Well, good morning and welcome to this session of the Reformed Family Conference. So glad that you have joined us. I'm Philip Hunt, a pastor at Kituwe Church and also the Vice Chancellor of Central Africa Baptist University here in Kituwe. I am the father of seven children, two teenagers still at home, and I am the husband to Lori. We have celebrated 32 years of marriage, and all but two of those we have lived here in Zambia. In this session, we are discussing the subject of parenting in a postmodern world. Now, I've got to be honest with you, when Pastor Ronald Kalafungwa asked me to handle this topic, I wondered if I was the right choice for the task. Though I've lived the first 25 years of my life in the United States, the past 30 have been here in Zambia. And while Zambia is embracing modernism to some degree, Zambia is certainly not post-modern. Postmodernism is a Western value system that views each individual person as the final authority for truth, based on how they feel and what they experience in their small community. I'd like to invite you, if you have your Bible, to turn with me to our text for this morning, 2 Timothy 3. And we will refer back here in just a little bit. 2 Timothy chapter 3 verse number 1, the Apostle Paul writing to Timothy says, But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, Verse 4, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. Having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power, avoid such people. Notice verse six, for among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at the knowledge of the truth. Let's pray. Father in heaven, as we embark for these next few moments on this subject. I pray that you would give us clarity of thought, of mind, help us to be able to understand the issue that is facing us. Though we may not initially think that this is something that we need to be so concerned with here in Zambia. In actual fact, we need to be very prepared if we are to shepherd and disciple our children through these perilous times. So guide us as we walk through these ideas, as we try to understand in broad terms the philosophies that we are facing in our world. and how they contradict the truth of Your Word, the Scriptures. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen. So postmodernism we give a brief definition once again, is this Western value system that views each individual person as a final authority for truth. This truth is based on how they view things, how they feel about their shared life experiences. Now, you may wonder why the conference organizers felt this subject was important to be included in a conference on biblical parenting. And I think that there are some really valid reasons for this subject to be dealt with. Primarily, the fact that what we believe determines what we do. The things that you value, the things that you really believe in the depths of your heart, the things that you believe your values shape the decisions that you make and the actions that you take. your philosophy of life, the way that you just naturally live your life, and the reaction in the moment, the responses that you take to the situations and the circumstances that come into your life, are flow from your philosophy or your value system. They're the sum of your core values. And these values are being shaped in ways that we may not be fully aware of. And there are values that are being promoted to our children right here in Zambia every single day. These values, or many of these values, reject the truth and the authority claims of the scriptures, the word of God. The primary vehicle that is being used to promote these values is technology, social media, video clips, and of course all of this driven by an increased access to the internet. Because in this generation, popular culture, we often hear it referred to as pop culture, has become the main tool through which our urbanized youth learn about themselves, about society, and about the world at large. Pop culture can be seen or is reflected in the music that they listen to, the clothes that they wear, and the entertainment that they enjoy. Choices reveal what a person values. You want to know what pop culture looks like in Zambia? I'm speaking to you who are parents. Go online and look up your kids' favorite Zambian music artists. Pompey, Chile Shewaya, Abel Chongo and Ephraim, Maki Tu, Chef 187, Cleo Ice Queen and Slap D, just to name a few. Or, go on Facebook and Google the latest popular Zambian prophet. Whether the more well-known, like Seer 1 and Major 1, or the local variety, and you will see how African religious pop culture portrays success with flash, expensive clothing, and slick vehicles. Or walk through your local mall and just sit back and observe the older teens and the young adults. Watch how they interact with each other, what they wear. You see, our culture in Zambia is increasingly connected and interconnected to the global village. Youth are the major consumers of pop culture. The impact on their life has been more immediate and more extensive than what has ever been obtainable in the past. There is this opportunity to access information almost in real time. I mean, consider the context, consider these facts. Consider the demographics that we have in our country. Did you know that the average age in Zambia is 16.8 years old? That's the average. And the average across Africa is only slightly higher at 19.7. Zambia has one of the youngest populations in the world. Of our population of 18.3 million people, now listen to this, 45% are under the age of 15. And 65.5% of our population is under the age of 25. Couple that with the fact that Zambia is one of the most