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“children” To those of us who have been blessed with children we are of all people most fortunate. I believe this to be true because “children” are indeed a gift from God: (Gen 33:5) “And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said, Who are those with thee? And he said, The children which God hath graciously given thy servant.” We should even consider our “children as being a reward from God: (Psa 127:3) “Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.” These are only a couple of thoughts that we should remember if we have been blessed with God’s gift of a child or children; I’m sure you can add to this list! Jesus of Nazareth was a perfect example of what “children” should be: (Luke 2:51) “And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.” Jesus had just declared that God was His Father; His knowledge surpassed the understanding of Joseph and Mary. However, the point that I want us to be aware of is that Jesus was “subject unto them”! Jesus’ subjection to His earthly parents should be followed by all children. Of course all children should also look to Jesus as He grew into adulthood; as a man His will was to do the will of His Father in heaven: (John 4:34) “Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” As children grow to the age of accountability they should desire and do God’s will: (John 9:31) “Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.” All too often we who are adults don’t give “children” the credit they deserve; by this I mean that a child is capable of “glorifying” God and “praising” His holy name: (Psa 148:12 – 13) “Both young men, and maidens; old men, and children: 13 Let them praise the name of the LORD: for his name alone is excellent; his glory is above the earth and heaven.” It would serve some parents well to look to the example of their children when it comes to praising and glorifying God! If we were to carefully note verse 12 we can clearly see that all ages are included. Parents [and even grandparents] should help children to remember God: (Eccl 12:1) “Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;” I’m sure that we have seen some children who have grown into adulthood who have never become Christians and we wonder “Why”. The answer could be very simple, they were not taught to “remember their Creator in their youth”. It is indeed a sad situation when parents only drop their children off at church and don’t set the example of worshipping Almighty God with the child. If you want your child or grandchild to remember God you need to be setting the example yourself. To those who do not have God fearing Christian parents a warning is found in Ezekiel 20:18 “But I said unto their children in the wilderness, Walk ye not in the statutes of your fathers, neither observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols:” Just because your parents don’t remember God is not an acceptable excuse for you not to remember God. The Word of God commands children to “honor their fathers and their mothers”: (Ex 20:12) “Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.” To the parent and grandparent I would also strongly suggest that you must be worthy of honor. God has given specific commands to the fathers: (Eph 6:4) “And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” Today when we have so many single parents I would think that this command would apply to either the father or the mother. Friends, if you have been blessed with children and grandchildren do not neglect to remember their souls!
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