1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,300 and working with all of the wonderful families 2 00:00:02,300 --> 00:00:04,260 that make up this church. 3 00:00:04,260 --> 00:00:07,320 And I don't take for granted the opportunity 4 00:00:07,320 --> 00:00:09,600 that God has given me here and our family here 5 00:00:09,600 --> 00:00:11,800 to be here in Finley, Ohio, 6 00:00:11,800 --> 00:00:15,600 and to minister with the families and the folks here 7 00:00:15,600 --> 00:00:16,920 at Trinity Baptist Church. 8 00:00:16,920 --> 00:00:19,520 If you have your Bibles, I would like to open them up 9 00:00:19,520 --> 00:00:21,280 to Genesis chapter 18. 10 00:00:22,160 --> 00:00:25,120 Today I wanted to kind of address the idea of 11 00:00:25,120 --> 00:00:28,520 what does it look like and to challenge you 12 00:00:28,520 --> 00:00:31,560 to be involved with your family or wherever you are, 13 00:00:31,560 --> 00:00:34,440 God has placed you as a great commission family. 14 00:00:34,440 --> 00:00:37,080 Because I believe that it is paramount 15 00:00:37,080 --> 00:00:40,120 that we as a church see ourselves 16 00:00:40,120 --> 00:00:43,000 engaged in family-centered discipleship. 17 00:00:43,000 --> 00:00:46,520 As part of what God has entrusted me here 18 00:00:46,520 --> 00:00:49,360 under the vision of Pastor Jennings, 19 00:00:49,360 --> 00:00:52,440 my desire is to help children and families 20 00:00:52,440 --> 00:00:54,640 engage in this great commission, 21 00:00:54,640 --> 00:00:58,560 in this great commission mode in their families 22 00:00:58,560 --> 00:01:00,680 because I believe that it is paramount 23 00:01:00,680 --> 00:01:03,680 for what God has designed the family 24 00:01:03,680 --> 00:01:05,040 and how God has designed our church 25 00:01:05,040 --> 00:01:07,840 and how it impacts the world. 26 00:01:07,840 --> 00:01:10,200 Recently I went back and now that I've gotten 27 00:01:10,200 --> 00:01:13,800 to the point in life where our kids are getting older, 28 00:01:13,800 --> 00:01:14,840 I've been able to get to the point 29 00:01:14,840 --> 00:01:16,880 where we've been able to kind of like share 30 00:01:16,880 --> 00:01:19,520 some of like our childhood with our kids. 31 00:01:19,520 --> 00:01:20,400 It's not if you've ever done that, 32 00:01:20,400 --> 00:01:22,960 but we recently went back and watched a movie 33 00:01:22,960 --> 00:01:25,960 that came out when I was a kid called Honey, 34 00:01:25,960 --> 00:01:26,800 I Shrunk the Kids. 35 00:01:26,800 --> 00:01:27,920 Has anybody ever seen that one? 36 00:01:27,920 --> 00:01:30,480 And so we went and we were watching that with our kids, 37 00:01:30,480 --> 00:01:31,600 our kids are not getting to the age 38 00:01:31,600 --> 00:01:34,720 where they can sit through a movie and it's awesome. 39 00:01:34,720 --> 00:01:37,520 But this movie came out in 1989 40 00:01:37,520 --> 00:01:40,320 starring the lead actor Rick Moranis. 41 00:01:40,320 --> 00:01:42,360 If you're not familiar with the story, 42 00:01:42,360 --> 00:01:44,760 the story kind of goes where this guy's 43 00:01:44,760 --> 00:01:48,000 an eccentric scientist, he comes up with this shrink ray. 44 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:51,440 And then of course bad things happen 45 00:01:51,440 --> 00:01:55,160 when the kids are upstairs, the fate has it 46 00:01:55,160 --> 00:01:56,640 that they get shrunken and of course 47 00:01:56,640 --> 00:01:58,640 they get taken out with the trash 48 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:00,000 and then they have the whole movie, 49 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:02,120 the journey through the backyard trying to get back 50 00:02:02,120 --> 00:02:05,040 to get back to their normal size. 51 00:02:05,040 --> 00:02:08,640 Anyway, what I did, I knew that story as a kid 52 00:02:08,640 --> 00:02:10,360 is because I had seen the movie before, 53 00:02:10,360 --> 00:02:12,760 but have you ever had the experience where you go back 54 00:02:12,760 --> 00:02:14,600 and you watch the movie as an adult 55 00:02:14,600 --> 00:02:18,040 and you see things that you had never seen before as a kid? 56 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:20,440 Well, thankfully this movie came out, 57 00:02:20,440 --> 00:02:21,680 it wasn't one of those things where like, 58 00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:22,840 oh man, I need to turn that off 59 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:24,440 because I didn't realize that was in the movie. 60 00:02:24,440 --> 00:02:26,320 Well, actually what I had never noticed before 61 00:02:26,320 --> 00:02:29,720 was the overarching storyline of the family dynamics 62 00:02:29,720 --> 00:02:31,320 that were going on in the movie. 63 00:02:31,320 --> 00:02:35,880 So as the opening movie, after the credits go through, 64 00:02:35,880 --> 00:02:39,080 this is back in 1989 where they had the credits before 65 00:02:39,080 --> 00:02:40,800 and not after the movie and so my kids are like, 66 00:02:40,800 --> 00:02:42,000 what is going on? 67 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:44,480 Why is this movie taking, what is all this? 68 00:02:44,480 --> 00:02:45,560 All these words. 69 00:02:45,560 --> 00:02:48,880 And so after all that opening credits scene, 70 00:02:48,880 --> 00:02:53,120 the scene opens up to a very dysfunctional family. 71 00:02:53,120 --> 00:02:56,760 The main scientist who was played by Rick Moranis 72 00:02:56,760 --> 00:02:58,960 is having a difficult time with his wife. 73 00:02:58,960 --> 00:03:01,320 In fact, throughout the movie she talks about 74 00:03:01,320 --> 00:03:04,080 how she's going to go live with her parents 75 00:03:04,080 --> 00:03:06,160 because they're not getting along in their marriage. 76 00:03:06,160 --> 00:03:08,200 And as these opening scenes open up, 77 00:03:08,200 --> 00:03:10,400 you see these two kids who are kind of caught 78 00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:13,280 in the middle of this dysfunctional marriage 79 00:03:13,280 --> 00:03:18,240 and as they are trying to just make sense of all of it, 80 00:03:18,240 --> 00:03:20,760 the one young kid is kind of diving into school 81 00:03:20,760 --> 00:03:21,800 because he's more of a nerd 82 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:24,320 and the one young girl is thinking about boys 83 00:03:24,320 --> 00:03:26,520 and moving out and getting out of the house 84 00:03:26,520 --> 00:03:29,120 because what's going on in their family dynamics 85 00:03:29,120 --> 00:03:31,080 is not so great. 86 00:03:31,080 --> 00:03:34,560 But as you watch throughout the entire movie, 87 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:37,320 you see kind of this restoration effect going on 88 00:03:37,320 --> 00:03:40,360 in their family as this husband and wife 89 00:03:40,360 --> 00:03:43,120 who couldn't stand to be in the same house together 90 00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:45,120 at the very beginning of the movie, 91 00:03:45,120 --> 00:03:48,360 they unify over engaging with their kids 92 00:03:48,360 --> 00:03:49,680 because their kids have been shrunken 93 00:03:49,680 --> 00:03:51,960 and they're out somewhere out in the backyard 94 00:03:51,960 --> 00:03:53,320 and they're trying to find them. 95 00:03:53,320 --> 00:03:58,320 And so they engage together to try to help their children. 96 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:00,440 And this is what happens by the end of the movie, 97 00:04:00,440 --> 00:04:03,560 we see a restored relationship between the father 98 00:04:03,560 --> 00:04:06,880 and the wife, the mother, the husband and wife 99 00:04:06,880 --> 00:04:09,720 and the kids and that continues on 100 00:04:09,720 --> 00:04:11,640 through some of the other movies, two and three, 101 00:04:11,640 --> 00:04:13,160 have you ever seen those? 102 00:04:13,160 --> 00:04:17,440 But the real life story of Rick Moranus 103 00:04:17,440 --> 00:04:19,080 is kind of a lot like that. 104 00:04:19,080 --> 00:04:21,200 I don't know if you've ever seen his story, 105 00:04:21,200 --> 00:04:23,840 but he was kind of like a flash in the pan in the 80s 106 00:04:23,840 --> 00:04:27,600 where he showed up and his career was booming in the 80s. 107 00:04:27,600 --> 00:04:32,360 In fact, throughout the 80s, he was in about 15 different 108 00:04:32,360 --> 00:04:34,760 blockbuster hits from ones from like, 109 00:04:35,600 --> 00:04:40,680 the kids to blockbuster musicals to ghostbusters 110 00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:44,600 and beyond, he had a very blossoming career 111 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:46,960 in the, throughout the 80s. 112 00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:49,320 But after five years of marriage, 113 00:04:49,320 --> 00:04:53,320 his wife tragically got breast cancer and she passed away. 114 00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:56,120 And so it left him with two children 115 00:04:56,120 --> 00:04:59,320 and a blossoming career in Hollywood. 116 00:04:59,320 --> 00:05:02,360 And instead of pursuing and expanding his career, 117 00:05:02,360 --> 00:05:04,240 he decided that he would shrink back 118 00:05:04,240 --> 00:05:07,760 and he would focus on his kids and on his family. 119 00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:09,600 And instead of pursuing Hollywood 120 00:05:09,600 --> 00:05:11,600 and all the dreams that many people, 121 00:05:11,600 --> 00:05:13,240 a dream about making their life, 122 00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:15,160 all about this single dad decided 123 00:05:15,160 --> 00:05:17,240 that he would only take the jobs necessary 124 00:05:17,240 --> 00:05:19,960 to provide for his family and that, 125 00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:21,840 the ones that would not interfere 126 00:05:21,840 --> 00:05:23,720 with his family life and his kids. 127 00:05:23,720 --> 00:05:26,680 And in an interview, many years later, 128 00:05:26,680 --> 00:05:27,840 he was quoted saying this, 129 00:05:27,840 --> 00:05:30,240 I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever. 130 00:05:30,240 --> 00:05:33,600 My life is wonderful. 