urbanized countries on the continent of Africa, and you have an environment that is ready-made for quickly adopting and adapting to a post-modern worldview. Not only are demographics being the youngest or one of the youngest countries in the world from a population age standpoint, but also consider the access that we have, the increasing access to the Internet. I hope you'll take time and if you did not make it to Isaac Makashini's session yesterday afternoon, he dealt with parenting and the Internet. And so I think it'd be really helpful for you if you go and if you missed that session to find it and go back and and listen to what Pastor Isaac had to say. But access to the Internet is one of the main factors driving this secular mindset or this secular philosophy in our country. Think of this, consider this. 53.7% of Zambians are using the Internet regularly. 74% of those using the Internet are doing it from mobile phones. Across the continent of Africa, over half of the 1.3 billion people own a cell phone. That's like 650 million people who own and use a cell phone on our continent. In some countries, people have more access to mobile phones than to clean water, electricity, or the ability to have a bank account. Now think about it. In the last 10 years, Internet usage in Zambia has increased 49,252%. In fact, this conference, this virtual conference, could not have been done in Zambia just five years ago. Though 60% of Africa's unemployed are young people, The International Labor Organization reports that in Sub-Saharan Africa, of which we were kind of right in the center of that area, that the subscribers to cell phones in Sub-Saharan Africa pay an average of between 90 to 150 kwacha per month on their cell phones. Being willing to go without meals and other necessities in order to provide and to give them greater access. Text messages, WhatsApp, voice text, and video clips that can be shared through these mediums can change the course of the history of a nation. It certainly can influence, something as simple as a video clip can influence government action. I mean, I'm thinking of the video clip that came out earlier this week of rats running through our local hospital. According to the United Nations, youth ages 15 to 24 are seizing the momentum and rewriting society's rules in Africa at the same time. And so this is the context in which we live and the context that we have to recognize is fueling and providing a pathway for philosophies and belief systems to be shared across what used to be very wide divides. So notice please, if you would, I want us to go to our text in 2 Timothy chapter 3. Notice that we are called on as Christians, and certainly as Christian parents, to refute false philosophies. We are to refute false philosophies. So if you look at your Bible, 2 Timothy chapter 3, notice verse 1 again, but understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. Again, Paul writing to Timothy in 1 Timothy chapter number 4, comments in this way, verse 1, now the Spirit expressly says in the latter times, so he's talking about this same time period, that some will depart from the faith by diverting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons. through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared. So notice the situation that is being described here in 2 Timothy 3, that there is this time, that there is this period of time in which demonically inspired ideas and philosophies will be propagated by people who claim to have superior understanding and knowledge. Now notice the character that controls these philosophies and these people, these cultures, beginning in verse 2. People will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. So the character that controls the cultures from which these philosophies flow are controlled by godless ideologies, passions, and godless philosophies. These philosophies Verse number five, he warns Timothy that these godless philosophies, these godless belief systems will actually find their way into the church. Look what he says in verse five. They have an appearance of godliness, and yet they deny the life-changing power of the gospel itself. Notice what Paul gives as a response or a command. He says the latter part of verse number five, Timothy, avoid, shun such people. Now notice the strategy. Because those who propagate these philosophies or who have bought into these philosophies, there's a strategy. Notice it says in verse number six, from among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women burdened with sins, led astray by various passions, always learning but never able to arrive at the truth. So these philosophies, these belief systems, these values, creep into households. This is not something that's coming necessarily from the top down. These are philosophies, these are value systems that creep into houses and influence the undiscerning masses. They, these people who propagate them and the philosophies themselves, are thieves of truth. These are people that are forever in the process of discovery and yet never able to come to the truth. So we are called, as Christian parents, to refute false philosophies, false value systems, wherever they are encountered. So we see the deception of the times in which we minister, but notice we are called to stand and refute these false ideas with the truth. Again, look at chapter 3. Drop down with me, if you would, to verse 13. Notice what he says. While evil people... Go back up to verse 12. Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and imposters will go from bad to worse, notice this, deceiving and being deceived. So we are called to stand and refute false ideas, false philosophies with the truth. Look at verse... Look at verse 14. But as for you, Timothy, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it, and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God, and profitable for teaching, for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, to the end that the man of God may be mature, complete, and equipped for every good work. Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, if you have your Bible and go back with me to 2 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, look at chapter 10, verse 4. He's speaking of this spiritual warfare that we are called, that we are engaged in as God's people. Notice what he says. For the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly, they're not of the flesh, but have divine power to destroy strongholds. Notice verse 5. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ. So we see that we are to cast down these philosophies, these arguments, and stand against the spiritual pride that raises itself up and demonstrates against the truth. I want to ask you a question. Is truth, for you personally, is truth truth primarily because your cultural proclivities agree with it? In other words, do you give assent to certain truth claims merely because your culture affirms or denies those things. Let me give you an example of what I'm talking about. In most African nations, homosexuality is rejected. And some nations have laws actually criminalizing homosexuality. And when challenged in a postmodern culture, As the cultures of the world and partners around the world at a government level begin to push back on this kind of thing, we've seen this within the last 12 months, even right here in our own country. When challenged about this stance, we defend ourselves by saying, it's not our culture. That's what I'm talking about. Or maybe a positive one. We want our children, we demand that our children show respect to their elders. Because it is our culture. Now, while there is evidence of common grace, that the culture in which we live may reject homosexuality or encourage or demand young people to be respectful of their elders. While this is an evidence of common grace, this argument will not convince the next generation to believe and accept those values. What do we see in our text in 2 Timothy? That in the last days, false ideas, and those who promote these false ideas, and those who have been deceived by these false ideas, will grow worse and worse. And what is the answer? We see it in verse number 13, verse number 14, and verse number 15. You see, Paul says to Timothy in verse number 15, 2 Timothy chapter 3, and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ. You were taught, Timothy, as a child, the truth of the Holy Scriptures. So the answer to this challenge that we face in these last days of false ideas and those who promote them and who have been deceived by them, and as this gets worse and worse, as Paul is instructing Timothy, the answer is the scripture. Timothy was taught or he learned the scriptures from childhood. And notice, those scriptures, those truths are then embraced and lived in adulthood. Look at verse 14. It says to him, but as for you, continue in what you have learned. When did you learn it? You learned it as a child. You learned it when you were young. You were taught, you were discipled in the things of God. You knew the truth of God. And now that you're an adult, Timothy, you must continue in what you have learned and what you have personally believed for yourself. The things that you have learned and you have believed. So the answer to this is the Holy Scriptures. So we see we are called to refute these false philosophies. thing I want you to understand a little bit is what is this enemy, this philosophy of postmodernism. So here is a warning. Godless philosophy is coming to a cell phone near you. Let me just share with you just a very brief overview of the history of the philosophies of Western civilization. And I'll make this brief, but I think stay with me because you'll see how this thing is progressing. And by the way, all these worldly philosophies and all worldly philosophies are in direct opposition to the truth of the scriptures. All worldly philosophies are in direct opposition to the Christian faith. So you have three, over the past 2,500 or so years, three major Western philosophies. The first one is referred to as the pre-modern era. It lasted for maybe around 2,500 years. And the pre-modern people accepted objective, ultimate truth. They believed that it existed. And these peoples assumed an ultimate supernatural reality. In other words, they would accept the supernatural, they believed that God, or a god, or gods, plural, existed, and that those gods held ultimate authority over their lives. that these gods or God was the source of truth and the ultimate authority. Then at the commencement, or about the time of the French Revolution, until the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1991. So that's a period of about 250 years. You had the modern era. So we move from the pre-modern era into the modern era. And this period of time lasted around 250 years. Now, modernism, maybe you've heard it by that term, modernism, the modern era elevated science and reason as objective ultimate truth. So modernists believe that there is ultimate truth, but they reject that ultimate truth is vested in a supernatural being. They rejected the supernatural. God had any authority. What flows from this? Atheism. agnostic thought, and all the isms, humanism, Darwinism, socialism, communism, all flowed from this philosophy. And so you could perhaps sum it by saying