- Eph 6:4; desire to lead in Christ; negative of discipline and positive of leading
- applicable to all regardless of lifestyle because of analogy of us as God’s children
- weighty thing to understand and accept
- we have limited time and culture is heavily influencing us and our kids
- central focus on Me, Me, Me!
- who and what ought to be the main influence of kids’ lives? their parents
- Your primary goal as a parent is Discipleship
- called to grow in the Lord
- “Fathers”; specific but also broad to include both parents
- fathers bear responsibility of deciding how to disciple, lead, reinforce mothers’ teachings
- marriage calls to oneness, similarly there must be one in parenting too to demonstrate to your kids
- “of the Lord”: relationship shaped by Jesus
- therefore primary goal isn’t to live vicariously through your kids
- NOR is it to be their best friend; your goal is to be a shepherd
- Christ-centred vs child-centred parenting
- we need order and schedule BUT kids’ schedule can’t control our lives
- need to teach them lives revolve around Christ, not them; SHOW THEM CHRIST!
- you are called to be an evangelist; need to understand Jesus is more than a friend
- your job isn’t to convert your kids or make them say the sinner’s prayer; God’s job to save/convert, while ours is to evangelise and demonstrate
- if your kid professes faith, praise God!… and continue to walk with them to observe they are bearing fruit and actually living like Christ
- do not rush to put stamp of approval!
- Deut 6:6-9
- teach them the history of God
- be students and teachers of the Word
- not just a formal intellectual exercise, but rather something organic and special
- teaching the Gospel, yo!
- teach them the holiness of God
- teach His character
- teach them the hope of God
- can’t earn favour with God
- we are in desperate need for Christ
- teaching the Good News, yo!
- teach them the help of God
- we are needy people
- teach them the history of God
- human problem: we love and trust ourselves more than God
- the issue isn’t our lack of self-confidence
- all of life is a classroom to teach the greatness and teachings of the Lord
- sheltering and bubble-wrapping our kids is not the answer; shepherding is!
- your home is the first place to learn
- Test: ask kids “What is most important to dad?”
- children’s ministry is supplement NOT primary source of discipleship (that’s supposed to be at home, remember???)
- Your greatest opportunity is discipline
- corrective discipline, not formative instruction
- intentional discipline leads to effective discipleship
- Heb 12:5-11
- discipline presents precious gospel opportunities
- discipline hurts sometimes
- if you’re not experiencing discipline you may not be legitimate child of God
- discipline teaches they are not in control; there is a greater power!
- break their will such that they will submit to God’s will
- teaches they reap what they sow; obedience is a blessing
- Proverbs: Father writing to son regarding discipline, wisdom and life
- Prov 5:23
- Prov 6:23
- Prov 12:1
- Prov 13:24
- Prov 15:10
- Prov 19:18
- Prov 22:15; heart transformation
- the discipline from us now is to help avoid future discipline from God
- actions flow from heart “…the heart of the problem is a problem of the heart…”
- without dealing with heart problem, behaviour modification is dangerous/useless, similar to mowing over the weeds rather than pulling them out at the root
- dealing with “what” vs “why”; fake repentance
- proper behaviour is not sufficient for life change