Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 13 - “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
It is the Lord your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear. There are FOUR THOUGHTS that I want to leave with you today -
Fathers, you must teach your children to LISTEN ATTENTIVELY to your firm convictions of God’s Truth
Deuteronomy 6:4 - “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one” (ESV). Fathers need to listen to God and teach his children how to hear from God. There are Truths that need to be transmitted to our children. It is not enough to send them to Sunday school though it is important but not enough.
1. Hearing God’s Truth: As fathers, we should not get caught up in our work and play and just give a token of our time to spiritual discipline. We would not be able to lead our family well unless we keep our ears open and learn to hear from God. Hearing the voice of God for ourselves and our families is vitally important. Here Moses instructed the people to listen carefully and attentively – there is only one God and one Lord. That’s the very foundation for any successful nation, community and home to survive – there is only one God. Your sons and daughter need to hear that and know that and have that embedded in the very foundation of their worldview since day one!
Fathers, you must teach your children to LISTEN ATTENTIVELY to your firm convictions of God’s Truth
Deuteronomy 6:4 - “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one” (ESV). Fathers need to listen to God and teach his children how to hear from God. There are Truths that need to be transmitted to our children. It is not enough to send them to Sunday school though it is important but not enough.
1. Hearing God’s Truth: As fathers, we should not get caught up in our work and play and just give a token of our time to spiritual discipline. We would not be able to lead our family well unless we keep our ears open and learn to hear from God. Hearing the voice of God for ourselves and our families is vitally important. Here Moses instructed the people to listen carefully and attentively – there is only one God and one Lord. That’s the very foundation for any successful nation, community and home to survive – there is only one God. Your sons and daughter need to hear that and know that and have that embedded in the very foundation of their worldview since day one!
We must pass to them the FAITH in the one true God. We know that there are many ideologies – many views being presented in the world today – if we are not careful – they will swallow our children. Like the children of Israel about to go into Canaan land, Moses knows that they are many enemies of the soul –deceptions, wrong ideologies, and paganism.
2. Transmitting God’s Truth: If you don’t take up the responsibility of imparting truths to your children the world is ever ready to feed them with every wrong ideas and view from the very pit of hell. They are many voices today seeking our children’s attention. Do not let the world teach and educate our children. Do not let TV, Movies, Internet, and Music teach our children about life. They are worldly, rebellious, and immoral and will lead our children astray. What is that one thing you want to hear from your children when they grow up?
Fathers, you must teach your children to LOVE UNRESERVEDLY through your life examples.
Deut 6:5 - You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
1. Fathers need to model LOVE in their personal life
(a) Love God with everything that is within us. We need to model loving God for our children. We need to have a passion for God and not for worldly things or they will follow us. We show our children our faith by the measure of our love for God. If we love other things we become idolatrous. The scripture says that where our treasure is there will our heart be also. It means that if we treasure our career, money and possession, our pleasure, and whatever our passion we would pour all our time and effort into it. Our children will learn that from us. We need to model our love for God – we need to show them that loving God is a top priority - the most important thing in life. Let us transfer godly values to our children by showing them that loving God with all our heart, soul and mind is more important than what money, fame, and pleasure can give us.
(b) Love the Word of God – the way to true living! Psalm 119:9-11 - How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
(c) Love others. When we show love to others it can be seen. Such kindness, generosity, and attitude of love it would be like putting a handle in the hands of our children – they will grow up to love others too - in fact very easily and very spontaneously.
2. Fathers need to model FAITHFULNESS in their marriage. Advice to fathers: None of us can claim that our marriage is always so wonderful. There were times when we struggle with our relationships. But no matter how tough it may be we should never succumb to any temptation to walk out of it, to be unfaithful, or to fall into sin. In a world of so much brokenness, there is a need for us believers to model a stable marriage, a stable family by working out our differences and allowing God to be the center of our lives and marriage.
3. Fathers need to model INTEGRITY in their workplace.
Proverbs 11:3 - The integrity of the upright guides them, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them. In all our dealings, our work, and career development INTEGRITY is the most important commodity to have. The crookedness of our dealings and behaviors will ultimately destroy us. Fathers need to bear in mind that when we let integrity leads us and guides us we will do well and will walk securely.
Proverbs 10:9 tells us that “whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.”
Fathers, you must teach your children to LEARN CREATIVELY through loving relationships.
Deut 6:6-9 - And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
1. Mentoring & Coaching: Fathers must learn to use creativity in their mentoring and coaching. Fathers – we are told to repeat the word of God to our children. The Bible tells us to talk to them when we are at home. And even when we are away from home we still need to leave behind godly instructions for them to remember. Spend time lying down next to them before they go to bed and talk to them about God and pray for them. And early in the morning speak the word of God to them. Don’t spend time scolding and reprimanding. Don’t strut like a big boss waiting to be served. Show them what it means to be godly and to remember all the goodness of God. Encourage our children to do well in education and to do well in serving God. We must be the source of encouragement, the source of security and the source of strength for our children. Learning is more than just cognitive teaching. There must be life application. Our children learn through mentoring, coaching and, apprenticeship. There must develop a father and son (daughter) relationship.