131 00:05:33,600 --> 00:05:35,440 But a very quick Google search will show 132 00:05:35,440 --> 00:05:37,720 that that is not the norm when it comes 133 00:05:37,720 --> 00:05:40,560 to the Hollywood lifestyle and the family dynamics 134 00:05:40,560 --> 00:05:41,400 that come with it. 135 00:05:41,400 --> 00:05:45,000 In fact, across dozens of websites gathered along the internet 136 00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:48,720 are long lists of what we would call deadbeat dads. 137 00:05:48,720 --> 00:05:53,080 Those who include lists include men like Eddie Murphy, 138 00:05:53,080 --> 00:05:55,320 Alec Baldwin, Carl Malone, 139 00:05:55,320 --> 00:05:59,560 who among their other misdeeds have been even publicly 140 00:05:59,560 --> 00:06:01,240 denouncing their own children 141 00:06:01,240 --> 00:06:03,320 and saying those aren't my children. 142 00:06:03,320 --> 00:06:08,320 One, in fact, at his son's high school graduation 143 00:06:09,520 --> 00:06:12,360 was noted by saying the son wanted, 144 00:06:12,360 --> 00:06:16,040 after growing up without a dad who was very busy 145 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:18,360 with his career and expanding opportunities 146 00:06:18,360 --> 00:06:21,080 and making money, he had a conversation with his dad 147 00:06:21,080 --> 00:06:22,600 and his dad says, I'm sorry son, 148 00:06:22,600 --> 00:06:25,680 it's too late for a relationship now. 149 00:06:25,680 --> 00:06:27,960 I can't imagine the pain of what it is 150 00:06:27,960 --> 00:06:30,400 to be one of those kids. 151 00:06:30,400 --> 00:06:34,880 But you know what, many times we face choices in our life 152 00:06:34,880 --> 00:06:36,920 when it comes to our family dynamics. 153 00:06:36,920 --> 00:06:39,200 And honestly, and including myself, 154 00:06:39,200 --> 00:06:40,920 we don't always get it right. 155 00:06:40,920 --> 00:06:43,960 We don't always engage the way that we should 156 00:06:43,960 --> 00:06:46,200 in our families with our children, 157 00:06:46,200 --> 00:06:49,520 with our grandchildren, the way that we should. 158 00:06:49,520 --> 00:06:52,840 And which is why I wanna suggest to you this morning 159 00:06:52,840 --> 00:06:56,200 that every one of us, every Christian here today 160 00:06:56,200 --> 00:07:01,200 should be engaged in family-centered discipleship. 161 00:07:01,320 --> 00:07:04,600 Genesis chapter 18, we're introduced to 162 00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:07,800 a very important family in the word of God 163 00:07:07,800 --> 00:07:12,800 and we're given access to a very privy conversation 164 00:07:12,920 --> 00:07:15,840 that God has with himself. 165 00:07:15,840 --> 00:07:20,000 In Genesis chapter 18, beginning at verse 17, 166 00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:21,520 the scripture says this, 167 00:07:21,520 --> 00:07:24,800 and the Lord said, shall I hide from Abraham 168 00:07:24,800 --> 00:07:26,680 that thing which I do, 169 00:07:26,680 --> 00:07:29,160 seeing that Abraham shall surely become 170 00:07:29,160 --> 00:07:30,920 a great and mighty nation, 171 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:34,880 and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him. 172 00:07:34,880 --> 00:07:37,760 For I know him, that he will command his children 173 00:07:37,760 --> 00:07:39,680 and his household after him, 174 00:07:39,680 --> 00:07:41,640 that they shall keep the way of the Lord, 175 00:07:41,640 --> 00:07:43,840 and to do justice and judgment, 176 00:07:43,840 --> 00:07:45,960 that the Lord may bring upon Abraham 177 00:07:45,960 --> 00:07:48,400 that which he has spoken of him. 178 00:07:48,400 --> 00:07:50,240 And the Lord said, because of the cry of Solomon, 179 00:07:50,240 --> 00:07:53,600 Gamora is great, and because their sin is very grievous, 180 00:07:53,600 --> 00:07:55,760 I will go down now and see whether they have done 181 00:07:55,760 --> 00:07:58,480 altogether according to the cry of it, 182 00:07:58,480 --> 00:08:03,480 which is come unto me, if not, I will know. 183 00:08:03,760 --> 00:08:05,440 Let's go to the Lord in prayer this morning 184 00:08:05,440 --> 00:08:08,880 before we dive into the exposition of this scripture. 185 00:08:08,880 --> 00:08:11,040 Father, we love you, we thank you for the opportunity 186 00:08:11,040 --> 00:08:13,500 that we have to enter into this place, 187 00:08:13,500 --> 00:08:16,360 to lift up our voices and worship to you. 188 00:08:16,360 --> 00:08:20,240 Father, I pray that as we look into the word of God today 189 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:24,040 and as we discover the important aspect 190 00:08:24,040 --> 00:08:26,280 that each and every one of us should be engaged 191 00:08:26,280 --> 00:08:27,840 in family-centered discipleship, 192 00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:29,640 Lord, that you would impress upon our hearts, 193 00:08:29,640 --> 00:08:32,400 not just knowledge, but illumination, 194 00:08:32,400 --> 00:08:36,480 that you would help the scriptures transform our heart 195 00:08:36,480 --> 00:08:38,960 and our heart and would turn into our actions 196 00:08:38,960 --> 00:08:40,640 and our actions and our words, 197 00:08:40,640 --> 00:08:44,320 and Lord, that our lives would reflect what is written 198 00:08:44,320 --> 00:08:47,000 on the pages of the scripture before us. 199 00:08:47,000 --> 00:08:49,160 Father, I pray that you would help us 200 00:08:49,160 --> 00:08:52,760 to understand the importance of how you fit 201 00:08:52,760 --> 00:08:56,960 into the picture of family-centered discipleship, Lord, 202 00:08:56,960 --> 00:09:00,320 how we fit into it, Lord, and the dangers that surround us 203 00:09:00,320 --> 00:09:02,640 and the reasons why we should be engaged. 204 00:09:02,640 --> 00:09:04,760 Father, I thank you so much for what you're doing now, 205 00:09:04,760 --> 00:09:06,960 and I pray that you would have your will and way, Lord, 206 00:09:06,960 --> 00:09:11,360 that you would work in our hearts as only you can do 207 00:09:11,360 --> 00:09:12,520 through your scripture today 208 00:09:12,520 --> 00:09:14,040 and through the power of your Holy Spirit. 209 00:09:14,040 --> 00:09:15,760 We pray in Jesus' name. 210 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:17,000 Amen. 211 00:09:17,000 --> 00:09:19,200 As I mentioned before, just a second ago, 212 00:09:19,200 --> 00:09:21,920 in this conversation in Genesis chapter 18, 213 00:09:21,920 --> 00:09:25,480 we are introduced to this kind of conversation 214 00:09:25,480 --> 00:09:28,040 that God has with himself. 215 00:09:28,040 --> 00:09:30,280 If you're unfamiliar with this passage of scripture, 216 00:09:30,280 --> 00:09:35,280 this is when God and the angels come to Abraham and to Sarah, 217 00:09:35,440 --> 00:09:38,680 and they're going to finally give them the good news 218 00:09:38,680 --> 00:09:41,720 that Sarah is going to be with child. 219 00:09:41,720 --> 00:09:46,720 This is also the place where Sarah laughs in verse 13, 220 00:09:46,720 --> 00:09:50,800 because she realizes that at the age that she's at, 221 00:09:50,800 --> 00:09:53,840 she has no way physically she can have children. 222 00:09:53,840 --> 00:09:58,840 But God makes a promise he is going to bring it 223 00:09:59,480 --> 00:10:03,720 to bear even in the lives of old Abraham and Sarah 224 00:10:03,720 --> 00:10:07,760 because of the plan that God had for Abraham. 225 00:10:07,760 --> 00:10:10,920 So God here specifically has already chosen Abraham 226 00:10:10,920 --> 00:10:13,960 and his family, but here he's going to help them understand 227 00:10:13,960 --> 00:10:17,600 that this choice of choosing them is going to be for a purpose, 228 00:10:17,600 --> 00:10:20,040 that he is going to pass through them the covenant 229 00:10:20,040 --> 00:10:22,760 that God makes with them and their progeny, 230 00:10:22,760 --> 00:10:27,480 which would include the patriarchs of several world religions, 231 00:10:27,480 --> 00:10:29,160 and more importantly would give rise 232 00:10:29,160 --> 00:10:32,520 to the savior of the world, Jesus Christ. 233 00:10:32,520 --> 00:10:35,280 But before this promise is fulfilled, 234 00:10:35,280 --> 00:10:37,680 God comes to Abraham with the news 235 00:10:37,680 --> 00:10:40,040 that Sarah is going to have a child. 236 00:10:40,040 --> 00:10:42,440 And that's where we pick up here in verse 18, 237 00:10:42,440 --> 00:10:45,160 where God has a conversation with himself 238 00:10:45,160 --> 00:10:47,920 about hiding from Abraham the things 239 00:10:47,920 --> 00:10:49,560 that he was going to do. 240 00:10:49,560 --> 00:10:53,000 And in this conversation, God recounts three activities 241 00:10:53,000 --> 00:10:54,880 that we're going to pick up on today 242 00:10:54,880 --> 00:10:58,120 that I hope will motivate us to be engaged 243 00:10:58,120 --> 00:10:59,880 in family-centered discipleship 244 00:10:59,880 --> 00:11:01,200 because of these three activities. 245 00:11:01,200 --> 00:11:03,320 If you're taking notes, the first one is this, 246 00:11:03,320 --> 00:11:05,720 what God is doing. 247 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:07,720 The first activity that we're introduced here 248 00:11:07,720 --> 00:11:11,440 in Genesis chapter 18 is what God is doing. 249 00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:13,080 In verse 17, the Lord says, 250 00:11:13,080 --> 00:11:16,440 shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do? 251 00:11:16,440 --> 00:11:18,560 Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great 252 00:11:18,560 --> 00:11:21,600 and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth 253 00:11:21,600 --> 00:11:23,960 shall be blessed in him. 254 00:11:23,960 --> 00:11:27,240 Now, God's plan to use Abraham and his seed 255 00:11:27,240 --> 00:11:30,960 and his offspring to allow the Messiah to come 256 00:11:30,960 --> 00:11:32,520 and to be born into the world and through him, 257 00:11:32,520 --> 00:11:34,400 all the nations would be blessed 258 00:11:34,400 --> 00:11:39,400 is the linchpin to his conversation here. 259 00:11:39,400 --> 00:11:43,520 But God had started something long before Abraham 260 00:11:43,520 --> 00:11:44,960 was on the scene. 261 00:11:44,960 --> 00:11:47,800 You see, God's plan has been the same 262 00:11:47,800 --> 00:11:50,360 from the very beginning of creation. 263 00:11:50,360 --> 00:11:54,720 And that plan was to use families as the primary centers 264 00:11:54,720 --> 00:11:57,400 of discipleship and evangelism 265 00:11:57,400 --> 00:12:02,400 because God designed families to be discipleship centers. 