge he has given us andapply it so that our
relationship becomes real.
Could you imagine knowing aboutyour spouse and all their
(20:52):
desires and yet never meetingthem?
To be told we have been boughtwith a great price, saved from
our sin, and never meet the onewho paid the price, would be sad
.
The Bible introduces us to himand prepares us to walk by faith
and meet him.
It won't be until you meet theliving God in a way that brings
you to your knees, that you willbe changed.
(21:14):
Paul had this experience on theroad to Damascus, and the
disciples had it when he showedhimself to them, risen from the
dead.
The question is have you methim?
Do you desire to meet him?
Or are you like the Israeliteswho told Moses you go up on the
mountain and meet God, becausethey were afraid?
God is inviting each one of usinto his presence.
(21:36):
We just have to step into it.
So what are you waiting for?
Let's pray.
Father, thank you so much foryour word today.
I thank you for the model thatyou have given us of the
parent-child relationshipthrough you and Jesus, and that
you are inviting us into thatrelationship, that you desire it
(21:57):
, that you desire for us to knowyou the way Jesus knew you, and
that we would glorify you as achild glorifies their parents
when they act accordinglyBecause, as children, their
parents when they actaccordingly Because, as children
, we are an example of who ourparents are.
Father, you are calling us tobe that example for you, that we
(22:19):
would resemble you and, in turn, glorify you.
God, jesus, I thank you thatyou gave us the ability to ask
for anything in your name thatwe can live a life that models
that, that makes it possible forus to do that when we can't do
it in ourselves.
So thank you for giving us away.
We love you and we thank you inyour precious name, jesus, amen
(22:43):
.
Now I want to thank you forjoining us today, and I hope
this message helped you take astep closer in your relationship
with Jesus and that you have abetter understanding of just how
much God loves you and wantsyou to know him.
In our next episode we're goingto look at the master-servant
relationship and how thisrelates to us in the workplace.
This is the last area of lifeanyone wants to be in, let alone
(23:04):
be an example for Christ in.
Most of us just want to go inand do our nine-to-five and go
home.
We see our jobs as a means toprovide for our needs and wants,
but God wants us to see it as amission field.
This is an environment that hasthe potential to be an
effective and fruitful missionfield if we would just allow God
to work in us and through us.
(23:25):
Instead, we tend to fight Godand suppress the truth because
of fear or selfishness, when weshould realize that we are all
called to ministry and that theworkplace is not only a mission
field that is ripe for thepicking, but that God placed you
there specifically for that andis providing for you through it
(23:46):
.
At the same time, we are to be apeople that share the gospel in
all areas of life, and in ournext episode, we will discuss
just how to do that in aneffective, god-glorifying way.
Now, before we go, I want toencourage you to send us a text
message from the link providedin the description of this
episode.
We would love to hear yourfeedback and questions you may
(24:07):
have from today's show, as ithelps us produce future episodes
that are beneficial to you.
In addition, please feel freeto use this podcast as a
resource to help others andshine a light into the darkness.
God bless, and we'll see younext time on the Takeaway.
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