Pastor Rick nailed the message speaking on how parenting our children is done exactly how we ourselves view God; if like a judge and disciplinarian, then we will err on the discipline side and neglect grace. The key being a right understanding of God as Father.
When we understand that God loves us like a Father, then we will love our children and train them as our Heavenly Father trains us. So how does our heavenly Father love us?
- He initiates love (1 John 4:19)
- He chooses us because He loves us (Deut. 7:7-8)
- He demonstrates His love for us (John 13:34)
- He loves us as family (1 John 3:1)
Those are just a few examples of the love of God for His children. The sermon also got me thinking about the kind of love a parent has for their children and i decided that it is an everlasting kind. The kind that is not shaken by disobedience or strife. It does not waver or falter under persecution.
i had to discipline one of my daughters this afternoon for pushing her little brother down and i made sure that afterwards that she knew that there was nothing she could ever do to make me not love her and that the most loving thing a daddy could do was teach their children to obey so that they can obey God.
What about the flip side, why should children obey their parents? Should it not flow from a river of love for them? We do not obey God to win His favor, we obey because we have His favor and we want to follow in our Father's ways. This gets me back to my point about the Law.
There was time when Law was my guardian and kept me imprisoned until Christ was revealed to me. i would obey only so i could be good or get what i want and not feel guilty. On this side of regeneration, i obey because i love my Father and His commandments are sweet to me. If one takes the time to read them in the OT, they will see just how much our Father looks out for us and knows what is best for us
Yeshua says in the gospel of John that if we love Him we will keep His commands. This is not some legalistic mystery, but rather a statement of pure fact; the child who loves the Father obeys the commands of the Son whom He loved and sent to die for us. Yeshua was trying to give us a checkpoint to know if we are His; do we seek to obey Him, not to earn His favor, but because we love Him?
i pray that i can parent with an everlasting love that transcends my wants and desires and seeks to sacrifice my life for the betterment of my children just as Christ gave His life up for the betterment of my soul.