266 00:12:03,400 --> 00:12:06,240 Most churches that I've been in contact with, 267 00:12:06,240 --> 00:12:08,040 and many of you probably have heard 268 00:12:08,040 --> 00:12:11,640 that are engaged in discipleship at any level, 269 00:12:11,640 --> 00:12:16,000 usually use one or two or three different phrases. 270 00:12:16,000 --> 00:12:18,280 And maybe you've heard some of these phrases before. 271 00:12:18,280 --> 00:12:21,440 Some of the phrases that are used in churches today, 272 00:12:21,440 --> 00:12:24,400 when it comes to discipleship, they use phrases like, 273 00:12:24,400 --> 00:12:25,920 we do life together. 274 00:12:25,920 --> 00:12:29,160 Anybody ever heard a phrase like that, doing life together? 275 00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:31,960 Other ones like to say that life or ministry happens 276 00:12:31,960 --> 00:12:35,720 in the context and it starts with the R of relationships. 277 00:12:35,720 --> 00:12:38,120 Anybody have heard that phrase before? 278 00:12:38,120 --> 00:12:39,840 There are some that like to use the phrase 279 00:12:39,840 --> 00:12:42,640 that we have authentic community. 280 00:12:42,640 --> 00:12:45,360 Some of these phrases are used in connection 281 00:12:45,360 --> 00:12:48,360 with sometimes Sunday school classes, small groups, 282 00:12:48,360 --> 00:12:50,640 or even the discipleship program. 283 00:12:50,640 --> 00:12:53,680 All of them keyed in on the idea of discipling 284 00:12:53,680 --> 00:12:55,360 or making disciples. 285 00:12:55,360 --> 00:12:58,280 All of these phrase encapsulate kind of the importance 286 00:12:58,280 --> 00:13:01,640 of relationships when it comes to, 287 00:13:01,640 --> 00:13:03,480 in the context of discipleship. 288 00:13:03,480 --> 00:13:06,720 But I wanna say that there's one place 289 00:13:06,720 --> 00:13:10,360 that all three of these phrases happen often. 290 00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:13,280 In fact, I'm talking about every single day. 291 00:13:13,280 --> 00:13:16,760 And that is in the context of family. 292 00:13:16,760 --> 00:13:20,560 Who does life together more than a family? 293 00:13:20,560 --> 00:13:24,400 Who has the context of relationships more than a family 294 00:13:24,400 --> 00:13:26,520 who is living together? 295 00:13:26,520 --> 00:13:28,480 Who has more authentic community 296 00:13:28,480 --> 00:13:30,600 than a mom and a dad and kids? 297 00:13:30,600 --> 00:13:34,600 I'm telling you, my kids have seen what goes on 298 00:13:34,600 --> 00:13:36,400 behind closed doors, all right? 299 00:13:36,400 --> 00:13:37,520 And your kids have too. 300 00:13:37,520 --> 00:13:40,800 They see the real authentic you. 301 00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:44,960 No, not just the Sunday you, but the everyday you. 302 00:13:44,960 --> 00:13:48,880 In the beginning here of the world, Genesis chapter one, 303 00:13:48,880 --> 00:13:52,520 God creates the very first family, Adam and Eve. 304 00:13:52,520 --> 00:13:56,200 And in this first family, the very first thing 305 00:13:56,200 --> 00:13:59,240 recorded in scripture that God says to this family, 306 00:13:59,240 --> 00:14:02,480 according to Genesis chapter one, verse 28 is this, 307 00:14:02,480 --> 00:14:05,200 God blessed them and God said unto them, 308 00:14:05,200 --> 00:14:07,720 be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth 309 00:14:07,720 --> 00:14:10,640 and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea 310 00:14:10,640 --> 00:14:13,480 and over the fowl of the air and over every living thing 311 00:14:13,480 --> 00:14:15,560 that moveeth upon the earth. 312 00:14:15,560 --> 00:14:18,320 Now we're gonna look at that and the importance of that 313 00:14:18,320 --> 00:14:19,400 in just a moment. 314 00:14:19,400 --> 00:14:21,840 But this is the first command that God gives 315 00:14:21,840 --> 00:14:23,920 to his created people. 316 00:14:23,920 --> 00:14:28,000 A few chapters later, after people mess it all up 317 00:14:28,000 --> 00:14:30,440 and sin enters in the world and death by sin 318 00:14:30,440 --> 00:14:34,160 and the world is coming up and is thoroughly evil, 319 00:14:34,160 --> 00:14:38,200 God kind of pushes the reset button if you will. 320 00:14:38,200 --> 00:14:39,320 And what happens? 321 00:14:39,320 --> 00:14:41,320 God chooses Noah, right? 322 00:14:41,320 --> 00:14:45,560 But God doesn't just choose Noah, God chooses a family. 323 00:14:45,560 --> 00:14:49,440 God chooses Noah and his wife, his three sons and their wives. 324 00:14:49,440 --> 00:14:54,000 God chooses a family unit to kind of restart if you will. 325 00:14:54,000 --> 00:14:56,880 And when God chooses his family, and after this family 326 00:14:56,880 --> 00:15:01,160 experiences this catastrophic worldwide flood 327 00:15:01,160 --> 00:15:04,360 and the waters recede, they get back out onto dry land, 328 00:15:04,360 --> 00:15:07,440 they make their petitions to God and the sacrifices of God 329 00:15:07,440 --> 00:15:08,960 and what does God say to them? 330 00:15:08,960 --> 00:15:11,440 He repeats the same thing that he says 331 00:15:11,440 --> 00:15:14,640 in Genesis chapter one, be fruitful and multiply. 332 00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:18,440 He restates this very first commandment that God had given 333 00:15:18,440 --> 00:15:20,680 to Adam and Eve, the very first family. 334 00:15:20,680 --> 00:15:23,400 And in the New Testament, when Jesus has asked 335 00:15:23,400 --> 00:15:25,360 what is the greatest commandment, 336 00:15:25,360 --> 00:15:28,120 Jesus restates Deuteronomy chapter six, 337 00:15:28,120 --> 00:15:31,840 verses five and six, and those verses go as such. 338 00:15:31,840 --> 00:15:34,960 Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, 339 00:15:34,960 --> 00:15:38,000 with all thy soul, with all thy might. 340 00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:42,120 And verse six, these words which I commanded thee this day 341 00:15:42,120 --> 00:15:44,480 shall be in thine heart. 342 00:15:44,480 --> 00:15:47,520 Immediately following the greatest commandment, 343 00:15:47,520 --> 00:15:51,320 God gives his intended mission of how he wanted 344 00:15:51,320 --> 00:15:55,520 to see this commandment come into practice in our lives 345 00:15:55,520 --> 00:15:57,360 in a very practical way. 346 00:15:57,360 --> 00:16:00,760 And then he gives a few examples in Deuteronomy chapter six, 347 00:16:00,760 --> 00:16:04,320 verse seven, the following verse after this greatest 348 00:16:04,320 --> 00:16:06,480 commandment, here's what he says. 349 00:16:06,480 --> 00:16:11,480 Thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children. 350 00:16:11,600 --> 00:16:16,320 That's the mission of loving God and serving him. 351 00:16:16,320 --> 00:16:18,280 Then he gives us a few examples. 352 00:16:18,280 --> 00:16:21,480 He says this, Thou shalt talk of them 353 00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:23,520 when thou sittest in thine house, 354 00:16:23,520 --> 00:16:25,760 and when thou walkest by the way, 355 00:16:25,760 --> 00:16:30,360 and when thou liest down, and when thou rises up. 356 00:16:30,360 --> 00:16:31,360 Why? 357 00:16:31,360 --> 00:16:36,360 Why does God give this as the example and practicality 358 00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:40,280 and the mission of loving God with all of your heart, mind, 359 00:16:40,280 --> 00:16:42,640 and soul, and following God's word? 360 00:16:42,640 --> 00:16:44,720 Why is this significant? 361 00:16:44,720 --> 00:16:47,720 I believe it's because God designed the family 362 00:16:47,720 --> 00:16:51,800 to be the discipleship center that God designed the home 363 00:16:51,800 --> 00:16:56,080 in such a way as to advance the spiritual formation 364 00:16:56,080 --> 00:16:58,120 of the next generation. 365 00:16:59,320 --> 00:17:02,320 What's going on here in Genesis chapter 18? 366 00:17:02,320 --> 00:17:05,880 Well, God is choosing a family as he already has chosen, 367 00:17:05,880 --> 00:17:09,120 Abraham and Sarah, and he is going to miraculously 368 00:17:09,120 --> 00:17:10,120 give them a child. 369 00:17:10,120 --> 00:17:13,600 He is going to give them Isaac, and through him, 370 00:17:13,600 --> 00:17:16,000 the nations were going to be blessed 371 00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:18,400 because of their obedience. 372 00:17:18,400 --> 00:17:22,680 God is setting up in the context of Abraham and Sarah 373 00:17:22,680 --> 00:17:26,640 and Isaac a discipleship center that is going to 374 00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:30,400 not only continue, but bless the entire world. 375 00:17:30,400 --> 00:17:32,360 More on that in just a moment. 376 00:17:32,360 --> 00:17:35,680 But God was doing something amazing, 377 00:17:35,680 --> 00:17:37,360 and he has from the very beginning, 378 00:17:37,360 --> 00:17:40,440 from Genesis chapter one to today, 379 00:17:40,440 --> 00:17:43,480 God is still creating families, 380 00:17:43,480 --> 00:17:48,480 and God still has the families as a center of discipleship 381 00:17:48,800 --> 00:17:53,040 for the next generation, for the spiritual formation. 382 00:17:53,040 --> 00:17:55,080 The second thing that we're, the second event 383 00:17:55,080 --> 00:17:59,520 that we're given to you in our chapter today 384 00:17:59,520 --> 00:18:02,920 comes by the way of what the faithful are doing, 385 00:18:02,920 --> 00:18:05,320 what the faithful are doing. 386 00:18:05,320 --> 00:18:10,320 Genesis chapter 18 verse 19, the scripture says this, 387 00:18:10,320 --> 00:18:15,240 for I know him, that he will command his children 388 00:18:15,240 --> 00:18:18,920 and his household after him, that they shall keep 389 00:18:18,920 --> 00:18:23,240 the way of the Lord to do justice and judgment 390 00:18:23,240 --> 00:18:26,280 that the Lord may bring upon Abraham 391 00:18:26,280 --> 00:18:31,280 that which he hath spoken him. 392 00:18:31,280 --> 00:18:35,560 Now God sets up this context, shall I hide from Abraham 393 00:18:35,560 --> 00:18:36,720 what I'm doing? 394 00:18:36,720 --> 00:18:38,560 The large plan of what God was doing 395 00:18:38,560 --> 00:18:40,400 is that God was creating families 396 00:18:40,400 --> 00:18:42,120 to be a discipleship center, 397 00:18:42,120 --> 00:18:44,920 and specifically in Abraham's scenario, 398 00:18:44,920 --> 00:18:48,440 he was going to have him to be a discipleship center 399 00:18:48,440 --> 00:18:50,720 for Isaac who then would continue down to Jacob 400 00:18:50,720 --> 00:18:54,200 and continue through the generations. 