Grace Messages

Isaiah 28:21 mentions “God’s Strange Work.” In context, this is referring to God judging His chosen people, Israel. Because of God’s heart, He desires to provide a substitute for the execution of His justice. Justice must be extended, but because of God’s love and mercy, He provides a way for justice to fall on a substitute. Unfortunately, when people do not avail themselves of God’s substitute for their personal consequences, He is forced to execute His justice on the very people He desired to save. The books of Jonah and Nahum, along with the time period in between and immediately following, take us through a season where we can observe the character of God in this area of His ”strange work.” This morning, we will introduce the background and important themes of the Book of Jonah.

Teenagers often get a bad wrap. They can definitely be a “challenge,” but NOT in the way they are often assumed to be. The challenge with parenting teenagers is they are growing up, attempting to find some independence, and often many parents are unsure of how to shepherd them through this challenging time. If the parent does NOT learn how to transition to a different parenting style in a couple of areas, they run the risk of alienating their teen and disrupting true fellowship with them for a time.

This morning we want to take what we have been learning about biblical parenting and see where it shows up in the lives of those recorded in the Bible. Now, if we were to take a video of each one of our lives as parents and only pick one or two scenes from our lives to evaluate, you and I could fall into the GOOD example category or the BAD example category depending upon which scenes were picked! So, we are NOT making an overall, comprehensive, or conclusive statement on the examples chosen, but we are simply evaluating some recorded scenes in their lives!

How do you guarantee godly children? The cold, hard truth is that you can’t!

The outcome in our children’s lives is more complex than whether or not you, as a parent, have done all the right things in all the right ways. As discussed last week, your children are also responsible for the way they respond to your parenting. But, there are some additional things that should UNDERGIRD everything you do as a parent! These are things that we do not often think about because we are formulaic and programmatic in our child rearing. So, we want to consider five concepts that should undergird a Spirit-filled approach to child rearing.

Mother’s Day 2022 sermon

This morning we are going to take a little “shift” in our focus and focus primarily on the children this morning. One of the keys of SUCCESS in “nurturing the next generation” is the response of the child to the training they are or are not receiving. Children are independent, free will decision-making organisms! Thus, children must be encouraged recognize the VALUE of certain things God lays out in His Word, even though everything in them wants to disagree and rebel!

A couple of weeks ago, we considered the general concept and need for TRAINING a child, but to do it in such a way that the parent considers the uniqueness of each child according to God’s special design and purpose for them. It is our job as parents to carry out the wishes and desires of the owner – we are simply stewards of our children. The Scriptures reveal two very specific components of that TRAINING regimen: Teaching your children and disciplining your children. This morning, we will consider the discipline aspect of training up our children.

William Shakespeare wrote: “What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet.” Shakespeare used this line in his play, Romeo and Juliet, to convey that the naming of things is irrelevant. Although a popular quote and sentiment, is this true? In some ways it may be, but in others it is definitely not! The Scriptures put a lot of weight in the name of Jesus. This is because His name represents WHO He is, and WHAT He has done. In this sense, His name provides things only He can provide – namely, salvation from sin and its consequences AND hope!

Last week we began looking at one of the most important relationships in the home – the parent-child relationship. And we said how this relationship, more than any other, reflects our role as disciple-makers on this earth! That’s the goal of parenting – dependent disciples of Jesus Christ! But HOW do you get there? What are God’s instructions to assist us in this task? This morning, we are going to specifically consider HOW God wants us to THINK as it relates to our children. We want to take His viewpoint on children, and thus this divine viewpoint mindset becomes our baseline for every activity we take in raising our kids.

Last week we began looking at one of the most important relationships in the home – the parent-child relationship. And we said how this relationship, more than any other, reflects our role as disciple-makers on this earth! That’s the goal of parenting – dependent disciples of Jesus Christ! But HOW do you get there? What are God’s instructions to assist us in this task? This morning, we are going to specifically consider HOW God wants us to THINK as it relates to our children. We want to take His viewpoint on children, and thus this divine viewpoint mindset becomes our baseline for every activity we take in raising our kids.