Eph 6:4
INTRO: It is my conviction that the role of fathers is being eroded in our contemporary society. To some extent it is the fathers themselves who have brought fatherhood to the ebb at which it now exists. But I believe God has entrusted and assigned to fathers a vital, proactive responsibility to their children. Indeed, the spiritual leadership of a family in Christ is assigned to the husband and father. Fathers need to be teaching their children...
I. THAT BEING IN THE WRONG PLACE CAN HARM THEM
A. Consider ...
1. Gen 19:14 Lot in Sodom (2 Pet 2:6-8)
2. 2 Sam 11:1-3a David on the rooftop
3. Prov 1:10,15 Solomons advice
4. Lk 22:55-57 Peter at the fire of unbelievers
B. Most of the time we can choose where to be
1. and fathers need to teach their children that choosing to be in wrong place can bring moral and spiritual hurt and/or harm to influence, reputation
2. the lesson of Lot in Sodom is graphic proof of this!
3. are we as concerned for their spiritual safety as for their physical safety?
4. at times, such teaching and guidance may place fathers in an unenviable role ... but better this than to see children in harms way (1 Cor 15:33) ... I wonder if Lot had been passive in this teaching role, or was Sodoms influence for evil that great?
II. THAT HARD WORK WILL USUALLY BE REWARDED
A. We may be teaching them an easy street life!
1. are we giving too much with no expectation?
2. money doesnt grow on trees - no, but so many children live on the dole from parents
3. and are fathers setting an example of the joy and need for hard work (bare minimums to keep job?)
4. I saw my own father work diligently and happily - never heard him complain about his company or his bosses - he was highly regarded by everyone who knew him in his work circles!
B. Prov 24:30-34 And note especially v.32
1. working hard, diligently does have its rewards
2. not the least of them is a true satisfaction which things we may busy cannot ever supply
3. what about 2 Thes 3:10? are we teaching this?
4. or Col 3:23? are we teaching this?
III. TO HONOR FATHER AND MOTHER
A. So many children do not honor parents
1. speak disrespectfully, disobedient, contempt
2. but many children have little time with their parents - hardly know them!
3. our society has so fragmented into generations with special rights, etc. that generations have developed into warring factions
4. yes, I see this even in Christian families
B. Eph 6:2,3 And fathers must teach this
1. perhaps it begins with father and mother honoring each other!
2. and dads can so honor moms that children will see and learn how she is valued and to be valued...from dads
3. reminder to a child, Dont treat mom that way!
4. firm, loving instruction and discipline from earliest years is so necessary here
CLOSE: Fathers, our children need us ... not just as benevolent donors. They need us as spiritual leaders, teachers and examples who are convicted by the word of God and committed to the life in Christ!
Cecil A. Hutson
05 September 1999
You Must Hear the Gospel
Romans 10:17
You must hear the gospel and then understand and recognize that you are lost without Jesus Christ no matter who you are and no matter what your background is. The Bible tells us that “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) Before you can be saved, you must understand that you are lost and that the only way to be saved is by obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:8) Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6) “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17)
You Must Believe
Hebrews 11:6
You must believe and have faith in God because “without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6) But neither belief alone nor faith alone is sufficient to save. (James 2:19; James 2:24; Matthew 7:21)
You Must Repent
Acts 3:19
You must repent of your sins. (Acts 3:19) But repentance alone is not enough. The so-called “Sinner’s Prayer” that you hear so much about today from denominational preachers does not appear anywhere in the Bible. Indeed, nowhere in the Bible was anyone ever told to pray the “Sinner’s Prayer” to be saved. By contrast, there are numerous examples showing that prayer alone does not save. Saul, for example, prayed following his meeting with Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:11), but Saul was still in his sins when Ananias met him three days later (Acts 22:16). Cornelius prayed to God always, and yet there was something else he needed to do to be saved (Acts 10:2, 6, 33, 48). If prayer alone did not save Saul or Cornelius, prayer alone will not save you. You must obey the gospel. (2 Thess. 1:8)
You Must Confess
Romans 10:9
You must confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (Romans 10:9-10) Note that you do NOT need to make Jesus “Lord of your life.” Why? Because Jesus is already Lord of your life whether or not you have obeyed his gospel. Indeed, we obey him, not to make him Lord, but because he already is Lord. (Acts 2:36) Also, no one in the Bible was ever told to just “accept Jesus as your personal savior.” We must confess that Jesus is the Son of God, but, as with faith and repentance, confession alone does not save. (Matthew 7:21)
You Must Be Baptized
Acts 2:38
Having believed, repented, and confessed that Jesus is the Son of God, you must be baptized for the remission of your sins. (Acts 2:38) It is at this point (and not before) that your sins are forgiven. (Acts 22:16) It is impossible to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ without teaching the absolute necessity of baptism for salvation. (Acts 8:35-36; Romans 6:3-4; 1 Peter 3:21) Anyone who responds to the question in Acts 2:37 with an answer that contradicts Acts 2:38 is NOT proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ!
You Must Be Faithful Unto Death
Revelation 2:10
Once you are saved, God adds you to his church and writes your name in the Book of Life. (Acts 2:47; Philippians 4:3) To continue in God’s grace, you must continue to serve God faithfully until death. Unless they remain faithful, those who are in God’s grace will fall from grace, and those whose names are in the Book of Life will have their names blotted out of that book. (Revelation 2:10; Revelation 3:5; Galatians 5:4)