This morning we wrap up the series that we've been looking at for a while under the banner. Did God really say? Did God really say and what's at stake the source of authority? Okay, who or what gets to say what you believe and how you behave? We all have one. It's part of the worldview, the glasses that we wear, that we interpret all of life through. Everyone here woke up with a worldview. You have a view of this world, what's right, what's wrong, including that worldview is a morality, including that worldview is justice, how things should be done correctly. So we all have one. And then within that worldview, there's a source of authority. Is it inside of me or is it outside of me? Do I deem it? Do I determine it? Or does something else outside of me determine it? Does feelings? Do people? Does culture? Or does God? So there's always going to be that bottom line and every worldview has to answer the basic questions of life, ultimate questions. How do we get here? Every worldview will answer that. What went wrong? How do we fix it? And how now shall we live? Your worldview needs to answer those 4 big ultimate questions. Your philosophy of life will answer it automatically. You have it. In fact, as I say the questions, you're thinking, how did we get here? For some, a primordial soup created the existence of people who eventually, organisms eventually would gather and we have homo sapiens. For others, we say in the beginning, God created. And those you have the two polars and in between you have the continuum of people who say one way or the other. Whether it's atheistic evolution or creation. So every, you know, what went wrong? You can blame on, you ask a worldview. Communism answers that question, what went wrong? Socialism answers that question. Capitalism. Every world, every philosophy of life, every worldview that you have, it's going to answer it. If the problem are the rich, how do you fix it? You get rid of the rich. And what's the remedy? Well, you distribute everything. How now shall we live? We make sure that we make that happen. But we know that that's folly. Again, we have these, and again, who sets the rules? What sets the rules by which I live by and interact with others in this world? So we've looked at several topics. We end this morning with the purpose of parenting. The purpose of parenting, identifying and avoiding The hidden dangers. Okay, let me share with you some of the resources. Okay that we've been we're using and we You know, we ask you to consider first ones gonna be the the art of parenting by Dennis and Barbara Rainey Alright, we did this as a the Bible study and the curriculum. So it's a good one. The next one is George Barna a revolutionary parenting This one's a little dated. Some of these covers will look different, but recommended to you. It's, you know, what does it take to raise a modern-day spiritual champion? Vicky Courtney has written two good books. One is Your Boy. See, that's the latest cover. I have the older one. Okay. And they all have my name on it. So don't try to take them. All right. So this is your boy raising a godly son in an ungodly world. And written, you know, by a mom. And listen, one of the sections is from Hot Wheels to Hormones and Beyond. And so it's good. And if you have a daughter, she wrote one also, your girl. Okay. raising a godly daughter in an ungodly world. These are good books for you to consider. Battles worth fighting, preparing for the battle. So it's good stuff. Here's a classic by Dr. Dobson. Parenting isn't for cowards. And it isn't. Parenting isn't for cowards. This is a good Well, you can't see him from there, but he's really young in this cover. But yeah, it's old, so some of the references you may not get, and sitcoms or whatever they're referring to, but the principles recommended. And last but not least, the disciple-making parent. Probably the best one I can commend to you. In fact, we're going to be quoting from this in just a moment. All these resources are good, and I was asked to prepare a reading list, so I did. I have one. One page there, professor. Thank you, doc. All right. Thank you. She's the one who pushed me. And I didn't make copies, because we want to just save the trees or whatever. OK? But if you want it, if you need it printed, this is the one only here today. Highest bid wins. Number one. OK? Number two, I'm just kidding. You can take it. We can send it to you electronically. Contact the church office. And you have 20 plus. suggested reading here on the different topics that we've talked about. So it's yours for you to consider and to read on your own and go from there. Parenting is something special. In his book, The Disciple-Making Parent, I'm going to read a part and then the other part will be on a slide in just a moment. He writes, I can still remember the kick to my stomach. For the past nine months, I had known we were going to have a baby. Sharon and I had talked about her, planned for her, prepared a room for her. I had watched my wife grow a large belly, yet nothing prepared me for the day I saw this new person. Faith had become sight, and I was unprepared. A tiny human being, my daughter Cara, was placed in my arms for the first time. That's when I got kicked in the stomach. It came when the realization hit me that this little life was totally dependent on the two of us for everything. This tiny mass of cells was a human being made in the likeness of God and entrusted to us. He writes the following, this will be on the screen. This beautiful little girl would live forever and ever and ever. And God had just placed her in our inexperienced hands. As I broke down in tears on the way home that afternoon, I prayed, Oh God, show us how to do this. Contemplating