1. Mentoring & Coaching: Fathers must learn to use creativity in their mentoring and coaching. Fathers – we are told to repeat the word of God to our children. The Bible tells us to talk to them when we are at home. And even when we are away from home we still need to leave behind godly instructions for them to remember. Spend time lying down next to them before they go to bed and talk to them about God and pray for them. And early in the morning speak the word of God to them. Don’t spend time scolding and reprimanding. Don’t strut like a big boss waiting to be served. Show them what it means to be godly and to remember all the goodness of God. Encourage our children to do well in education and to do well in serving God. We must be the source of encouragement, the source of security and the source of strength for our children. Learning is more than just cognitive teaching. There must be life application. Our children learn through mentoring, coaching and, apprenticeship. There must develop a father and son (daughter) relationship.
There are several ways of learning I found useful over the years –
a. Friendship is important. This is where fathers learn to listen to them and to their fears, their struggles, and maybe their concerns. Friendship is also seen in learning to do things together especially things we like to do – playing football, watching world cup together and engage in meaningful conversation.
b. Have Family Altar - gather together to read the bible with some explanation. Then pray for one another and also for needs that we know of – church needs, people who are sick and going through difficulties. Pray consistently for missionaries too.
c. Take our children through history lessons – history about our family. They will appreciative of how we grew up – the kind of stuff that we do when we were young. Take them to the place where we grew up and from there tell stories. At special occasions gather the family together and remind them of our past and how God has been so good.
d. Be transparent - sharing of fears, struggles, passion, calling and victories. In our Asian context, most fathers would not like to let down our guard and let our children see our weakness. Let’s face it – even if we try to hide it our children know our weaknesses and failures. There’s no point trying to hide – let us be honest and transparent to our children. They will appreciate us even more.
2. Spiritual Training & Education: Spiritual Training and Education is a vital part of our children’s learning process. It is honorable to hold the thought of giving our children the finest education. Our instinct tells us that the secular education for our children will be their survival in the future. This is typically true for Malaysians due mainly to our political landscape and racial polarization. We are so afraid that our children will lose out so we work very hard to give them a good education. I think that is acceptable and reasonable. As Christians, we need to have that perspective – one that looks out for their children. But I have an ax to grind with parents who stress secular education as a top priority for their children. They have a warped view of the role of education and Christian discipleship. They do not see education as preparing their children for life but instead, it’s just survival. Education should be holistic and not just to pass with flying colors in examinations. Education for our children should include Christian education and not just secular subjects alone.
The failure of parents to see discipleship and spiritual nurturing as more important than secular education may be the main cause of their children doing well in colleges and universities in terms of education but become lukewarm in their life of faith. What is the point of producing doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc when more and more of them are bent towards the world than to God? What is the point of our children succeeding in the world according to the world’s standard but failed miserably in upholding Christian values and maintaining upright moral behavior? What sort of legacy do we want to leave for our children? Do we want to leave them with the knowledge that we have provided them with the finest education but no spiritual heritage for them to hold onto when they face the harsh reality of an unkind and cruel world? Do we want to just leave them with the knowledge of the world without the knowledge of God and a vital relationship with Him?
I believe that we need to encourage our children to study hard and to study smart. I believe that we need to expect our children to know the value of education. But I believe we need to teach them lessons of faith; faithfulness to God, faithfulness in serving Him, and faithfulness of uprightness. I believe that we need to educate our children “to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8).”
What is the Life Application then? I believe it is the duty and responsibility of parents in the following areas –
a. Modeling to our children what it means to love the Lord with all our lives and one another as Jesus loves us.
b. Encouraging them to be involved in the Lord’s work (we need to be involved too!).
c. Challenging them to take time to study God’s word – discipleship courses and/or Bible study courses.
d. Motivating them to participate in short-term mission work.
e. Insisting that they put God first and learn to trust Him as they put their heart and mind into their studies.
Fathers, you must teach your children to LIVE FAITHFULLY by walking in the fear of the Lord.
Deut 6:13: It is the Lord your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear.
1. Fathers should live faithfully by walking in the fear of the Lord – absolute trust, simple faith, unshakable convictions, and unpretentious expression of love for God and his works.
2. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. It is not enough to know firmly that God is only one God and the only one way to eternal life BUT it is important to instill the fear of the Lord in our children.
3. The best way of instilling the fear of the Lord in our children is by having the FEAR OF THE LORD in our own life – living faithfully as seen in our godly conduct, our excellent attitude and our graceful communication – words seasoned with salt, words that impart grace!
“…the just shall live by faith…” In the original Hebrews, it can be read as “the just shall live by faith and faithfulness.”
CONCLUSION
Let us teach our children to LISTEN ATTENTIVELY, LOVE UNRESERVEDLY, LEARN CREATIVELY, and LIVE FAITHFULLY.
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