Church Planters Care About Healthy Families

 

This is Brad & Daneille Snowden with Multiply, a podcast that provides a word of encouragement for village church planters. Farmers work hard to have healthy plants in order to have a healthy harvest. It takes a lot of work at first and then careful attention in order to see the plants produce as it should. The apostle Paul shares with us the care that we need to practice in order to have heathy families.

Colossians 3:18-21

“Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. 20 Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.”

Most of our lives are lived within the context of a family so it would only be natural for Jesus to include instructions for family life.

The term subjection is a military term which means to "place oneself under." When God made the husband-and-wife relationship he made it with order so that the relationship could function properly. Submission does not imply that the wife is less than the husband, for Scripture clearly proclaims the equality of all in Christ. Galatians 3:28 says, “There is neither Greek nor Jew, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

When the family flows together they are most productive when they flow in unity, we all do this as we model our lives by serving one another. We serve each other not only as husband and wife but also as brother and sister in Christ.  Romans 12:10 says to prefer one another above all else, then there can be unity in our family.  For example, it is like two people rowing a boat, if they are not rowing together then it will be hard for both and it will be a very slow trip or they go around in circles which is not productive.

God’s desire for each one of us as Christ followers comes in the form of working together for one common goal which is to be more like Jesus. We are to be co-laborers as we encourage each other to become more like Christ. The responsibility that we have is to teach our children, also to be a Christ-like example to them as we respect each other and the life positions we all have, in order to remain as healthy followers of Jesus.

The first part of our relationship, husband and wife and our relationship as parent and child all must flow in love for one another and to that which would please the Lord. As our hearts are filled with love for each other and will strive to please the Lord by serving each other; we will have a healthy family that will draw others to Christ. It is our witness to those around us that will draw them to the truth. The care we invest into our families will open up the hearts that we are able to witness to the complete love of God.

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God bless!

 EC-26