eternity torpedoes a lot of parenting philosophies. You have always the ever-present expert. The experts abound on parenting. These are folks that have a lot of books about parenting and no actual children. But they tell you how you need to do it in a bad way. I'm not saying that if you don't have children, it's a bad thing. I'm just saying we've all been bombarded by those well-meaning, Now, thankfully we have people who pour into our lives. We have people who pour into our lives here, even in our church, that they may not have kids, but they want to make sure they grow up to be disciples of Jesus. And in that way, everyone can parent. a child, whether you have one of your own or not. Because God didn't grant us kids just to populate earth. God grants us kids so we can train them in such a way that they become future worshipers of the true and living God. So marriage, though it's part of the function of marriage is procreation. It's just not just let's have a baby boom and just fill a lot of people on planet earth. No, no, no. There's a goal to that. And that's to make disciples of Jesus. And in that aspect, everyone gets to point to the cross of Jesus Christ. So don't ever think that you're second tier because you don't have children of your own. You can parent, okay? There's been men who have poured into my sons. There have been women who've poured into my daughter. And for that, I'm thankful. Here's the main point for today. Alright? On the screen there. A biblical worldview of parenting recognizes that children are a gift from the Lord. Psalm 127. And parents are responsible for passing on what they know about the Lord, His word, His work, and His ways to the next generation so that they come to hope, believe in Him. Psalm 78. A biblical worldview of parenting not only places importance in rearing children to become productive members of society and are ready for life in general. It also places ultimate importance in preparing them for eternity. The goal is not only to prepare them for graduation day, but ultimately for judgment day. See, again, you contemplate eternity, it changes. It should change your parenting. It has to, because you're not parenting just for the here and now. Our goal, our job is not just to raise good kids who pursue the American dream and just sprinkle a little bit of religion along the way. Not a biblical worldview. When you want to do it how God has designed it to do it, you say, my kids one day will have to answer to the Lord just like I answer to the Lord. And I want to prepare them for that. God grants us children so we can influence. Everyone influences. I told you this before, our children time and time again will get indoctrinated. And if you don't do it, Someone else is going to do it. The streets are going to do it. An atheistic type of education is going to do it. We're into indoctrination. It says you go and make disciples and teach them to follow all that Jesus has taught you. Indoctrination is not necessarily a bad word. It's the content of that doctrine by which you indoctrinate that makes the difference. So don't freak out with indoctrination. The reality is you need to influence, you have to be that influence that points your kids to Jesus Christ. And parenting can be messy and you and I can feel inefficient at times because we mess it up. Let's just acknowledge what most of our kids already know, we do it wrong, we don't do it perfect. And my parents didn't do it perfectly and I knew that too. And parenting can feel sometimes inefficient, and it's messy, and rewarding, and frustrating, but it's glorious work. It's glorious work. You're hoping to shape and form lives. And what is of ultimate importance, that's what you need to decide as a parent. Sadly, we give too much emphasis in making sure they enter Harvard, but they don't make it to heaven. Now, you can do both. I'm not saying that the Christian faith allows for both. They can go to Harvard, but just make sure you don't do it at the expense of heaven. Because that's where they spend eternity. Okay? And we all have Harvards. Those are those worldly, those are the, you know, those desires that we have for our children, that they be successful. And we should. They should be successful. We want them to be successful. But at the same time, we need to keep eternity in our minds. Because again, We will face a day when we have to then go before the living God. And what's important is what you're going to give your time to. And given a finite amount of time, energy, and money, you better work out that balance quick. Because we do want them to succeed. But we do want to make sure we point them to the cross of Christ. And they make it not only into Harvard, whatever Harvard represents, but they also make it into heaven. And that's important. There's nothing like parenting. One of the greatest challenges parents face is how to transmit, how to hand off the baton. That's why I have the baton today. You're handing it off from one generation to the next. The baton was handed off to me by my parents. I'm going to hand it off to my kids, and so forth and so on. How do you do that successfully? Are there any dangers, any pitfalls we need to be aware of? Of course we do. Successful parenting just doesn't happen. You don't wake up and go, that's it. It's hard work. It reminds us that even as followers of Christ, we have an enemy that wants to destroy our family. The devil's out there to play for keeps. He's not the pitchfork guy with the red suit. No, no, no. He's much more cunning than that. But he wants to unravel your marriage. He wants to unravel your children. Or he wants to use either one of those two to unravel you. We do not live this life in neutral. We don't live