that the modernist believed that the ultimate authority comes from, or ultimate truth is found in science and in human logic. apart from God. Then, the postmodern era, which began sometime around the fall of the Berlin Wall in late 1991. So from 1992 until now, and what will be the end of this period, I think there's a question mark there, we're not sure, but the era in which we are in right now, would say that objective truth is unknowable. So the pre-moderns believed that there was objective truth and you could know it and it resided with the gods. The modernist says yes, there is objective truth, you can know it, but the ultimate authority is science and reason. But the post-modernist says there is no objective truth. Though the postmodernist would accept the supernatural, the supernatural has no authority. Rather, personal experience and feeling is the basis of reality. There is no external or institutional or supernatural authority. Every man is his own authority. And the postmodern era, by the way, is and has already proven to be the most hostile to true Christianity. So that's the brief history. Now, to explain it a little bit more, postmodernism. Postmodernism is a philosophy, of course, that rejects the era that we have just come through, the modernism that rejects it completely, and is characterized by broad skepticism, subjectivism, and a general suspicion of human reason. The postmodern says there is no objective reality and there is no objective truth. Rather, reality and truth are constructed by different cultures and subcultures that share a language, and those truths can vary from one group of people to another, even within the same country. So truth can be, in other words, your truth can be your truth, and my truth can be my truth, and those two truths might actually be opposite of each other, but both are okay, and both are fine. That's a postmodern view. Where modernism elevated science and reason as objective ultimate truth, postmodernism denies that objective truth is even knowable. Where modernism rejected the supernatural and believed that science and reason were the ultimate authority, postmodernism denies any authority. Rather, every man is his own authority. Therefore, personal experience and feeling is the basis for your reality and for your truth. Now, what are the implications of all of this? Well, there are many, but let me share a couple of them with you. This is an age of disillusionment with optimistic assumptions of human progress. It is a mindset that rejects the universal laws of science and lacks faith in any established order or established authority. For the postmodern mind, the question is not whether something is true or false, but how it feels to you. If something feels right to you or has some personal positive or immediate effect in your life, then it is good and it must be true for you. Let me give you some illustrations. Gender identity. Now before you switch me off, like we don't have this problem in Zambia. It is coming. I mean it actually already is here because we have access to it. in movies and internet, but gender identity. So, a post-modernist view of gender would be that if I'm a man, but if I feel like a woman, then I am. It does not matter what my biological sex at birth was. Alright, so let me give you an illustration of marriage. Marriage then, in postmodern thought, marriage can be whatever I feel it should be. So, marriage can be a man with a woman, or a man with multiple women, or a man with another man. Or a woman with another woman. Or, and this is the latest, in fact, a year ago I listened to a TED Talk in which the presenter was defending marriage and sexual relationships between adults and children. So marriage can be whatever I feel it is. My sexual identity, my gender is, whatever I perceive and feel that it is. This is postmodern thought. The postmodern rationale would be, if I am fulfilled, if I genuinely love that person, then that is my truth. That is not wrong for me. Now, let me just make a comment here, because I know that these kind of issues, culturally, we, as a culture, have a strong negative reaction. But the point that I'm trying to make is that if your strong negative reaction as a Christian parent is simply based on your culture and not based and rooted and grounded in the objective truth of Scripture, this is a battle that we are going to start losing right here amongst our own youth. Those who think this way, those who think that marriage can be between a man and a man, Listen, people who think this way are equal in value because they are created in the image of God. In other words, look, we should not have negative responses to them in a sense of, we should not be discriminating against someone who thinks like this, we should not persecute someone who thinks like this. However, we must clearly, truthfully, and lovingly stand against the false belief system and the sin. We speak the truth courageously, regardless of the cost, and we do so in love. Now, how does this all relate to parenting? Well, in the West, The postmodern influence includes the rejection of the modern view of intuitive parenting that understands the general norms of child development. Now that's out the window. In the modernist view, there was an effort to understand the physical development, the mental development, the social development of a child, and to educate the whole child. but not in the post-modern view. In post-modernism, the parenting goal is to develop a child's self-esteem. Thus, parents view themselves as facilitators of their child's hopes and dreams. Children, on the other hand, in a post-modern philosophy, view themselves as equal with