Continued from last week

God’s intent is to bring up godly children, in His image, who will reign under Him as kings and priests with Jesus Christ on this earth: “And have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth” (Revelation 5:10).

For Christian parents, the ultimate goal is to lay a foundation in their children’s young impressionable years, so they will always desire to fully seek God as their Father. That is the goal, though parents cannot force children to make the right decisions.

Even God, our Father, does not force us to make right decisions. He will lead us and direct us, but He will not force us. The goal of godly parenting is to help our children want to walk in the footsteps of parents who are living God’s way of life, and who are walking in the footsteps of their spiritual Father. As parents, we want to develop our children’s desire to follow God, not just emphasize our desire for them to follow God.

Both my wife and I were blessed to have parents who were very consistent in parenting. Not all have been privileged to experience a pattern of consistency in parenting, but we all experience the pattern of our spiritual Father, who is totally consistent with us.

We can clearly see from God’s word that the Creator of the universe operates on the “blessing for obedience and correction for disobedience” principle. If we follow this principle consistently in parenting, we lay the foundation for the future family of God.

Yes, our personal example is of the utmost importance! Children must see the real God through their parents’ eyes. Young children’s perception of God is primarily developed by their parents’ example. We cannot hope to rear godly children if we, as parents, are not genuine godly examples. If children see intolerance, hypocrisy, self-centeredness and frequent anger, they will not likely be attracted to their parents’ belief system. Instead, the authority figures in their youth will provoke a negative attitude toward God’s authority later in life.

Parents need to prove fully, in their present life experience, that God’s way of life is of very high value and works for them! If we have not clearly demonstrated to our children that God’s principles work for us, how will we ever convince them that God’s laws are worthwhile, and that the godly principles we teach are good for them?

As important as our example is, however, it is only a part of the whole. Even if every one of us could become the “perfect parent,” our perfection would not guarantee a perfect outcome. The Bible clearly speaks of Adam as “the son of God” (Luke 3:38), yet we know that God refused to force Adam and Eve to make the right decision. God taught Adam and Eve to live His way of life, yet the perfect Parent had children who chose to reject His example and teaching. Later, God’s child (Adam) reared a son (Cain) who became a murderer.

So, do we have any hope of rearing children who will commit their lives to God? We live in a world that is under the influence of the “god of this age” (2 Corinthians 4:4), the “prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2).

The entertainment media are saturated with the perverted mindset of Satan’s way of life.