401 00:18:54,200 --> 00:18:56,280 But we see what the faithful are doing, 402 00:18:56,280 --> 00:19:00,640 and God himself points it out as a reason as to why 403 00:19:00,640 --> 00:19:05,640 Abraham was specifically chosen for this incredible 404 00:19:05,640 --> 00:19:10,640 world changing scenario. 405 00:19:11,320 --> 00:19:14,720 God chooses Abraham to fulfill his global plan 406 00:19:14,720 --> 00:19:18,160 to redeem mankind out of all the other families 407 00:19:18,160 --> 00:19:22,160 of the earth, and he tells us why here in verse 19. 408 00:19:22,160 --> 00:19:26,720 He chooses Abraham because he knows how Abraham 409 00:19:26,720 --> 00:19:28,960 is going to handle the next generation's 410 00:19:28,960 --> 00:19:31,600 spiritual formation. 411 00:19:31,600 --> 00:19:36,600 He says, for I know him, that's Abraham, 412 00:19:37,160 --> 00:19:40,520 that he, Abraham, will command his children 413 00:19:40,520 --> 00:19:43,360 and his household after him, 414 00:19:43,360 --> 00:19:48,360 and they shall keep the way of the Lord. 415 00:19:48,520 --> 00:19:53,520 Why was Abraham's faithfulness important to God? 416 00:19:53,560 --> 00:19:56,600 Because God desired the faithfulness 417 00:19:56,600 --> 00:19:58,440 of the future generations, 418 00:19:58,440 --> 00:20:02,640 that God desired a godly offspring. 419 00:20:02,640 --> 00:20:05,640 And Abraham represents the faithful parent 420 00:20:05,640 --> 00:20:10,200 who engages in family-centered discipleship. 421 00:20:10,200 --> 00:20:15,200 But today, we must face the harsh reality 422 00:20:15,600 --> 00:20:19,280 of why we should be motivated to be engaged 423 00:20:19,280 --> 00:20:22,400 in a spiritual formation of our children 424 00:20:22,400 --> 00:20:25,200 and the spiritual formation of our families. 425 00:20:25,200 --> 00:20:28,080 Because the harsh reality that we live in 426 00:20:28,080 --> 00:20:30,880 is this, according to a study done in 2021, 427 00:20:30,880 --> 00:20:33,280 just a few years ago, looking specifically 428 00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:36,960 at Christian parents who self-identified 429 00:20:36,960 --> 00:20:40,880 as having attended worship and strongly agree 430 00:20:40,880 --> 00:20:45,880 their faith is important, only a staggering 51% of them 431 00:20:46,280 --> 00:20:49,000 were very concerned about their children's 432 00:20:49,000 --> 00:20:52,520 spiritual development, that only half 433 00:20:52,520 --> 00:20:56,600 of what we would consider faithful church-going families 434 00:20:56,600 --> 00:21:01,600 were concerned about their children's spiritual development. 435 00:21:02,400 --> 00:21:05,480 A decade ago, in a book entitled You Lost Me, 436 00:21:05,480 --> 00:21:08,040 written by Barnard Research President David Kineman, 437 00:21:08,040 --> 00:21:12,320 shocked the Christian world by reporting that 59% 438 00:21:12,320 --> 00:21:15,680 of young adults, that's 18 to 25s, 439 00:21:15,680 --> 00:21:19,800 who had Christian upbringing had dropped out of church 440 00:21:19,800 --> 00:21:22,560 by their early 20s. 441 00:21:22,560 --> 00:21:25,480 Eight years following, another research study was done, 442 00:21:25,480 --> 00:21:30,480 in 2019, the percentage had increased from 59% to 64%, 443 00:21:33,720 --> 00:21:37,280 suggesting that nearly two-thirds of young people 444 00:21:37,280 --> 00:21:41,640 who were raised in church will statistically withdraw 445 00:21:41,640 --> 00:21:45,440 from the church as they pass through their teenage years. 446 00:21:47,240 --> 00:21:51,120 While the reality of this can certainly be bleak 447 00:21:51,120 --> 00:21:55,280 and certainly make us feel like, well, what hope is there? 448 00:21:55,280 --> 00:21:58,880 I want to also point out something that's also true, 449 00:22:00,320 --> 00:22:04,360 that these realities, these statistics inform us 450 00:22:04,360 --> 00:22:07,640 that there is still one-third of young people 451 00:22:07,640 --> 00:22:11,640 coined in this study, resilient disciples, 452 00:22:11,640 --> 00:22:15,920 who will dare to stand against the tide of their generation, 453 00:22:15,920 --> 00:22:19,880 that there still remains those faithful people, 454 00:22:19,880 --> 00:22:23,800 young people, which is why it is important for us 455 00:22:23,800 --> 00:22:26,440 to engage in spiritual formation 456 00:22:26,440 --> 00:22:29,800 and family-centered discipleship now. 457 00:22:29,800 --> 00:22:34,640 One such story is a young man by the name of Hayden. 458 00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:37,440 A few years ago, not too far from where I grew up 459 00:22:37,440 --> 00:22:40,440 in the state of Florida, this young man, 460 00:22:40,440 --> 00:22:43,360 this young teenage boy dressed for school in his short 461 00:22:43,360 --> 00:22:47,520 showed up at a flagpole during what was called 462 00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:49,040 See You at the Pole. 463 00:22:49,040 --> 00:22:51,080 If you're unfamiliar with See You at the Pole, 464 00:22:51,080 --> 00:22:53,840 it is a nationwide Christian-centered event 465 00:22:53,840 --> 00:22:57,200 started back in Burlington, Texas in the 1990s 466 00:22:57,200 --> 00:22:58,480 by a group of students. 467 00:22:58,480 --> 00:23:01,800 And it's an annual event that's held nationally 468 00:23:01,800 --> 00:23:04,680 at every school where young Christian people 469 00:23:04,680 --> 00:23:07,160 stand outside by their flagpole 470 00:23:07,160 --> 00:23:11,440 and have a moment of prayer in a very public way, 471 00:23:11,440 --> 00:23:13,440 standing up for their faith 472 00:23:13,440 --> 00:23:16,680 and praying for their school and for their nation. 473 00:23:16,680 --> 00:23:19,440 But at first, Hayden thought that the other kids 474 00:23:19,440 --> 00:23:21,880 were simply just late. 475 00:23:21,880 --> 00:23:25,280 That he would stand out there and by bowing his head 476 00:23:25,280 --> 00:23:26,680 and waiting just a few moments, 477 00:23:26,680 --> 00:23:28,160 he would eventually be surrounded 478 00:23:28,160 --> 00:23:31,360 by his other Christian classmates. 479 00:23:31,360 --> 00:23:35,840 But as the minutes passed by and no one came, 480 00:23:35,840 --> 00:23:38,800 Hayden was left standing alone, 481 00:23:38,800 --> 00:23:43,800 bowed head, exposed, abandoned, and embarrassed. 482 00:23:44,400 --> 00:23:47,360 Most people would have walked away, 483 00:23:47,360 --> 00:23:51,040 maybe had a few choice words with their classmates. 484 00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:52,120 Why weren't you there? 485 00:23:52,120 --> 00:23:55,760 You made me look like an idiot, but not Hayden. 486 00:23:55,760 --> 00:24:00,640 When plan A failed, he had the grit to go with plan B. 487 00:24:01,560 --> 00:24:06,200 Plan B was to stand alone on his school campus 488 00:24:06,200 --> 00:24:11,200 and to pray for his nation and for his classmates. 489 00:24:11,440 --> 00:24:13,640 His stance sparked a social frenzy 490 00:24:13,640 --> 00:24:16,480 that sparked a revival in the local Christian groups 491 00:24:16,480 --> 00:24:17,720 of his area. 492 00:24:17,720 --> 00:24:19,560 Hayden said later in an interview, 493 00:24:19,560 --> 00:24:23,720 as I stood alone and prayed, the cry of my heart was this, 494 00:24:23,720 --> 00:24:28,720 God, as people drive by, let them wonder, 495 00:24:28,800 --> 00:24:32,240 let their hearts be pricked. 496 00:24:32,240 --> 00:24:34,880 Hayden's mom later in a blog said this, 497 00:24:34,880 --> 00:24:36,960 my little boy, I'd rocked to sleep 498 00:24:36,960 --> 00:24:39,920 in blue airplane pajamas when he was sick. 499 00:24:39,920 --> 00:24:42,600 The toddler who loved Elmo and couldn't get to sleep 500 00:24:42,600 --> 00:24:44,480 without holding his veggie tail characters 501 00:24:44,480 --> 00:24:48,120 had captured the attention of our entire community 502 00:24:48,120 --> 00:24:53,120 by standing alone, by doing everything we had ever 503 00:24:53,120 --> 00:24:58,120 taught him, everything we'd ever hoped he would do. 504 00:25:00,280 --> 00:25:03,080 Hayden that day became the model 505 00:25:03,080 --> 00:25:08,080 of what a resilient disciple in this generation looks like. 506 00:25:08,360 --> 00:25:12,360 But I wanna tell you today that resilience isn't innate. 507 00:25:12,360 --> 00:25:17,280 It isn't just special to a few who were born with it. 508 00:25:17,280 --> 00:25:22,280 Resilience is the muscle discipleship builds. 509 00:25:23,000 --> 00:25:27,680 Resilience is the muscle discipleship builds. 510 00:25:27,680 --> 00:25:32,200 And God has designed families to impress the hearts 511 00:25:32,200 --> 00:25:36,680 and minds of children to love God. 512 00:25:36,680 --> 00:25:40,600 This is God's design for fathers, for mothers, 513 00:25:40,600 --> 00:25:43,960 for grandparents to impress the hearts and minds 514 00:25:43,960 --> 00:25:46,600 of children to love God. 515 00:25:47,960 --> 00:25:50,280 The most well-known of all God's commands 516 00:25:50,280 --> 00:25:52,280 are probably the 10 commandments 517 00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:54,720 that we find in Exodus chapter 20. 518 00:25:54,720 --> 00:25:56,960 Even those who aren't familiar with the Bible 519 00:25:56,960 --> 00:25:59,760 are generally familiar with one or two or three 520 00:25:59,760 --> 00:26:03,280 of these commandments, which sometimes still hang 521 00:26:03,280 --> 00:26:06,920 in our halls of law. 522 00:26:06,920 --> 00:26:09,240 The first four are vertical. 523 00:26:09,240 --> 00:26:13,440 They deal with our relationship as human beings to God. 524 00:26:13,440 --> 00:26:16,040 The final six are horizontal. 525 00:26:16,040 --> 00:26:19,840 They deal with our relationships with man 526 00:26:19,840 --> 00:26:21,920 and how we should deal with each other. 527 00:26:21,920 --> 00:26:25,080 And through these horizontal commands, 528 00:26:25,080 --> 00:26:27,840 they all seem to fit together. 529 00:26:27,840 --> 00:26:31,920 Things like don't kill, don't steal, don't cheat, 530 00:26:31,920 --> 00:26:33,800 don't covet, don't lie. 531 00:26:33,800 --> 00:26:37,600 They all seem to have the same kind of taste to them. 532 00:26:37,600 --> 00:26:41,240 In fact, coveting actually leads to all the rest of those. 