their authorities, in that the child's ideas, the child's opinions, the child's desires are just as valid and important as those of their parents, their teacher, or their pastor, or whatever the other authorities are in their life. What are the results? It's relativism and skepticism the relativism and skepticism of a postmodern philosophy is eroding confidence in and submission to the Scriptures, the Word of God. You see, the truth claims of Scriptures are viewed as ideas to be considered amongst the portfolio of ideas. Theological truths, are questioned and priority in the interpretation and application of theological truths, priority is given to my experience and the way I feel about the passage. The post-modern child is no longer dependent upon parents or pastors or teachers to help them navigate in this fallen world because they have all the information they could possibly desire by Googling it. I don't even have to learn it, I can just Google it. decide for myself amongst all of the many ideas about the subject that I'm researching, which ones appeal to me, which one make me feel comfortable and happy, and that then becomes my source of information and truth. These are challenging times. And sadly, many Christian parents, ungrounded in the scriptures, are ill-equipped to disciple their children and provide real, authoritative, biblical answers. Listen, this generation is not going to be swayed by saying to them, it's so because this is the way we've always done it. Remember? This generation is already skeptical of all authority and all truth claims. because they can listen to whatever it is that you say from the pulpit or in your home and they can get on their hand device and they can Google that subject and discover whatever truth that they want to choose about that very subject. So, What do we do as Christian parents in a postmodern world? Well, I'd like to just have us think a little bit and clarify a Christian's primary parenting responsibility. And here it is. Listen, as a born-again Christian and as a Christian parent, Christian parenting is Christian discipleship. Jesus commanded the disciples to go into all the world and preach the gospel and teach everyone who responded to obey all things that Christ taught and commanded. 2 Timothy 2 and verse number 2, Paul to Timothy, instructed him to deposit into faithful men the things, the truth, the doctrine, the objective truth of the scriptures was to be intentionally offloaded and deposited into the next generation of believers. Christian parent, our mandate as Christ's followers is to preach that gospel and to teach those who confess Jesus to obey Him. And this begins in our homes. Christian parents, we produce what we are. We as Christian parents are tasked with discipling the next generation, one child at a time. We are called as Christian parents, according to Ephesians chapter six and verse four, to bring up our children in the nurture and the admonition of the Lord. And I know we're hearing a lot about those scriptures this week. Paul says, Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and the instruction of the Lord. Listen, Christian fathers are to nurture their own children. They are to teach their own children the Scriptures. They are to live the truth of Scripture in the presence and before the watching eyes of their children. So Christian parenting is Christian discipleship. And Christian discipleship is based on and grounded in the truth. Postmodernism says, my truth is my truth and your truth is your truth. Both are okay as long as you are tolerant and inclusive. But as soon as you say that truth is objective, that truth is certain, That truth is binding. You have committed the post-modern, unpardonable sin of intolerance. But what does Scripture teach us? First of all, truth is theological, right? I mean, John MacArthur wrote, truth is what is consistent with the mind, will, character, glory, and being of God. Truth is at its very core truth because it's true about God. Secondly, this truth, this Christian discipleship that is grounded in truth, this truth is objective. Truth is truth because it is ultimately founded upon the person and the nature of God. Truth does not get its authority from science, or reason, or a prophet, or a man of God, or your culture group, or because you think or feel a certain way. That is not the basis of truth. God's word is truth. Friends, we have to understand, as Christian parents, that truth is not a social construct. And truth is not subjective. It's objective. And of course, we know, John 14 and 6, Jesus made this claim, that truth is a person. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, the life, and no one will come to the Father except through me. So to disciple the next generation, parents, means that we know the person who identifies himself as the truth. We know him. We are intimate with him. We walk with him. We live with him. We submit to him. So truth is theological, it's objective, it's a person, but truth is also the scripture. To disciple the next generation means that we as Christian parents must know what is in the pages of this book. The pages of scripture. This is the body of truth. And this body of truth is what must shape our values, our philosophies. Not our culture, not Western post-modern thought, but the objective, infallible, inerrant truth of God. Discipleship means, as a Christian parent, that we teach and train our children to obey this person of truth, revealed it in the pages of truth, who will set them free from their bondage to sin and satanic-induced philosophies. John 8.32, Jesus said, you can know the truth and the truth will set you free. It is