in a playground. We live on a battlefield. And that's what makes this so difficult. And I'll give you a quote later on. We're not passing the baton from one generation to the next, like in a race, where they just run. Everybody's playing by the rules. No, no, no, no. We're passing a baton in the midst of a battlefield. where there's an actual enemy that wants to destroy families, wants to keep them busy so they can go and enter an eternity without the hope of Jesus Christ. So success, if that's what it takes, good. Whatever it takes, it may be used to keep us busy from what's primary. Good is always the enemy of best. You want a good marriage? Great. You want a great marriage? You better leave good behind. If you settle for good, you'll never have great. It happens in parenting. You want to have great kids? You can invest. You can invest. The minute you have a child, you're saying no to yourself. You're denying yourself time and time again. So is it worth it? Of course it is. Of course it is. Writing many years ago, Moses was on the verge of dying and he writes to the people of Israel who he's led for many, many years and he reminds them about what's important in life. If you have your Bible or you have Bible app, Deuteronomy chapter 6. Deuteronomy chapter 6. I'm going to read the first 9 verses and then we'll go from there and we'll take a look at the entire chapter in our time together, but the first 9 verses sets the tone. Now, this is the commandment, the statutes and the rules that the Lord your God commanded me to teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you're going over to possess it. that you may fear the Lord your God, you and your son, and your son's son, by keeping all his statutes and commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be long. Hear, therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you may multiply greatly, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in the land flowing with milk and honey. 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 the 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 your gates." Stop there. Again, these verses are part of a chapter, which is part of a story that's being told. If you've seen the Ten Commandments, let my people go. You know, who's the famous guy there? Charlton Heston here. Okay? Let my people go. And then you have Ewell Brenner, right? He's the pharaoh. At least in that one, that's back when I was a little kid, okay? So you know that they have been suffering as slaves for many years. Moses is the deliverer. They get delivered. God has made a promise, and the promise that God makes is the promise that God keeps. And he said, I'm going to deliver you into a promised land. And he does. And they're on the verge, but on the way there, if you know the story, right, on the way there, they got really close and they sinned. And a whole generation had to pay the price because they sinned against God. They rebelled against God. They didn't do what they were supposed to do. And again, parents, this is for you and me. Don't ever think that your sin doesn't affect next generations. Because the parents' sin affected to the degree that they all had to die. So they had 40 years of wanderings, that's the book of Numbers, of wanderings. So imagine 40 years worth of funerals. You want to track their travel? Just look at the funeral, just where they buried, that's where they've been, 40 years. So the next generation, except for two, The next generation had to wait to enjoy the blessings of God until the consequences of sin were dealt with for an entire generation. God is serious when it comes to sin. So they're on the verge right now of entering. Moses is one of them that's not going to enter because of his own sin. His own sin. God will take him. We don't know where he's buried, so if you read a book, that knows where Moses is buried, don't waste your time, don't give Jeff Bezos any more money, you know, don't. Okay, just don't buy it. Nobody knows. So he's on the verge and he says, here's some things I want to share with you. In the book of Deuteronomy is basically sermons that he preaches to the people on the verge of entering the promised land. You know, what's important in life, we know when we're about to die. That's what we want to share, what's important. And these sermons are Moses' last opportunity to impress upon Israel some of the key lessons. On the screen you'll see, we're going to see that Moses gives a command to know God in a way that transforms the whole of our lives and that deals with our greatest temptations, so that the next generation will experience God as well. Verse 3, Hear therefore, Israel, and be careful to do these commandments. that it may go well with you and that you may multiply greatly as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you in a land flowing with milk and honey." And if we stop there, that's what we want for our kids. We want them to enjoy a land filled with milk and honey, filled with blessings. We want our children to grow and be successful. I want my children to grow and be successful. Why? Because they're my retirement. Somebody's going to end up with dad and mom, okay? We don't know yet, because they're all busy trying to figure that one out. OK? Some will take mom, or all of them will take mom. Some will take dad. OK? So we don't know yet. But we want them to succeed. That's a good, good thing. But along the way, we have to be careful of those hidden dangers. One of them is, for example, on the screen there, beware of inconsistency. Beware, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your might. And these words I command you today shall be on your heart. You communicate what you are. You know, your