From the Principal's Desk
Dear Parents,
Parenting is a huge undertaking that requires much patience, perseverance, and premeditation. You have to have a plan for what you want to accomplish, how you want your child to turn out; and then you must work that plan, never giving up and never giving in. When I think of parenting verses in the Bible, two stand out to me as the most important, and other verses attach to these foundational verses. One is Proverbs 22:6: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” The other is Matthew 28:19-20: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
In the Proverbs passage, we see that children are to be trained in the godly way. This is the way of righteousness. The Matthew passage, the Great Commission, says that Jesus wants all people, including children, to be followers of Him. So go to the lost and preach the gospel. When they receive Him, baptize them and then begin the life-long process of instructing them to keep, guard, and protect all things that the Lord has commanded. When we put these passages together, we see that children are to be trained in the way of righteousness so that they will be followers of Jesus Christ, choosing to keep all of His commands. There are so many actions and attitudes to work on with children, how do you know what behavior to allow and what to correct? Judging and correcting behavior comes down to asking three questions: Is the behavior righteous? What do you want the end product to look like? and What behavior is age-appropriate?
The goal in child training is to produce followers of Jesus Christ. We want our children to obey Him and to be like Him. When a person has received Christ by grace through faith, he begins a life-long process of sanctification, which is the process of becoming conformed to the image of Christ. Christ is the standard; He is the goal. Therefore, we should train our children to behave in a Christ-like way. If you look at child training as a continuum, children start off as immature (selfish) and, by God’s grace, we train them to become mature (selfless, sacrificial, and serving). We want to develop them from the point of dependence to independence, where they will choose on their own to follow Jesus Christ and keep His commandments. To do this, they must receive Jesus Christ for their salvation. I will, therefore, define maturity as independently choosing to love God and keep His commandments.
To bring children to the point of maturity, we must lead them in righteous behavior. In parenting, judge whether or not the behavior is Scripturally right or wrong. All unrighteousness is sin, and sin never benefits a person; it always harms. Therefore, we cannot allow disobedience. When you see disobedience to clear commands in Scripture, like not doing what they are told, you must deal with that sin in a Scriptural way. Leading in this way requires that a person be submitted to the Holy Spirit. When you see disobedience, show the child from Scripture why the action or attitude is wrong. Then, explain what the right way is and give a Scriptural punishment. Regularly talk to your children about Bible salvation, and whether or not their behavior matches how a saved person should live. Hold your children to a Scriptural standard. We are not saved by works; but when a person, even a child, is saved, he will do good works (Ephesians 2:8-10). As you do this, you will help bring him to maturity. We will talk more about this next time.
Sincerely,
Pastor Sutton
Dear Parents,
Parenting is a huge undertaking that requires much patience, perseverance, and premeditation. You have to have a plan for what you want to accomplish, how you want your child to turn out; and then you must work that plan, never giving up and never giving in. When I think of parenting verses in the Bible, two stand out to me as the most important, and other verses attach to these foundational verses. One is Proverbs 22:6: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” The other is Matthew 28:19-20: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
In the Proverbs passage, we see that children are to be trained in the godly way. This is the way of righteousness. The Matthew passage, the Great Commission, says that Jesus wants all people, including children, to be followers of Him. So go to the lost and preach the gospel. When they receive Him, baptize them and then begin the life-long process of instructing them to keep, guard, and protect all things that the Lord has commanded. When we put these passages together, we see that children are to be trained in the way of righteousness so that they will be followers of Jesus Christ, choosing to keep all of His commands. There are so many actions and attitudes to work on with children, how do you know what behavior to allow and what to correct? Judging and correcting behavior comes down to asking three questions: Is the behavior righteous? What do you want the end product to look like? and What behavior is age-appropriate?
The goal in child training is to produce followers of Jesus Christ. We want our children to obey Him and to be like Him. When a person has received Christ by grace through faith, he begins a life-long process of sanctification, which is the process of becoming conformed to the image of Christ. Christ is the standard; He is the goal. Therefore, we should train our children to behave in a Christ-like way. If you look at child training as a continuum, children start off as immature (selfish) and, by God’s grace, we train them to become mature (selfless, sacrificial, and serving). We want to develop them from the point of dependence to independence, where they will choose on their own to follow Jesus Christ and keep His commandments. To do this, they must receive Jesus Christ for their salvation. I will, therefore, define maturity as independently choosing to love God and keep His commandments.
To bring children to the point of maturity, we must lead them in righteous behavior. In parenting, judge whether or not the behavior is Scripturally right or wrong. All unrighteousness is sin, and sin never benefits a person; it always harms. Therefore, we cannot allow disobedience. When you see disobedience to clear commands in Scripture, like not doing what they are told, you must deal with that sin in a Scriptural way. Leading in this way requires that a person be submitted to the Holy Spirit. When you see disobedience, show the child from Scripture why the action or attitude is wrong. Then, explain what the right way is and give a Scriptural punishment. Regularly talk to your children about Bible salvation, and whether or not their behavior matches how a saved person should live. Hold your children to a Scriptural standard. We are not saved by works; but when a person, even a child, is saved, he will do good works (Ephesians 2:8-10). As you do this, you will help bring him to maturity. We will talk more about this next time.
Sincerely,
Pastor Sutton