Week 25: June 16 - June 22, 2003

Key Passage: Genesis 18: 17-19

Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, so that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what He has promised” NIV.

God’s plan for the family is that the man and his wife should live together in a healthy relationship for the purpose of raising godly offspring (Mal 2:15). In the face of this, the father’s role is paramount as the head and leader, to provide for and lead the household to God, and direct the children to bear a life style that will bring glory to God and preserve the dignity of man.

God expects every father to show his children the way to a blessed and fruitful life; and this he should do through instruction, guidance and discipline, and by good example. The things a child is thought in his formative years go a long way in determining the life he will live when he becomes an adult; and on many occasions, God will hold the parents partly responsible for what their children grow up to be. Eli neglected this responsibility and it cost him his life and that of his two sons (1 Sam 3:13). King David neglected it concerning some of his children and it almost destroyed his life, his kingdom and his posterity (2 Sam 13:21; 1 Kg 1:6). The Scripture says, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” – Prov 22:6. The upbringing of children is not an easy task, but it is a responsibility no father must abdicate. He should be earnest in correction and firm in discipline; and he should lead by example.

Moses the servant of the Lord told the people of Israel, “You shall teach them (the Commandments) diligently to your children, and shall talk to them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up” (Deut 6:7). Isaiah said, “The fathers shall make known Your (God’s) truth to the children” (Is 38:19). Paul enjoined fathers to bring up their children “in the training and admonition of the Lord” (Eph 6:4).

God specially honors those that are faithful in discharging this responsibility. He honored Abraham and called him ‘father of nations’ because he would not fail in leading his offspring to follow the way of godliness and righteousness.

Pray for fathers that they awake to their role as heads and leaders of their homes; and that they would receive the wisdom and grace to lead their households in the way that will glorify God.

Written by – Evangelist Oguazi Onyemobi