kids know what's important to you. They do. My kids do. Okay. Your kids know what, because you communicate what is important to you. You communicate what you are. Verse four, you know, here, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. That's the Shema, which comes from the Hebrew word here, here. It's the centerpiece of the Jewish faith. It's the pivot around everything else in Deuteronomy. Here, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And what it's translating is the idea is Yahweh or Jehovah, the Lord our God, He is one. He's the only one. Yahweh or Jehovah is our God, He alone. And it's establishing authority. It's establishing a recognition that he's the one who sets the rules. We all want rules to live by. We know how to give them to our kids. They know how to break them. I did. My kids and my dad put up a line. And this is the day when if you cross that line, you better get ready, because some body part's going to hurt. That might not be today your parenting style, but my parents in La Pequeña Havana, in Little Havana, Are you kidding me? I've told you the story that the one time I still remember, I'm 55 years old. I was like four or five or something. Luisito, don't cross the street. Okay, daddy. What's the first thing Luisito did when daddy wasn't around? Cross the street. No bueno, Michelle, no bueno. So I'm playing, and this is in Little Havana. I mean, this is crazy people. I mean, this, you know, it's Little Havana. So I cross the street like, hey, what's up? So I'm playing on the little thing, and my dad comes out, and, Luisito! I'm like, yeah! He goes, hey, you having fun? Yeah, dad, it's great! Can't wait, I can't wait! That's so good, that's so good. Hey, didn't I tell you not to cross the street? Ah! Because I already knew what was coming. Some body part was going to hurt. Normally, traditionally, that's why I have padding. So he says, hey, get inside the house. But I've told you, by the time I walked in, my man already had it down to an arm. He had, and like with one hand, whoop, and it just falls right down with a perfect loop. I just turned around and said, look there, and bam, He gave me a few reminders as to why I don't transgress His Word. And it made an impression physically and in my mind. And God says, I set the rules, Isaiah 45, I am the Lord and there is no other. Besides me, there is no other God. And Moses says, parents, your biggest assignment in life is not your kids, it's to know your God. Because that's the only thing you need to know God in order to... You can't hand off what you don't know. I can't hand off nuclear physicist information because I don't got it. I scored too low on any test, okay? But what you transmit, you have to know. And He says, the Lord is God, and He alone. And our knowledge of God is meant to transform our entire lives. Verses 5 and 6, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. Be consistent, be consistent. The great goal of knowing God through His Word is a life of obedience, motivated by God's love for you and for me. Take this with you on the screen. The idea is to love God fervently. This is how we avoid the danger of inconsistency. And we're all inconsistent. Listen, I don't stand here and say, you know, you do it my way, you know, whatever. No, no, no, no. You do it my way, you're going to mess up too. But God doesn't lower the standard because we are unable to keep it. He sets the standard. And he says, you aim high. And any parent worth their salt does the same. We set the standard. So this is how you avoid the inconsistency. Before we can teach our children the ways of God, they need to see it consistently in our lives. The great preacher of many years ago, D.L. Moody, rightly states, you'll read it on the screen, the preaching that this world needs most is the sermons in the shoes that are walking with Jesus Christ. The first job that you and I have is to be consistent. The best thing you can do, the best thing I can do for my kids, the best thing you can do for your kids, is to deepen your walk with the Lord Jesus Christ, with God. Because that's how you handle the inconsistency. We are, we're inconsistent. And when you deal with it, you deal with it and there's grace and forgiveness from the Lord. Number two, be intentional in training your children spiritually. Again, does this guarantee that your kids are going to come out right? No, it just guarantees that you are being faithful to the God that's called you to parent them. Our children are from the Lord. We are stewards at best. God has given them to us. Verses 7 through 9. You shall teach them diligently to your children. You shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign in your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. And the Jews took this literally. You shall write them on the doorposts of your household. and your gates. And God instructs parents to be intentional in their spiritual development. Again, we want them to prepare for life, but we want them to prepare for the afterlife. And we need to be reminded that the responsibility is ours. My responsibility is for my children, not Doug and Kelly's. I can come alongside and help and pray. But it's my responsibility. They're not responsible for mine. I'm responsible for mine. You're responsible for yours. Teach them diligently. It's literally sharpened. And the idea is you're repeating, you're sharpening, you're sharpening. Anytime and every time there's an opportunity to teach them about the Lord. And that's what Jesus did. He walked with His disciples, right? And as He walked and He taught them, that was the best way into everydayness of life. You walk and He says, consider the lilies. And they looked and they saw lilies, beautiful. He says, who provides for the lilies? Who clothes the lilies? They need to toil. In the same way, God will take care of you. He used everyday parts, and that's what he, everyday situations, that's what he means there when he says, you know, when you walk by the way, hey listen, when you're going to places together, okay, you see things happening. You see it always and you interpret it always from a Godward view. What does God want from me to do to impress upon my kids? When you lie down, bedtime, great opportunity. My wife did an excellent job where I didn't. Again, I've told you the story. My wife, she puts our kids down, she prays, right? She reads them the 23rd Psalm, and she's found a psalm by, I don't know if it was Sandy Patty or somebody, and they sang the psalm, Psalm 23. One day she's out, she goes, you put them to bed. Okay, so what do I sing to them? Billy Joel. I didn't remember your 23rd Psalm song. I didn't remember how great thou art, but I did remember you. You may be right, you may be crazy, but it might just be a lunatic you're looking for. Who does this to their kids? Now you understand my kids a little bit now. Thank the Lord that the primary, you know, prayer at bedtime was my wife, not Billy Joel. When you lie down, when you rise up, mornings, you start, you point them in the right direction. Again, your example teaches a lot, building, binding God's command on your hand. Listen, your actions speak louder than your words. You put them on your forehead, means your thoughts. God cares for what you think, not only what you do. You teach them that, the value of godly thinking. Not only critical thinking, but godly thinking. Put them on your doorpost. That means that the home life is setting the stage, the gate. You know, listen again, you interpret all that's going on in our world from a Godward view. What's going on? God has said some things. So when you see things going on locally and nationally and globally, you interpret them. as best as you can through God's Word. You teach them to see that. That's how they develop a worldview. You fashion that worldview so the Bible is the centerpiece and it's what God's revelation that influences decisions. You do that. You're called to do that. I'm called to do that. It's a book that helps us, not only in private life, but also in the public life. So beware of the inconsistency, okay? Be intentional to teach them, to teach them spiritually. And lastly, be sure to live carefully in this world. Here's a big section here, verses 10 through 19, Your God brings you into the land that He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you with great and good cities that you did not build, and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, and cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant. And when you eat and are full, then take... care, lest you forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. It is the Lord your God you shall fear, Him you shall serve, and by His name you shall swear." That means to promise, not to swear like God has a last name. Okay? No. You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are around you. For the Lord your God in your midst is a jealous God, lest the anger of the Lord your God be kindled against you, and He destroy you from off the face of the earth. You shall not put the Lord your God to test, as you tested Him at Massah. You shall diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and His testimonies, and His statutes, which He has commanded you. And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord, that it may go well with you, and that you may go in and take possession of the good land that the Lord swore to give your fathers, by thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the Lord has promised. Be sure to live carefully. See, Moses is real in these verses. He just doesn't give them a pie in the sky, Sunday morning refresher course on, just remember there's a guy upstairs and be good for the guy upstairs. No, no, the guy upstairs has a name. It's the Lord God. Somebody wrote me one day and said, hey, can you ask the guy upstairs for something? I go, listen, I don't know a guy, but I do know the Lord. All right. But the reality is that you and I, We need to understand that life has its seductions. Parenting, if we're not careful, has its seductions. If you and I are not careful, either prosperity or pain can cause us to forget. The key here is don't forget the Lord. You're about to go into a land. Remember, these are liberated slaves. They owned nothing, just what they were carrying around with them. They had no city, they had nothing. They're walking into cities that God has given them. The book of Joshua describes the conquest of the promised land and how they battled and how they did it all. And they go into these cities and there's stuff that they never had a hand in, they just got to enjoy. And he says, get ready, because that time of prosperity can be destructive, can be destructive. And that's not only the danger you face. You face also the reality of times of suffering. Today, you and I will be after the house and the high-definition TV and all the toys. And again, that's not necessarily a bad thing. If you have multiple toys, like I said to you last week, you need to get rid of some. You can give them to me, all right? But the reality though is that's not... But when that becomes the only thing, that's the idol. That's the idol. And that's what takes your heart and you forget the goodness of the God that allowed you to get it. And they suffered that same thing. You're going to walk into this thing, you're going to enjoy all this goodness, and you're going to forget. And we do that, don't we? We