knowable. I could apply this for just a moment. Parents, when you undermine, when you and I as Christian parents, undermine the authority of scripture by our actions, our decisions, and our words. We should not expect our kids to withstand the hordes of evil that are about to pour over the hill in this generation, because they're coming. You say, oh, these types of social belief systems that would allow... That could never happen in Zambia. Have you ever traveled to South Africa? Just two countries away, it's there. You see, parents, if we reject God's truth because of our cultural traditions, our children will reject truth because of new cultural norms. The same rejection of God's authority, but for different reasons. So as Christian parents, we must not make the mistake of thinking that our kids will come away with the same conclusions for the same reasons if our children do not recognize the authority of God and His revealed truth in the Scriptures. If what our children are being taught and believed is not founded and they do not see that it is founded in these unchangeable truths, they might follow your belief system in certain ways. But they have no foundation to disciple your grandchildren. Discipleship of your children, of our children, is our solemn responsibility before God. And I want to wrap this up, but I want to read to you Deuteronomy chapter 6. Deuteronomy chapter 6. Listen to what the scriptures say. Deuteronomy chapter 6, verse number 4. Here, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 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, listen, they shall not be in your head. Listen, theology is not a hat that you wear on your head. It's shoes that you strap on your feet. You shall teach them diligently to your children. They shall be in your own heart. They shape your own philosophical outlook. They shape your own actions as a parent. And then, verse 7, you shall teach them diligently to your children, and 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 up. When are we supposed to disciple our children, Christian parents? All the time. When we wake up, as we walk through the day, as we come home in the evening, as we sit at the table, and as we say goodnight and go to bed, we are communicating and living the objective truth of God's Word. That's how we disciple our children. Christian parents, especially Christian fathers, are called to train and disciple their sons and daughters as passionate followers of Jesus Christ. You see, friends, false doctrines, false philosophies always result in sinful living. Read Jude 4. Postmodernism is simply the next cultural attempt to change the unchangeable Word of God. That's all it is. So, what can we do? What should we do as Christian parents? Well, here's the start to a list of suggestions. You can add to it yourself, but talk to your children about biblical authority and the authority of God's word. Do your children understand that this book is authoritative? Do they see in your life that you live and view this book as authoritative? Number two, talk to your children about the biblical roles in society and the home. Talk to them about biblical gender that God created in the beginning, male and female. Talk to them about the biblical role of women and the biblical value of man because we are created in the image of God. Number three, talk to your children about sin. Immorality is sin. Not culturally cute or expected as a Christian. Transgenderism is sin. Their rebellion and disobedience against authority is sin. Talk to your children about sin. And talk to your children about grace. That God came into the world and lavishes grace on sinners. so that we can know Him and follow Him. And tell them, teach our children that we should give grace to other sinners by speaking the truth and loving them, by praying and working for their salvation. So talk to them about biblical authority, talk to them about biblical roles, talk to them about sin and about grace. And number five, demonstrate your own submission to the authority of scripture in every area of your life. Why? Because every disciple, when he is fully trained, will be just like his teacher. In fact, Jesus said that, those very words, in Luke chapter 6. A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone, when he is fully trained, will be like his teacher. Urban youth are spending many, many hours a week on social media, WhatsApp, sharing memes and videos, watching music videos with their favorite artists, Facebook, Twitter, hours upon hours of access to popular culture. And popular culture has an agenda. It has a theme. It has values. How are we as Christian parents to combat that? It is by recognizing that we are the primary disciple, disciplers and disciple makers with our kids. And that we spend time investing in their lives, investing the scripture into their lives. Because they can know the truth and the truth will set them free. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for the objective truth of the word of God. We thank you for the person of truth, the Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you that the spirit of truth indwells us, that we can know the truth, that we can live the truth, we can speak the truth, and that through the power of your Holy Spirit and the application of truth in the hearts of our children, they too can become passionate followers of Jesus. May we as parents Step up to the task. May we march forward in this perverse generation on our knees, that we might not only give lip service to the truth of Scripture, but that we would live the truth that we say we believe. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen.