What Does The Bible Say?

Question- What does the Bible say about raising children?

Answer- One of the greatest privileges parents are given is the entrustment God grants them when children arrive in their lives. In Ephesians 6:4, it says to fathers- “…do not provoke them to wrath, but raise them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” If a man brings a child into this world, God charges him with the responsibility to make sure they are raised in accordance to God’s Word. There is a difference between “siring a child” and being a father. They should be one and the same, but we live in dangerous times when fathers are running away from their responsibilities. As a result of this, there are nearly 25million children in this country who live in homes without their biological fathers. Even more tragic is the news that 60 per cent of youth suicides are from fatherless homes.

Fatherless children are more likely to suffer psychological development issues, live in poverty, drop out of school, engage in school violence, abuse substances and enter the juvenile justice system. Eighty-five percent of those in jail come from fatherless homes! It is clear that, as a society, we have a problem.

God’s word has the answers if people will take the time to learn them and implement them. Observe these passages with me.

Psalm 127:3- “children are a heritage of the Lord, blessed is the man who has many of them.

Prov. 22:6- “train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

Prov. 23:13,14- “do not withhold discipline from a child…” Proper godly discipline is necessary in the proper rearing of a child. Nowhere in the Bible does God endorse or approve of child abuse, but He does stress a disciplined life and the need for discipline in any ordered home, society, or life. Heb. 12:6 “whom the Lord loves he chastens…” is a principle God uses in giving us His rules and expecting us to be accountable to obey them.

Proverbs. 29:15 tells us that a child left to his own will brings shame to his parents. Understanding loving authority and the need for it is basic to learning how to live in this world. In Luke 2:52- we read of how Jesus was trained. “And Jesus grew in wisdom, stature and in favor with God and man.” In this passage, we see the outline for all parents. We need to make sure we instruct our children in the knowledge necessary for them to be intellectually sound (wisdom). We need to provide means for them to be physically healthy (Stature), and in favor with God (spiritual growth) and men (social growth). God has entrusted parents to provide these things for their children. Children have a right to be able to depend on their parents for such. The government is no substitute for this. It is a sad commentary on our world that God’s plan in this area is destroyed by selfish adults who fail to care for the blessings God has entrusted to them. May all parents grow up and take seriously the charge given to you. Do not send your kids to church- go with them. Put God first in your life (Matt. 6:33) and teach your children well the ways of the Lord. You will never regret it. A child needs his mother AND father. ---Stan Adams- Come visit with us at Maple Street Church of Christ, your children will be taught from the Bible by loving and skilled teachers. Classes for all levels and age groups.

Please address all questions and comments to What Does the Bible Say> C/O Maple St. Church of Christ, PO Box 3086, Liberty, TX 77575 and visit our website, maplestreetliberty.org.