533 00:26:42,120 --> 00:26:44,600 Except the very first one. 534 00:26:44,600 --> 00:26:47,560 The very first horizontal command that we find 535 00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:52,560 in the 10 commandments is in Exodus chapter 20, verse 12. 536 00:26:53,360 --> 00:26:57,040 Now keep in mind, the 10 commandments are the only part 537 00:26:57,040 --> 00:27:01,800 of the word of God that God wrote down himself. 538 00:27:01,800 --> 00:27:04,400 Now when I say that, I don't mean to say that God 539 00:27:04,400 --> 00:27:06,920 did not inspire the rest of the book. 540 00:27:06,920 --> 00:27:08,720 God has written the whole book 541 00:27:08,720 --> 00:27:10,360 and he did it through the men. 542 00:27:10,360 --> 00:27:14,600 But the 10 commandments, God actually wrote out himself 543 00:27:14,600 --> 00:27:18,400 on tablets of stone and gave them to Moses. 544 00:27:18,400 --> 00:27:22,760 The very first horizontal command God writes down 545 00:27:22,760 --> 00:27:26,440 and gives to Moses is Exodus chapter 20, verse 12. 546 00:27:26,440 --> 00:27:29,000 You may know it, it goes like this. 547 00:27:29,000 --> 00:27:32,600 Honor thy father and thy mother. 548 00:27:32,600 --> 00:27:35,520 That thy days may be long upon the land 549 00:27:35,520 --> 00:27:39,520 which the Lord, thy God, giveth thee. 550 00:27:39,520 --> 00:27:41,800 Why is that significant? 551 00:27:41,800 --> 00:27:44,160 Why do I even point that out? 552 00:27:44,160 --> 00:27:47,840 Well, I pointed out perhaps because it is the very first 553 00:27:47,840 --> 00:27:52,840 moral decision we are given when we come on this planet. 554 00:27:52,920 --> 00:27:55,800 Right now my children are not struggling 555 00:27:55,800 --> 00:27:57,240 with thou shall not kill. 556 00:27:57,240 --> 00:27:59,320 Now sometimes when I watch my daughter 557 00:27:59,320 --> 00:28:02,400 and my son play together, I sort of wonder, right? 558 00:28:02,400 --> 00:28:03,840 But right now they're not dealing with 559 00:28:03,840 --> 00:28:05,400 thou shall not commit adultery. 560 00:28:05,400 --> 00:28:07,240 What they're struggling with right now 561 00:28:07,240 --> 00:28:11,120 is honoring their father and their mother. 562 00:28:12,440 --> 00:28:14,760 To the purpose of parenting is to mold 563 00:28:14,760 --> 00:28:18,720 and impress kids' hearts and minds to love God. 564 00:28:18,720 --> 00:28:22,880 Which is why the most important commandment for children 565 00:28:22,880 --> 00:28:25,560 is to honor through obedience. 566 00:28:25,560 --> 00:28:29,200 It features six, chapter six, verses one and two. 567 00:28:29,200 --> 00:28:32,600 Children obey your parents and the Lord for this is right. 568 00:28:32,600 --> 00:28:35,120 Right, verse two restates what we just read 569 00:28:35,120 --> 00:28:36,520 in Exodus chapter 20. 570 00:28:36,520 --> 00:28:39,760 It's the very first one given to us with a promise. 571 00:28:40,760 --> 00:28:45,760 God's response to their parents' purposeful discipleship 572 00:28:46,400 --> 00:28:48,400 is paramount to their, 573 00:28:48,400 --> 00:28:50,000 there's a verse for this, so I'm gonna say that again. 574 00:28:50,000 --> 00:28:53,520 A child's response to their parents' purposeful discipleship 575 00:28:53,520 --> 00:28:56,640 is paramount to their spiritual formation. 576 00:28:59,000 --> 00:29:03,480 Which is the ultimate reason why I believe God hates divorce. 577 00:29:03,480 --> 00:29:06,840 Malachi chapter two, verse 16, it says that 578 00:29:06,840 --> 00:29:11,720 God hates putting away, that is old English for divorce. 579 00:29:11,720 --> 00:29:14,080 Now I am a child of divorce. 580 00:29:14,080 --> 00:29:16,600 My mother and father were divorced. 581 00:29:16,600 --> 00:29:19,520 The grandparents who helped raise me 582 00:29:19,520 --> 00:29:21,680 and helped nurture my spiritual condition 583 00:29:21,680 --> 00:29:23,840 were both in their second marriages 584 00:29:23,840 --> 00:29:25,880 by the time I came along. 585 00:29:25,880 --> 00:29:29,360 And that is not the focus of my sermon today. 586 00:29:29,360 --> 00:29:31,320 But I wanna tell you today that the New Testament 587 00:29:31,320 --> 00:29:33,440 gives us a little bit of insight 588 00:29:33,440 --> 00:29:35,920 into the mystery of Christ and the church 589 00:29:35,920 --> 00:29:38,760 and how it's illustrated through that marriage covenant 590 00:29:38,760 --> 00:29:41,280 of between the husband and wife. 591 00:29:41,280 --> 00:29:43,840 But I believe that God's hatred for divorce, 592 00:29:43,840 --> 00:29:46,800 according to Malachi chapter two, verse 16, 593 00:29:46,800 --> 00:29:49,920 runs even deeper than the fact that divorce 594 00:29:49,920 --> 00:29:54,400 breaks up that imagery of Christ and the church. 595 00:29:54,400 --> 00:29:56,880 And the reason why I say that is because of the context 596 00:29:56,880 --> 00:29:59,600 of where we find in Malachi chapter two. 597 00:29:59,600 --> 00:30:02,440 Malachi chapter two, beginning in verse 14, 598 00:30:02,440 --> 00:30:07,440 gives us a little context for this phrase 599 00:30:07,440 --> 00:30:09,080 that God hates divorce. 600 00:30:09,080 --> 00:30:12,520 Verse 14 says this, yet ye say that wherefore, 601 00:30:12,520 --> 00:30:14,760 because the Lord hath been witness 602 00:30:14,760 --> 00:30:17,120 between thee and the wife of thy youth 603 00:30:17,120 --> 00:30:19,720 against whom thou hast dealt treacherously, 604 00:30:19,720 --> 00:30:23,720 yet is she thy companion and the wife of thy covenant. 605 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:27,680 Verse 15 says, and did not he make one, 606 00:30:27,680 --> 00:30:29,680 yet had he had the residue of the spirit, 607 00:30:29,680 --> 00:30:33,080 and wherefore, one, why is it that God creates 608 00:30:33,080 --> 00:30:36,320 this covenant relationship between man and wife? 609 00:30:36,320 --> 00:30:38,920 Why is this so precious to him? 610 00:30:38,920 --> 00:30:40,400 Why one? 611 00:30:40,400 --> 00:30:45,240 He says this, that he might seek a godly seed. 612 00:30:46,520 --> 00:30:49,480 Therefore, take heed to your spirit 613 00:30:49,480 --> 00:30:52,240 and let none deal treacherously against the wife of thy youth. 614 00:30:52,240 --> 00:30:56,320 Verse 16 says, for God hate putting away. 615 00:30:56,320 --> 00:31:01,240 God, see God's designed for the family and for parents. 616 00:31:02,800 --> 00:31:06,160 And the reason why God made the two one 617 00:31:06,160 --> 00:31:11,160 is to raise godly seed, who will love God 618 00:31:11,400 --> 00:31:13,520 and who will worship him. 619 00:31:13,520 --> 00:31:16,720 And the reason why God hates divorce is not only 620 00:31:16,720 --> 00:31:19,800 because it defaces the image of Christ and the church, 621 00:31:19,800 --> 00:31:22,520 the mystery which is given to Paul and now to us 622 00:31:22,520 --> 00:31:27,520 in this New Testament age, but it disrupts his plan 623 00:31:27,840 --> 00:31:31,560 to pass faith to the next generation. 624 00:31:32,680 --> 00:31:36,640 The reason why God hates divorce is because it destroys 625 00:31:36,640 --> 00:31:40,800 and has the potential to disrupt 626 00:31:40,800 --> 00:31:43,800 the next generation's spiritual formation. 627 00:31:45,000 --> 00:31:47,240 This is why the instruction to fathers 628 00:31:47,240 --> 00:31:51,840 in Ephesians chapter six, verse four, I believe is so clear. 629 00:31:51,840 --> 00:31:54,560 It says in Ephesians six, four, ye fathers, 630 00:31:54,560 --> 00:31:57,160 provoke not your children to wrath, 631 00:31:57,160 --> 00:32:00,280 but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. 632 00:32:00,280 --> 00:32:04,400 Straight shooting from God himself to fathers and to parents. 633 00:32:05,720 --> 00:32:09,000 A godly father and by extension a godly parent 634 00:32:09,000 --> 00:32:13,520 needs to be about making disciples of their children 635 00:32:13,520 --> 00:32:17,200 if they are to fulfill the great commission of Jesus 636 00:32:17,200 --> 00:32:21,800 in their lifetime, which leads us to our final point. 637 00:32:21,800 --> 00:32:26,280 We see in Genesis chapter 18 what God is doing. 638 00:32:26,280 --> 00:32:30,960 That God reveals to Abraham and to us through his word 639 00:32:30,960 --> 00:32:34,360 that his plan from the very beginning is to create families 640 00:32:34,360 --> 00:32:37,680 who will be discipleship centers. 641 00:32:37,680 --> 00:32:41,840 And that these families, when filled with faithful men 642 00:32:41,840 --> 00:32:46,720 and women will pass the faith 643 00:32:46,720 --> 00:32:49,040 baton on to the next generation. 644 00:32:49,040 --> 00:32:52,480 Will impress upon the hearts and minds of their children 645 00:32:52,480 --> 00:32:55,240 to love God with all their heart, 646 00:32:55,240 --> 00:32:58,040 with all their mind, with all their soul. 647 00:33:01,480 --> 00:33:05,640 But where there is light, there is also often darkness. 648 00:33:07,720 --> 00:33:12,720 And we see in verses 20 and 21 of Genesis chapter 18 today 649 00:33:12,720 --> 00:33:17,000 what the world is doing, what the world is doing. 650 00:33:17,000 --> 00:33:20,600 You see this third activity of what the world is doing. 651 00:33:21,720 --> 00:33:23,920 I believe there is no mistaking of the reason 652 00:33:23,920 --> 00:33:27,800 why God connects these two together. 653 00:33:27,800 --> 00:33:30,000 I don't believe that is by happenstance 654 00:33:30,000 --> 00:33:32,800 that he will deal with this issue. 655 00:33:32,800 --> 00:33:36,240 Right on the heels of putting together 656 00:33:36,240 --> 00:33:39,400 the family discipleship center that will go on 657 00:33:39,400 --> 00:33:41,680 to change the world and the nations 658 00:33:41,680 --> 00:33:45,440 by bringing forth the Messiah and the Savior of the world. 659 00:33:45,440 --> 00:33:49,600 So this is chapter 18 verses 20 through 21 says this, 660 00:33:49,600 --> 00:33:52,920 the Lord said, because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah 661 00:33:52,920 --> 00:33:56,080 is great and because of their sin is very grievous, 662 00:33:56,080 --> 00:33:59,080 I will go down now and see whether they have done 663 00:33:59,080 --> 00:34:01,880 altogether according to the cry of it, 664 00:34:01,880 --> 00:34:06,040 which is coming to me and if not, I will know. 665 00:34:06,040 --> 00:34:09,320 Without doing a deep dive into Genesis chapter 19 666 00:34:09,320 --> 00:34:12,800 and the following narratives, what we find is that God 667 00:34:12,800 --> 00:34:16,440 connects the reality of the world around this discipleship 668 00:34:16,440 --> 00:34:19,760 center that he is building in Abraham's family 669 00:34:19,760 --> 00:34:22,800 and it includes the influential future uncle 670 00:34:22,800 --> 00:34:25,960 to Abraham's son Lot who is now residing 671 00:34:25,960 --> 00:34:28,440 in the city of Sodom. 