Fathers

Message to Fathers-

Too often fathers believe provoking their children is acceptable. They don't care if their children get angry with them, why should they, they're the adult and the child needs to be in subjection to them. A lot of times men feel this way because they were raised that way, they see that way portrayed by others and want to follow suit. Yet our God tells us not to provoke our children to wrath, to anger. We aren't supposed to encourage their discouragement. We aren't toughening our children when we treat them in a way God does not approve. Fathers are supposed to bring their children up in the LORD. The Lord will admonish our children through His word, through His teachings.

Eph 6:4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

Col 3:21  Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

Fathers can't start too early when teaching their children the holy scriptures. We place so much emphasis on teaching worldly ways yet very little on teaching the holy scriptures and why is this? Because the world does not want our children to know truth, they do not want our children raised with the Lord.  We hold off on teaching the Holy Word of God until we think they are old enough but even infants hearing the Word can only be influenced for the good.

2Ti 3:15  And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 

A father is to exhort, comfort, and charge their children to know the Lord, to live to the Lord.

1Th 2:11  As ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father doth his children

When a father loves his children he corrects them and this doesn't mean he does so in a way that can be termed abusive.

Pro 3:12  For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. 

How many of you as adults have only praise for the way you were raised? I'm not saying all have praise because some of you have probably been abused in many ways leading you to despise your father, your parents. But there are those of us who can only say, Praise God, for the parents we had as children. Our parents weren't necessarily easy on us, a lot of us can remember spankings and punishing, time outs, groundings, and even a lot of harsh words. We remember our acting out being punished, we remember our correction and today we are thankful for it. We may have been filled with angst as we lived through the punishments, but they taught us and we know our parents punished us out of love. We can say our parents did the best they knew how to do. 

Heb 12:7  If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? 

Heb 12:8  But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. 

Heb 12:9  Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? 

Heb 12:10  For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. 

Heb 12:11  Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. 

God deals with us adults as still being His children.

We must teach our children of the Heavenly Father's love, of His chastising, of His admonishing even as we living in this harsh world today must do our best to raise our children by guiding them in love towards God.

Fathers search the scriptures and as you fulfil the role that you've been given to raise children, remember they are the Lord's, not simple yours. They are gifts God has given you.

Is it always easy to raise children? No. Sometimes it's incredibly hard to raise children, but we can't forget that some of us have been incredibly hard for God to raise, yes?

May God bless all fathers, all mothers, as they seek to raise their children unto God!

All through Jesus Christ our Lord, our Savior!