face troubles in life, and we pray, and we draw near to the Lord. Maybe sometimes, perhaps for the very first time, or for the fifth time, or for whatever. Because we have this medical diagnosis I wasn't expecting. Who cares about my high-def TV right now? I got this medical diagnosis last time I went to the doc, and I really don't like it. And it wasn't me, it was my family. All of us are dealing with aging parents. And deal with them well. I tell that to my wife. We got to deal with your parents well. Because sooner or later, we are the aging parents. Like I said, I need somebody to care for me. So we have that pressure. We have that pressure. And now all of a sudden, or you find yourself unemployed. You find yourself, what do we do now? So I draw near to the Lord and the Lord in His kindness and in His goodness, He delivers. And He removes some of the pain, some of the agony. And all of a sudden, who's God? I don't know Him. I don't know Him anything. See, that's what the danger that they faced. That's the danger you and I face. And the reason I say it is because our parenting reveals that. So our kids then grow up. That's like asking a kid to lie to you or for you. And then when he turns 16, you get ticked because he lied to you. Right? I mean, did that make sense? Right? So it's like, hey, kid, lie for me. Then 16 years later, 13 years later, 14, they lie to you and you get ticked. Well, would you learn that? My kids learn a lot of bad things from me and a lot of good things, too, because I communicate what I am. So live carefully, live carefully, whether in prosperity or whether in pain, you're telling a story about God's goodness and God's faithfulness to the next generation. Forgetting was a constant problem for the Hebrews, the Jews, and it can be for you and me. So how do we solve this? Is there a solution to this danger? Yes. Verse 12 would tell us, continually examine yourself. Are you satisfied with what the Lord has given you? Are you forgetting the Lord? Are you following other gods? Oh, I don't follow the gods. I don't have any other idols. I don't have these statues. I don't live in Hialeah, you know, Santa Barbara. I always pick on Hialeah, just so you know, even though I'm from Little Havana, Hialeah is my pick city. All right, the city I pick on. I don't have that. Well, listen, the modern day ones are the ones that the pleasure and the money And those are the modern day idols. Continually examine yourself. Why are you here today? What keeps you going in the pursuit of the things of the Lord? You have to evaluate. I feel miserably there. You get in this rut and you just put it on overdrive, on fifth gear, and you just keep going down the street, and you're just there. And for us, we're driving with the cruise control. And sometimes you can even let go of the steering wheel, and that just thing stays in the center. And we're just going moving on an autopilot. And God is saying, listen, pay attention to what's going on. Pay attention to what's going on. And number two, constantly focus on pleasing God. And your goal, my goal, is to teach our children to do the same, to please God, not just mom and dad. It's to please God, because that's pleasing mom and dad. Our children know that the best way that our kids can honor us is by honoring the Lord. And we want to teach that, and we want to hand that off. And again, is it perfect? No. Do they perfectly do it? Absolutely not. Can they be hard-headed? Yes. But does that relieve you and me from the reality of having to do it? No. They have to answer to God, and so do we. And when we've messed up, the best thing we can do is own it. Own it. The kids know it. God knows it. You know it. Let's just all of us get on the same page. And if you sinned against them, you come and you confess it, you ask for their forgiveness, and listen, you just see what God does through all of that. What can we take with us this morning as we land this plane? I'm gonna give you five applications and just five reminders. Number one, applications. Our overall goal is for our children to be growing in the love for God and for others as they grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ. Listen, if you aim at nothing, you hit it every time. If you and I aim at nothing, we hit it at every time. So make sure that you're aiming at something that has eternity in it. Our goal, our ultimate goal. Number two, train your children in life's responsibilities. Listen, my dad tried, but that's, you know, one of the reasons I married my wife is she fixes everything in the house. I didn't get married to a Ronnie. Ronnie fixes everything. Well, maybe you are a female version of Ronnie, I don't know. But she gives me tools for Father's Day so she can use them. You know what I mean? And you ask anyone here who's been here long enough, you ask Gary, hey, mission trip and it's going to be construction. Is your wife going? Why? I'm going. No, no, but is your wife going? Because she can pull wire. She can do this. You can paint. Oh, thanks, bro. Thanks. Right? We have less. We have a generation that doesn't know how to check air in the tire. Listen, they don't have to change the oil, but they need to at least know that they should check it. Okay? Yeah, they should check it. We need to give them just the practical life skills. All right, just basic life skills. That's part of our training. It's not just pie in the sky, make sure they make it to Sunday morning. No, they got to live this life too. And there's no problem in the blue collar work. Number three, teach your children to respect you from the youngest ages through proper correction and discipline. Listen, part of that is they need to obey. You're their first source of authority. And if they get away with it, that's how they're going to extend to everybody else they meet. Say it again, preach. We're about to send off our kids now for another school year. And the greatest problem teachers, educators, administrators have are not our kids. It's the kid's parents. When I was growing up, again, Little Havana style, OK? I came home and I gave some lip to a teacher. Automatically, I'm guilty. No, no, but is what you're about to get now, bro. Come here. You are guilty until I've proven innocent, buddy. OK? Now, was that proper all the time? No, no. But hey, such is life. You know, suck it up, buttercup. But now we've fallen on the other side. What we have teachers and administrators are like, they're dreading having to deal with the parents in order to correct the children. But if you don't start at home, then who cares what the teachers say? And if you don't start at home, who cares what law enforcement says? And if you don't start at home, who cares what my neighbor says? And I can just run rampant. And society just doesn't work that way. Teach them to respect. Distinguish between immaturity and defiance. Again, my wife was a lot better. Me, raised Little Havana style, you dropped a glass of milk and it was like the end of the world. You defied me. How dare you kid? The kid's two years old and was doing this, you know, and they tripped and they fell. What? You've never seen a Cuban nuclear missile? I went Spanglish. I mean, from Spanish to English to Spanish to English to English to Spanish to who knows what. My wife's like, hey, Bubba, hey, Dum-Dum, do you want some gum gum from the movie? OK. Hey, it was immaturity. It was lack of motor skills. They didn't walk up to you and go. Now, that's a little different. At 2 or at 22, it doesn't matter. OK? Bubba you better bring some friends cuz you're about to get it. All right If you're gonna take this old man down, you always got to beat him in the head here Okay, it might be bigger and stronger, but you got to beat him here. So So in maturity, so I had a hard time But again when you're raising them when you're doing exit, you know, you're doing the proper discipline is in a maturity or it's a defiance And that's important. My wife was good and she reminded me of that number four respect your children as unique human beings and Not every child is going to be the same. Not every child is you. You don't live your life through your children. Okay? They're distinct. So treat them as such. So many parents, Christian and non-Christian, force their children to excel so they can look good. That's not the reason. So they can boast. Again, we want to encourage our children to be the best they can be, but properly motivate them. Our task is to train our children to be godly and to follow wherever the Lord directs them. And lastly, major on the majors. Major on the majors. This legalistic, you've heard it, I've said it here. You don't drink, you don't smoke, you don't chew, you don't go out with women who do. That's the legalism. And you missed the heart of it, of the reality. You major in the majors, what really matters, what really matters. And again, grace and love should be the defining heart of things of your parenting, of your characteristics as a mom and as a dad. Major in the majors. And by now, you've said, dude, you don't understand, brother. I have really dropped the ball. Well, let me give you some encouragement. We've all blown it as parents. If you don't think you've blown it as a parent, talk to me after service. Okay? We all have. My parents blew it. And their parents blew it. And you as parents will blow it. Here's some needed reminders. Number one, you can't undo the past. Stop beating yourself up. You can't undo the past. I think of things that have come to me and they haunt me. I'm like, oh my gosh. How could I have said that? How could I have done that? How I disciplined my kids, not in love, but in rage. You can't undo the past. Confess your mistakes to God, to your family. Make the necessary changes and seek to build from there. Number two, it's never too late to do what's right. Okay? Listen, you gotta start somewhere. Start today. Start today. That's the reality. Number three, trust the power of prayer. Some parents need to remember, I need to remember, when I look at my kids and their lives and what decisions they're making and how I think they should be making different and they're not doing what I think they should be doing and I know that they're not doing what the Bible is doing. What should I do? Give up all hope on God? No! I trust the power of prayer. That's when I pray the hardest. Because only God can do something different. Only God can change the heart. So behavior then is permanent. I don't want to impose a lifestyle on them like, and this is it. No, no. Listen, my kids are baby adults now. They're grown up. We call them baby adults just to give them a hard time. All right? I'm a coach at best right now as a dad. I'm a coach at best. And that's what God has called me to. I can't tell him right now anymore to go, hey, do this. Well, I'm going to spank you. Really? Don't turn around and spank me. You kidding me? I'm bigger and stronger than I am. Prayer? Absolutely. I can pray. I can pray as it determines things and then know that prayer works. So if you've got to pray for years for restoration, you pray for years. That's okay. That's okay. Number four, remember that relationships are fixed with money. So easily, right? I mean, money doesn't buy you happiness. And I know what you're going to say, but it does buy me ice cream. And ice cream makes me happy. Yeah, I understand. I understand. But there's this thinking that if I just throw money at it. No, no, no, no. Relationships are built on trust. Relationships are built on careful listening. Put energy into that. You want to throw some money in there? That's fine, too. But don't think that just because you, no, no, no. And number five, don't forget about the incredible grace and mercy of God. We've all fallen short. We all are imperfect parents. And thank God that it doesn't all depend on us. You and I have an opportunity. You and I have an opportunity to pass the baton. The question is, are you ready? What does this baton represent? What values? What's important? What is a component of faith and belief in the Lord in this baton? What are you handing off? What have you handed off? And now you're looking back and go, hmm, I need to come back because now it's something new. Now I'm learning that maybe the baton that I handed off didn't include certain things. Well, how do I do it? You start from there, from today. Once you learn it, you share it with your kids. Hey, listen, I know you guys are growing up, and one of the things I've learned now is this. You need to give attention to the state of your soul, the condition of your soul, because if there's anything that's gonna last forever and ever and ever is your soul. And I've learned now that the condition of my soul is such that I need to trust, and I have trusted in Jesus Christ. And Jesus Christ makes the difference because we're all sinners. We've all fallen short. And if God was to judge me on the basis of what's right and wrong, He shouldn't let me into His heaven. But thankfully, He's made provision for that. He has met me where I'm at my worst and at my weakest. And there I found Jesus Christ, who's the waymaker. He's the one who then reconciles me to the Father. He's the one who provides a good standing before God. I didn't know this when I handed off the mataton to you, but I know it today, and I want you to know that you need to consider the condition of your soul. As parents, that's how we do it. That's how we do it. That's how we do it not only with our kids, but with our nephews and nieces, our grandkids, our neighbor's kids, our church kids. the baton. The author writes here, Why is this discipleship, this passing on of the faith so difficult? Passing on the faith has been compared to handing off a baton in a relay race. And there are many things to commend that analogy to us. There's a real gospel, the baton, to pass on. It must be passed on individually. The one with the baton has to hold it out. The one receiving the baton has to reach back and for it and close his hand around it. There's a time to pass on the baton, the exchange zone, which does not last forever. All of these are excellent pictures to help us think through this subject. There's a problem with the illustration, however. We're not handing off the baton at a friendly track meet. Rather, this exchange takes place on a battlefield. We're attempting to pass on this baton of the gospel while we and our children are being shot at. And what about those observing in the stands? A few are cheering us on, but many in the stands, the world, are laughing at our child's attempt to run the race. So parents, don't be disheartened because today you look in your children not where they should be. At one time, child of God, the Lord looked at your life and didn't see where you needed to be. But he didn't give up on his own. And you shouldn't give up on your own. So you keep praying and you keep trying and you keep striving. Keep setting the example. You keep praying. You keep trying. You keep setting the example. You keep praying. You keep trying. You keep setting the example. And you beg the Lord. You beg him. That in this lifetime, you get to see them walk right with the Lord. You beg him because that's what's important. Was it to profit them to gain the world and lose their soul? So you beg God, you beg Him, Lord, please, in my lifetime, help me see my children, be all that they can be in you. May they find satisfaction, not in the world, but in relationship with you. You beg Him, you plead, you don't deal, you don't make deals with the Lord. But you can plead, you can beg, and the loving Father hears. And you just trust that at the right time, God will act. May God grant us the needed grace and courage to prepare our children for the here now and for eternity. Amen. Let's pray. Bow your heads and close your eyes for just a moment. And perhaps this morning you need to beg again, again. You need to lift your hands and say, I will not lose faith. I will continue to trust in the God of my salvation. My friend, if you're here this morning and you have not trusted in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, that's your first order of business. Because one day you will have to answer. The fact that you and I get older just reminds us that one day we will meet the creator. And either he will be a welcoming father or a righteous judge. Will you trust in Christ? Stop trusting in yourself, in your accomplishments, in your past, in a religion. but turn to Jesus Christ for the relationship that clears the way for an eternity of bliss. And for you, my brother and sister in the Lord, perhaps we've done it all well, to the best of our ability. And we recognize that things are not what they need to be. Don't give up. God hasn't. Renew your strength today. Renew your faith in the Lord. And plead with Him. Lord God, do what only you can, even as we sing, that you renew our strength. Help us not to forget. Help us with being consistent. Help us with being intentional. Help us to live carefully in this world. Father, receive our prayers and answer them according to your will and in your time for your honor and your glory and our good. In Jesus' name and God's people said.