672 00:34:28,440 --> 00:34:33,160 Probably the two most well-known cities outside of scripture, 673 00:34:33,160 --> 00:34:36,800 even those who are not Bible believing Christians, 674 00:34:36,800 --> 00:34:39,320 there's probably no two cities more well known 675 00:34:39,320 --> 00:34:43,120 than Sodom and Gomorrah, the names who which today 676 00:34:43,120 --> 00:34:46,520 are still associated with and synonymous with 677 00:34:46,520 --> 00:34:48,680 a certain set of sin and wickedness. 678 00:34:49,560 --> 00:34:52,480 At this time, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah 679 00:34:52,480 --> 00:34:56,520 had become cesspools of sexual promiscuity 680 00:34:56,520 --> 00:34:58,200 and they're permeated with this, 681 00:34:58,200 --> 00:35:00,320 I should be able to do whatever I want 682 00:35:00,320 --> 00:35:02,880 with whatever I like attitude. 683 00:35:02,880 --> 00:35:06,280 So much so that the practice of sex with whoever, 684 00:35:06,280 --> 00:35:08,960 whenever was thought of by the greater majority 685 00:35:08,960 --> 00:35:10,840 as their right. 686 00:35:12,320 --> 00:35:14,320 What do we see in our world today? 687 00:35:15,320 --> 00:35:17,000 That the ruler of this world Satan 688 00:35:17,000 --> 00:35:20,480 hasn't really changed his script all that much. 689 00:35:21,480 --> 00:35:24,000 Today, the traditional nuclear families in crisis 690 00:35:24,000 --> 00:35:27,520 and all world is orientating itself more and more 691 00:35:27,520 --> 00:35:31,520 to be at odds with what the word of God declares as truth. 692 00:35:31,520 --> 00:35:34,800 And with how God has set up the family. 693 00:35:34,800 --> 00:35:36,760 Some years ago, the Huffington Post 694 00:35:36,760 --> 00:35:40,200 dropped an article entitled, Is the Church Dying? 695 00:35:40,200 --> 00:35:42,400 And it gave a rather scathing view 696 00:35:42,400 --> 00:35:45,640 of conservative Christianity and conservative belief 697 00:35:45,640 --> 00:35:48,440 and made three suggestions that they believed 698 00:35:48,440 --> 00:35:52,080 would be essential should the church have a viable future. 699 00:35:53,360 --> 00:35:55,000 And here's what they said, number one, 700 00:35:55,000 --> 00:35:57,720 if the church is going to have a viable future, 701 00:35:57,720 --> 00:36:00,720 they need to one, stop pretending that the Bible 702 00:36:00,720 --> 00:36:04,400 is an infallible book written by God. 703 00:36:04,400 --> 00:36:07,520 Number two, they need to end their losing war 704 00:36:07,520 --> 00:36:12,520 with science, biology, and anthropology. 705 00:36:12,520 --> 00:36:13,960 And number three, they need to concede 706 00:36:13,960 --> 00:36:16,520 that they have lost their discriminatory war 707 00:36:16,520 --> 00:36:19,240 on gender, race, and sex. 708 00:36:20,440 --> 00:36:21,760 That was their suggestion. 709 00:36:22,760 --> 00:36:26,080 That if the church and Christianity were to have 710 00:36:26,080 --> 00:36:29,840 any viable future in the world we live in now, 711 00:36:29,840 --> 00:36:34,840 that all anchors to truth should be pulled up, 712 00:36:35,440 --> 00:36:39,040 that we should concede that we were wrong 713 00:36:39,040 --> 00:36:41,720 about what the Bible teaches about creation, 714 00:36:41,720 --> 00:36:43,760 about the world, about people. 715 00:36:47,600 --> 00:36:49,760 This has been Satan's goal for some time. 716 00:36:51,720 --> 00:36:54,600 Satan's goal was the same as it has been from the beginning. 717 00:36:54,600 --> 00:36:59,600 To destroy godly families and their growth 718 00:37:00,120 --> 00:37:04,480 in order to destroy the growth of the family of God. 719 00:37:04,480 --> 00:37:06,520 Because the two are connected. 720 00:37:09,080 --> 00:37:12,560 Because God designed families as the engine 721 00:37:12,560 --> 00:37:14,920 that will fill the earth with His worship. 722 00:37:16,240 --> 00:37:21,240 You see, a family-centered discipleship unit is paramount. 723 00:37:21,240 --> 00:37:26,240 It is part of God's plan for the Great Commission. 724 00:37:27,400 --> 00:37:28,320 How can I say this? 725 00:37:28,320 --> 00:37:30,560 Well, let's backtrack a little bit. 726 00:37:30,560 --> 00:37:33,600 Malachi chapter four, it's the very last chapter 727 00:37:33,600 --> 00:37:35,040 in the Old Testament. 728 00:37:35,040 --> 00:37:36,880 The very last chapter in the Old Testament 729 00:37:36,880 --> 00:37:39,640 before there is hundreds of years, 730 00:37:39,640 --> 00:37:43,320 400 years of silence from God. 731 00:37:43,320 --> 00:37:47,320 The very last verses of Malachi chapter four 732 00:37:47,320 --> 00:37:49,560 are verses four, five, and six. 733 00:37:49,560 --> 00:37:51,280 And here's what God says. 734 00:37:51,280 --> 00:37:56,280 Here's how God ends the last part of the Old Testament 735 00:37:56,480 --> 00:37:59,200 before there is 400 years of silence. 736 00:37:59,200 --> 00:38:00,040 God says this, 737 00:38:00,040 --> 00:38:02,800 Remember ye the law of Moses, my servant, 738 00:38:02,800 --> 00:38:06,440 which I commanded unto you in the Horeb for all Israel 739 00:38:06,440 --> 00:38:08,240 with the statutes and judgments. 740 00:38:08,240 --> 00:38:10,600 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet 741 00:38:10,600 --> 00:38:13,560 before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 742 00:38:13,560 --> 00:38:18,560 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children. 743 00:38:18,560 --> 00:38:22,160 And the heart of the children to their fathers, 744 00:38:22,160 --> 00:38:25,000 lest I come and smite thee with a curse. 745 00:38:25,000 --> 00:38:29,080 And that is the end of the Old Testament revelation. 746 00:38:29,080 --> 00:38:31,880 And there is 400 years of silence 747 00:38:31,880 --> 00:38:34,880 where God does not give any new revelation 748 00:38:34,880 --> 00:38:38,760 to what would account to four generations of his people. 749 00:38:39,680 --> 00:38:42,600 Then you fast forward to the New Testament. 750 00:38:42,600 --> 00:38:45,680 And then God breaks the silence of 400 years 751 00:38:45,680 --> 00:38:50,680 by sending his angel Gabriel to speak to a priest 752 00:38:50,920 --> 00:38:53,000 by the name of Zachariah. 753 00:38:53,000 --> 00:38:55,600 This Zachariah, whose wife and her advanced age 754 00:38:55,600 --> 00:39:00,160 is expecting while he is ministering to the Lord, 755 00:39:00,160 --> 00:39:02,360 is visited by this angel. 756 00:39:02,360 --> 00:39:05,560 And the angel Gabriel breaks this 400 years of silence. 757 00:39:05,560 --> 00:39:07,480 And here's what the angel Gabriel says 758 00:39:07,480 --> 00:39:10,680 in Luke chapter one, verse 13 and following. 759 00:39:10,680 --> 00:39:13,320 The angel said unto him, fear not, Zacharias, 760 00:39:13,320 --> 00:39:14,440 for thy prayer is heard. 761 00:39:14,440 --> 00:39:16,880 And the wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son. 762 00:39:16,880 --> 00:39:18,880 And thou shalt call his name John. 763 00:39:18,880 --> 00:39:20,880 And thou shalt have joy and gladness. 764 00:39:20,880 --> 00:39:22,960 And many shall rejoice at his birth. 765 00:39:22,960 --> 00:39:25,000 And he shall be great in the sight of the Lord. 766 00:39:25,000 --> 00:39:27,120 And shall neither drink wine or strong drink. 767 00:39:27,120 --> 00:39:28,880 He shall be filled with the Holy Spirit 768 00:39:28,880 --> 00:39:30,240 even from his mother's womb. 769 00:39:30,240 --> 00:39:32,240 And many of the children of Israel 770 00:39:32,240 --> 00:39:35,200 shall he turn to the Lord their God, verse 17. 771 00:39:35,200 --> 00:39:37,600 Here's what he says, he shall go before him 772 00:39:37,600 --> 00:39:41,000 in the spirit and power of Elias 773 00:39:41,000 --> 00:39:44,600 to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children. 774 00:39:45,920 --> 00:39:48,440 And the disobedient to the wisdom of the just 775 00:39:48,440 --> 00:39:51,720 and to make ready the people prepared for the Lord. 776 00:39:51,720 --> 00:39:55,960 Do you see the link between 400 years of silence? 777 00:39:55,960 --> 00:39:59,800 The last thing God chose to say was to talk about families 778 00:39:59,800 --> 00:40:00,880 coming together. 779 00:40:00,880 --> 00:40:04,680 And when Jesus comes on the scene, the very first thing 780 00:40:04,680 --> 00:40:08,920 the angel declares as the messenger of God to people 781 00:40:08,920 --> 00:40:12,480 is that the fathers are going to turn their hearts back 782 00:40:12,480 --> 00:40:13,400 to their children. 783 00:40:14,520 --> 00:40:15,800 Why is this significant? 784 00:40:15,800 --> 00:40:18,120 Why don't we even point this out? 785 00:40:18,120 --> 00:40:20,480 How can I make such a bold claim as to say 786 00:40:20,480 --> 00:40:24,080 that God had designed families as the engine 787 00:40:24,080 --> 00:40:25,960 that will fill the earth with his worship 788 00:40:25,960 --> 00:40:28,440 that will help push forward the mission 789 00:40:28,440 --> 00:40:29,600 of the great commission? 790 00:40:31,480 --> 00:40:33,320 The reason why I say it is this, 791 00:40:33,320 --> 00:40:37,160 because when a parent's heart is turned towards 792 00:40:37,160 --> 00:40:40,560 their children in family-centered discipleship 793 00:40:40,560 --> 00:40:43,720 and a child's heart is turned to their parents 794 00:40:43,720 --> 00:40:44,920 in obedience, 795 00:40:48,960 --> 00:40:51,800 everyone is ready for Jesus. 796 00:40:51,800 --> 00:40:53,600 Everyone is ready for Jesus. 797 00:40:54,600 --> 00:40:56,840 What about reaching the whole world? 798 00:40:56,840 --> 00:40:59,440 What about, well, how does the family engage 799 00:40:59,440 --> 00:41:00,400 in this great commission? 800 00:41:00,400 --> 00:41:03,200 I don't still quite understand what you're saying. 801 00:41:03,200 --> 00:41:05,520 Well, let me give you a table. 802 00:41:05,520 --> 00:41:06,560 I like tables. 803 00:41:06,560 --> 00:41:09,160 Let me give you a table that kind of shows you 804 00:41:09,160 --> 00:41:10,880 in comparison to great commission, 805 00:41:10,880 --> 00:41:12,680 which is in Matthew chapter 28, 806 00:41:12,680 --> 00:41:14,840 to the very first commandment that God gives us 807 00:41:14,840 --> 00:41:17,200 in Genesis chapter one, verse 28. 808 00:41:17,200 --> 00:41:19,160 And I want to point out to you their focus, 809 00:41:19,160 --> 00:41:20,560 their scope, and their target. 810 00:41:21,440 --> 00:41:23,520 Matthew chapter 28, verse 18 through 20, 811 00:41:23,520 --> 00:41:26,160 what we call the great commission goes like this, right? 812 00:41:26,160 --> 00:41:27,680 He tells them to teach, 813 00:41:27,680 --> 00:41:30,520 matatisate, make disciples of all nations, 814 00:41:30,520 --> 00:41:33,640 and to teach them to observe all things. 815 00:41:33,640 --> 00:41:37,800 The focus and scope and target of all three of those 816 00:41:37,800 --> 00:41:40,040 is to teach, this is the idea of multiplication, 817 00:41:40,040 --> 00:41:41,560 making disciples. 818 00:41:41,560 --> 00:41:43,240 Genesis chapter one, verse 28, 819 00:41:43,240 --> 00:41:45,680 God says, be fruitful and multiply. 820 00:41:45,680 --> 00:41:47,280 What is its focus? 821 00:41:47,280 --> 00:41:49,120 Also multiplication. 822 00:41:49,120 --> 00:41:51,000 All nations, what is the scope? 823 00:41:51,000 --> 00:41:52,360 It's everywhere. 824 00:41:52,360 --> 00:41:56,680 Every ethnos, every nation replenish the earth. 825 00:41:56,680 --> 00:41:57,960 What is the scope? 826 00:41:57,960 --> 00:41:59,800 Everywhere. 827 00:41:59,800 --> 00:42:01,600 What is the target? 828 00:42:01,600 --> 00:42:04,320 Teaching them to observe all things. 829 00:42:04,320 --> 00:42:07,880 Subdued is how it's said in Genesis chapter 21. 830 00:42:07,880 --> 00:42:08,720 What is the target? 831 00:42:08,720 --> 00:42:12,440 Both conformity, not just conformity for conformity's sake, 832 00:42:12,440 --> 00:42:14,840 but conformity to God's plan. 833 00:42:17,440 --> 00:42:21,000 You see, raising kids is part of the great commission, 834 00:42:21,000 --> 00:42:24,080 and it is impartial to it going forward. 835 00:42:24,920 --> 00:42:25,920 And I want you to know this, 836 00:42:25,920 --> 00:42:29,680 that the natural flow of the gospel message 837 00:42:29,680 --> 00:42:31,800 cannot skip your family. 838 00:42:31,800 --> 00:42:34,000 Because oftentimes when we think about the great commission, 839 00:42:34,000 --> 00:42:36,840 we think about the great commission in this perspective. 840 00:42:36,840 --> 00:42:39,760 We think, well, there's a personal responsibility. 841 00:42:39,760 --> 00:42:42,280 I need to respond to the gospel. 842 00:42:42,280 --> 00:42:44,480 And then we think about the world around us. 843 00:42:44,480 --> 00:42:46,600 They need to respond to the gospel. 844 00:42:46,600 --> 00:42:49,560 We need to send missionaries to Africa, to Argentina. 845 00:42:49,560 --> 00:42:51,760 We need to go around the world with the gospel. 846 00:42:51,760 --> 00:42:53,160 I need to respond to it. 847 00:42:53,160 --> 00:42:55,760 And then I need to be involved in sending people 848 00:42:55,760 --> 00:43:00,160 to those fields that are ready to harvest, as Jesus says. 849 00:43:00,160 --> 00:43:05,160 But what we often miss is the path from here to there. 850 00:43:05,400 --> 00:43:08,800 And that path naturally is through your own family. 851 00:43:09,760 --> 00:43:13,760 Acts chapter two, Peter gives his famous sermon 852 00:43:15,600 --> 00:43:17,240 at the day of Pentecost. 853 00:43:17,240 --> 00:43:18,960 And here's what Peter says. 854 00:43:18,960 --> 00:43:20,920 Peter said that they had to do them, verse 38, 855 00:43:20,920 --> 00:43:23,360 repent, be baptized, every one of you, 856 00:43:23,360 --> 00:43:26,080 in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. 857 00:43:26,080 --> 00:43:28,640 And ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, 858 00:43:28,640 --> 00:43:33,640 for this promise is unto you and to your children. 859 00:43:35,320 --> 00:43:37,960 And to all that are afar off, 860 00:43:37,960 --> 00:43:40,840 even as many as the Lord our God shall call. 861 00:43:40,840 --> 00:43:42,560 Do you see that progression? 862 00:43:42,560 --> 00:43:46,800 You, your family, and everyone else. 863 00:43:46,800 --> 00:43:48,720 Many times we think about the great commission 864 00:43:48,720 --> 00:43:50,160 in a very two-dimensional. 865 00:43:50,160 --> 00:43:53,240 I gotta respond and the nations need to respond. 866 00:43:53,240 --> 00:43:55,640 But what about the third dimension? 867 00:43:55,640 --> 00:43:58,120 What about your own family? 868 00:44:00,000 --> 00:44:02,600 If you're excited about reaching the world, 869 00:44:02,600 --> 00:44:05,400 but you forget to reach your own kids, 870 00:44:05,400 --> 00:44:07,120 you're missing the point. 871 00:44:09,520 --> 00:44:11,480 Wow, that seems pretty bold, Pastor Corey. 872 00:44:13,120 --> 00:44:14,800 But I still have a question. 873 00:44:14,800 --> 00:44:16,840 What about the local church? 874 00:44:16,840 --> 00:44:21,480 How does the local church engage in the great commission? 875 00:44:21,480 --> 00:44:23,920 Because it's one thing to say, and it's very bold to say, 876 00:44:23,920 --> 00:44:26,800 that families are what God is going to use 877 00:44:26,800 --> 00:44:28,440 to move forward the great commission. 878 00:44:28,440 --> 00:44:30,400 But what about the local church? 879 00:44:30,400 --> 00:44:33,000 Shouldn't that play part in it? 880 00:44:33,000 --> 00:44:35,680 And it does, and here's how. 881 00:44:35,680 --> 00:44:38,160 See, the church isn't a building. 882 00:44:38,160 --> 00:44:40,040 It's not an organization. 883 00:44:40,040 --> 00:44:41,560 What is the church? 884 00:44:41,560 --> 00:44:43,440 The church is us. 885 00:44:43,440 --> 00:44:46,000 The church is made up of who? 886 00:44:46,000 --> 00:44:49,960 Families and families, discipleship centers. 887 00:44:49,960 --> 00:44:53,400 God's natural ordering from Genesis chapter one forward 888 00:44:53,400 --> 00:44:54,760 is the family. 889 00:44:55,640 --> 00:44:59,440 And that is why the early church gathered together, 890 00:44:59,440 --> 00:45:03,520 and when they gathered together, you could see it so clearly. 891 00:45:03,520 --> 00:45:06,520 Because when the early church gathered together, 892 00:45:06,520 --> 00:45:09,400 they met together as families. 893 00:45:09,400 --> 00:45:11,080 And they went from house to house. 894 00:45:11,080 --> 00:45:12,160 Whose house? 895 00:45:12,160 --> 00:45:14,200 Well, the different families' houses. 896 00:45:14,200 --> 00:45:17,800 And they had all things in common, praying and worshiping 897 00:45:17,800 --> 00:45:21,560 and sharing and growing in Christ. 898 00:45:21,560 --> 00:45:24,320 Because when families are discipled well, 899 00:45:24,320 --> 00:45:28,040 the world also is going to be discipled. 900 00:45:28,040 --> 00:45:31,400 Because part of the discipleship process is evangelism. 901 00:45:32,400 --> 00:45:35,680 That idea of making disciples is not just discipleship, 902 00:45:35,680 --> 00:45:37,560 it's also evangelism. 903 00:45:37,560 --> 00:45:40,240 That when we disciple our kids and teach our kids 904 00:45:40,240 --> 00:45:44,400 that evangelism isn't some superior level or threshold, 905 00:45:44,400 --> 00:45:46,680 but is part of our everyday life, 906 00:45:46,680 --> 00:45:49,560 and our kids are seeing us be evangelists 907 00:45:49,560 --> 00:45:52,480 in our own workplaces and in our own families 908 00:45:52,480 --> 00:45:53,720 and in the restaurant. 909 00:45:53,720 --> 00:45:55,400 And as they catch a vision for that, 910 00:45:55,400 --> 00:45:59,680 they too will catch a vision to evangelize their world. 911 00:45:59,680 --> 00:46:01,840 This is one of the reasons why it is so crucial 912 00:46:01,840 --> 00:46:04,440 in the early church is that anyone who was going to take 913 00:46:04,440 --> 00:46:08,520 the role of a pastor or the master-disciple in the church 914 00:46:08,520 --> 00:46:12,360 had to already be doing this in their own home. 915 00:46:12,360 --> 00:46:15,000 1 Timothy chapter three, verse four and five, 916 00:46:15,000 --> 00:46:18,600 God lays out some rules for the pastor. 917 00:46:18,600 --> 00:46:20,360 And it says this in verse four, 918 00:46:20,360 --> 00:46:24,480 he has to be one that rules well his own house, 919 00:46:24,480 --> 00:46:27,840 having his children in subjection in all gravity. 920 00:46:27,840 --> 00:46:30,520 For if a man know not how to rule his own house, 921 00:46:30,520 --> 00:46:34,960 how shall he take care of the church of God? 922 00:46:34,960 --> 00:46:38,920 God was so enthralled with this idea 923 00:46:38,920 --> 00:46:42,600 that there was no way God was gonna allow anyone to pastor 924 00:46:42,600 --> 00:46:46,080 those families who didn't already have this, 925 00:46:46,080 --> 00:46:48,760 or at least continue to have this under wraps 926 00:46:48,760 --> 00:46:49,840 in their own family. 927 00:46:51,880 --> 00:46:54,400 This is why it is so important that families understand 928 00:46:54,400 --> 00:46:57,120 that it's not God's plan for the church 929 00:46:57,120 --> 00:46:58,800 to disciple their kids, 930 00:46:58,800 --> 00:47:02,080 but it's their own responsibility 931 00:47:02,080 --> 00:47:04,400 to disciple their children. 932 00:47:04,400 --> 00:47:06,920 While the church can come alongside and help, 933 00:47:06,920 --> 00:47:09,400 I often use this in our children's ministry trainings. 934 00:47:09,400 --> 00:47:11,080 I say the church is like a vitamin. 935 00:47:11,080 --> 00:47:13,200 You can't live off vitamins, right? 936 00:47:13,200 --> 00:47:14,880 But it does come along and help 937 00:47:14,880 --> 00:47:16,760 and fill in the gaps where we need it. 938 00:47:18,200 --> 00:47:20,160 But the church can do that. 939 00:47:20,160 --> 00:47:22,240 The church can come alongside the family 940 00:47:22,240 --> 00:47:25,520 and other families can come alongside other families 941 00:47:25,520 --> 00:47:27,320 and help encourage each other 942 00:47:27,320 --> 00:47:30,080 in this discipleship process. 943 00:47:30,080 --> 00:47:31,200 That's what the Bible says 944 00:47:31,200 --> 00:47:33,200 when the older are teaching the younger. 945 00:47:35,000 --> 00:47:36,480 That's why every choice 946 00:47:36,480 --> 00:47:39,240 and every part of your family dynamic 947 00:47:39,240 --> 00:47:42,160 is a discipleship opportunity 948 00:47:42,160 --> 00:47:44,160 because the success or failure 949 00:47:44,160 --> 00:47:47,680 of your discipleship program in your own family 950 00:47:47,680 --> 00:47:49,760 has both a local effect 951 00:47:49,760 --> 00:47:52,680 and a far reaching global effect 952 00:47:52,680 --> 00:47:55,320 because God designed families 953 00:47:55,320 --> 00:47:57,360 who gather together in local churches 954 00:47:59,200 --> 00:48:02,560 to be the engine that will fill the earth with His worship. 955 00:48:02,560 --> 00:48:05,840 In closing today, I wanna leave you with a few thoughts. 956 00:48:05,840 --> 00:48:09,000 I know in here there's really probably two groups 957 00:48:09,000 --> 00:48:11,880 of people, two groups of people, 958 00:48:11,880 --> 00:48:15,720 but both have equally important roles to play 959 00:48:15,720 --> 00:48:17,760 in family-centered discipleship 960 00:48:17,760 --> 00:48:20,040 and great commissioned families. 961 00:48:20,040 --> 00:48:21,640 The first one is very obvious. 962 00:48:21,640 --> 00:48:24,200 It's the one with the group with children. 963 00:48:24,200 --> 00:48:25,400 If you're a part of that group 964 00:48:25,400 --> 00:48:27,840 and you have children and children in your home, 965 00:48:28,680 --> 00:48:30,360 what can you do? 966 00:48:30,360 --> 00:48:33,080 Well, first of all, you can lead your family, 967 00:48:34,280 --> 00:48:36,120 but you can only lead your family 968 00:48:36,120 --> 00:48:39,040 to places that you are going yourself. 969 00:48:40,960 --> 00:48:43,040 It is folly to say to your children, 970 00:48:43,040 --> 00:48:45,240 you need to live this certain lifestyle 971 00:48:45,240 --> 00:48:47,720 and at home not be demonstrating 972 00:48:47,720 --> 00:48:50,440 what that lifestyle looks like. 973 00:48:50,440 --> 00:48:51,720 It's not gonna work. 974 00:48:53,920 --> 00:48:56,200 You can practice today by laying a foundation 975 00:48:56,200 --> 00:48:59,040 for the future and understanding that the choices 976 00:48:59,040 --> 00:49:02,480 that you make now are laying the foundation 977 00:49:02,480 --> 00:49:04,840 for your children's spiritual formation 978 00:49:04,840 --> 00:49:07,440 and the choices they will make in the future. 979 00:49:08,760 --> 00:49:10,000 And you can understand the reality 980 00:49:10,000 --> 00:49:12,600 that the church partners with you, 981 00:49:12,600 --> 00:49:14,520 but it can't replace you. 982 00:49:16,800 --> 00:49:20,040 There's another group in here, those without children. 983 00:49:20,040 --> 00:49:21,080 And I wanna tell you today 984 00:49:21,080 --> 00:49:22,880 that this message has not been wasted 985 00:49:22,880 --> 00:49:24,480 because well, I don't have any children. 986 00:49:24,480 --> 00:49:27,200 My children are long gone or I'm not married 987 00:49:27,200 --> 00:49:29,600 or I don't have any children of my own. 988 00:49:29,600 --> 00:49:32,520 We don't have any children yet as a family. 989 00:49:32,520 --> 00:49:33,720 I wanna tell you that this message 990 00:49:33,720 --> 00:49:36,400 has not been wasted on you 991 00:49:36,400 --> 00:49:39,760 because you still have an integral part to play 992 00:49:39,760 --> 00:49:44,760 in this church and in this Great Commission family's idea. 993 00:49:45,240 --> 00:49:46,600 How? 994 00:49:46,600 --> 00:49:49,920 For those of you who don't have any children yet, 995 00:49:49,920 --> 00:49:52,560 I wanna suggest to you that right now, 996 00:49:52,560 --> 00:49:54,520 the way that you can prepare 997 00:49:54,520 --> 00:49:58,200 is to prioritize your own discipleship growth, 998 00:49:58,200 --> 00:50:00,480 which is one of the reasons why we're having 999 00:50:00,480 --> 00:50:03,440 an outpouring of discipleship groups 1000 00:50:03,440 --> 00:50:04,800 and Sunday school are the reason 1001 00:50:04,800 --> 00:50:07,600 why we provide these opportunities here in our services 1002 00:50:07,600 --> 00:50:09,800 and because you need to take seriously 1003 00:50:09,800 --> 00:50:12,280 your discipleship growth. 1004 00:50:12,280 --> 00:50:17,280 Now, while you have the time on your hands 1005 00:50:17,280 --> 00:50:20,200 and before the burdens and the opportunities 1006 00:50:20,200 --> 00:50:22,240 of childbirth income. 1007 00:50:22,240 --> 00:50:26,280 Secondly, you have the opportunity to pour into others 1008 00:50:26,280 --> 00:50:27,880 like no one else does. 1009 00:50:27,880 --> 00:50:31,880 And it's one of the reasons why Paul makes the argument 1010 00:50:31,880 --> 00:50:35,360 about young pastors and about it's good for them to marry, 1011 00:50:35,360 --> 00:50:36,960 but if they're not gonna marry, 1012 00:50:36,960 --> 00:50:41,800 they have more time to dedicate to the ministry 1013 00:50:41,800 --> 00:50:45,320 and to the mission of our Lord Jesus Christ. 1014 00:50:45,320 --> 00:50:46,920 If you don't have any kids, 1015 00:50:46,920 --> 00:50:49,760 how can you apply this to your life today? 1016 00:50:49,760 --> 00:50:52,560 Prioritize your own discipleship growth 1017 00:50:52,560 --> 00:50:55,620 and figure out a way to pour it into others. 1018 00:50:55,620 --> 00:50:58,280 Maybe some of you and rightfully so, 1019 00:50:58,280 --> 00:51:00,680 you've had children in your home. 1020 00:51:00,680 --> 00:51:03,400 They've grown up and now they are probably 1021 00:51:03,400 --> 00:51:06,200 having children of their own and your raising, 1022 00:51:07,720 --> 00:51:09,600 your kids are raising their kids, 1023 00:51:09,600 --> 00:51:13,160 maybe even great grandkids. 1024 00:51:13,160 --> 00:51:16,000 I wanna tell you that if your kids have already left, 1025 00:51:16,000 --> 00:51:18,760 this message hasn't been wasted on you either 1026 00:51:18,760 --> 00:51:23,440 because you have to realize that the potential of the impact 1027 00:51:23,440 --> 00:51:26,000 and the continued influence that you have 1028 00:51:26,000 --> 00:51:28,820 on both your kids and your grandkids. 1029 00:51:28,820 --> 00:51:33,820 That your time of discipleship centered families isn't over. 1030 00:51:34,900 --> 00:51:39,260 That you can continue to have an impact like never before. 1031 00:51:39,260 --> 00:51:42,340 And number two, you can take advantage of the availability 1032 00:51:42,340 --> 00:51:45,180 that God has given you now in your time of life 1033 00:51:45,180 --> 00:51:47,740 through serving and mentoring other families. 1034 00:51:49,820 --> 00:51:51,580 That's my testimony. 1035 00:51:51,580 --> 00:51:56,580 I mentioned earlier that I was a child of a divorce. 1036 00:51:56,580 --> 00:51:59,740 A lot of my formative years, spiritually speaking 1037 00:51:59,740 --> 00:52:03,740 and physically speaking, I lived in a single parent home. 1038 00:52:03,740 --> 00:52:08,780 And there were grandparents, godly grandparents in my family 1039 00:52:08,780 --> 00:52:10,860 who took the charge and took the lead 1040 00:52:10,860 --> 00:52:14,540 to help me realize the importance of the gospel 1041 00:52:14,540 --> 00:52:17,540 and realize the importance of growing 1042 00:52:17,540 --> 00:52:21,100 in my own spiritual formation. 1043 00:52:21,100 --> 00:52:25,420 And I went to a church that was filled like this 1044 00:52:25,420 --> 00:52:30,300 with older couples who saw their lives 1045 00:52:30,300 --> 00:52:33,220 as a, to be on mission, who served 1046 00:52:33,220 --> 00:52:34,900 in our children's ministry programs 1047 00:52:34,900 --> 00:52:37,780 and who poured their lives into me, 1048 00:52:37,780 --> 00:52:41,580 who showed up with my grandparents to church. 1049 00:52:42,540 --> 00:52:45,740 And that's what I wanna see happen at our church. 1050 00:52:45,740 --> 00:52:47,900 I believe it's already happening to some degree, 1051 00:52:47,900 --> 00:52:50,660 but I would love to see it happen even more. 1052 00:52:50,660 --> 00:52:53,500 That the family of Trinity Baptist Church 1053 00:52:53,500 --> 00:52:55,620 would be so engaged in this idea 1054 00:52:55,620 --> 00:52:57,580 of family-centered discipleship, 1055 00:52:57,580 --> 00:52:59,220 that they would not only prioritize 1056 00:52:59,220 --> 00:53:00,460 their own spiritual growth, 1057 00:53:00,460 --> 00:53:04,060 but would pour it into other people 1058 00:53:04,060 --> 00:53:06,860 who would see the kids that run around this facility 1059 00:53:06,860 --> 00:53:10,620 and they would see them as influential to them, 1060 00:53:10,620 --> 00:53:14,540 influencing them to be raised as a godly generation, 1061 00:53:14,540 --> 00:53:16,500 as a generation who takes seriously 1062 00:53:16,500 --> 00:53:19,920 the final words of Jesus Christ to go and make disciples. 1063 00:53:19,920 --> 00:53:24,640 It made a difference in my life. 1064 00:53:27,760 --> 00:53:31,080 My dad, who I don't often speak of, 1065 00:53:32,240 --> 00:53:35,920 the only connection I ever had to him 1066 00:53:35,920 --> 00:53:38,520 was a few letters and I brought them today 1067 00:53:38,520 --> 00:53:41,800 that he wrote to me from a jail cell. 1068 00:53:41,800 --> 00:53:45,820 This is all that I have in my relationship with my dad. 1069 00:53:46,840 --> 00:53:49,880 And through my formative years as a young man 1070 00:53:49,880 --> 00:53:53,840 who grew up in church, I struggled. 1071 00:53:54,880 --> 00:53:59,280 And I struggled with, well, if my father wasn't there 1072 00:53:59,280 --> 00:54:02,520 and God says he's my father, what kind of a father is he? 1073 00:54:03,880 --> 00:54:08,880 And I wanna tell you that I learned from scripture 1074 00:54:10,040 --> 00:54:14,160 because of the investment that older couples had in my life, 1075 00:54:15,120 --> 00:54:18,840 in my children's ministries, in my Sunday school, 1076 00:54:18,840 --> 00:54:22,320 my junior church, that my father is one 1077 00:54:22,320 --> 00:54:27,320 who will always be with me, that he is my everlasting father. 1078 00:54:27,680 --> 00:54:29,800 And that though my father here on earth 1079 00:54:29,800 --> 00:54:32,840 might have tucked tail and left, 1080 00:54:32,840 --> 00:54:36,920 my father in heaven will never leave me nor forsake me. 1081 00:54:36,920 --> 00:54:40,840 And that is because of a church of families 1082 00:54:40,840 --> 00:54:44,380 who saw me and who poured into me. 1083 00:54:45,220 --> 00:54:48,560 And I wanna challenge you that every single one of us 1084 00:54:48,560 --> 00:54:52,600 in here today, we all have a part to play 1085 00:54:52,600 --> 00:54:55,440 and that we all must be engaged 1086 00:54:55,440 --> 00:54:57,320 in family-centered discipleship. 1087 00:54:57,320 --> 00:54:59,520 Would you stand to your feet today? 1088 00:54:59,520 --> 00:55:18,360 Your heads.