NORTHSHORE CHURCH OF CHRIST

My children hold my heart in many ways. I feel their failures and successes as my own. I want them to thrive and grow and progress in this life well beyond my own wisdom and stature. I want them to hold firm their faith stronger than I have. I’m sure that is the desire of every Christian parent.

John wrote, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth” (3 John 4). Amen.

A man named Jonah had two sons who decided to follow a new Jewish Rabbi all over Galilee and Judea. I wonder what Jonah thought about that. As a good Jewish father (I’m assuming, since his sons seem spiritually-minded and kingdom-seeking), I imagine he had misgivings. Who is this teacher? He makes bold claims and performs great signs, they say. He continually challenges the Jewish religious leaders. Could such a man really be from God? Are my boys safe in His care and under his direction?

After three years of following Jesus, what did Jonah think when Jesus was crucified? His boys’ hopes and dreams were dashed. They had been fools to trust in the promises this man continually made them. He had heard there was to be a kingdom, and not just any kingdom but the one the prophets of old had foretold. He had heard his boys were in line to be major leaders in that kingdom. Jesus had said something about them sitting on thrones and judging the people! Why had he dared to hope in those promises, which all were snuffed out in a single day.

But THEN! What did Jonah think when his boys came home and told him, “Jesus is not dead, but risen!” Did he believe? Did he come to faith in Jesus Christ? Did hope spark new in his breast?

I wonder if he ever got to read the words Matthew wrote?

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16.15–19)

What a blessing to have your son praised in such a way. Of course, if he read that, he would also have read of Peter’s several foibles, too, and possibly cringed and cried as he saw how Peter had denied Jesus in a moment of weakness. But knowing how the story unfolded, he could breathe easy and rejoice in the new kingdom and the precious gospel which Peter and Andrew continued to preach until the end of their lives.

I hope nothing more for my children than they continue in their faith in Jesus Christ and have Him present them with a crown of victory! Like Peter, they will have moments of weakness and fail and fall at times, but I hope Jesus prays for them as He prayed for Peter, that their faith may not fail. That is my prayer. I hope that is your prayer for your own children.

Let our sons and daughters be like Jonah’s sons.

“When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth.” — Genesis 5.3

My son is my image passed down to the next generation. He was brought into the world with great anticipation and hope. As a man holds his baby boy, he sees energy to direct, power and potential, endless possibilities.

Sons can make or break a father.

A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother. (Prov 10.1)

A foolish son is a grief to his father and bitterness to her who bore him. (Prov 17.25)

A foolish son is ruin to his father (Prov 19.13)

The one who keeps the law is a son with understanding, but a companion of gluttons shames his father. (Prov 28.7)

Discipline your son, and he will give you rest; he will give delight to your heart. (Prov 29.17)

Holding our little baby, we have only sweet thoughts of his great achievements, brilliant mind, and generous heart, but as he matures and falls to sins (just as have we—but we forget), that little boy can tear us up.

I imagine Simon felt sweet, swelling emotions as he held his little son for the first time, saw his precious wrinkled face, and showed him off to his friends. “This is my boy!”

Was Simon still alive when his son joined a band of followers who travelled all over Galilee and Judea with a new Rabbi? Did Simon think well or ill of his son’s decision to throw in his lot with Jesus? Perhaps he was conflicted, wondering how it would turn out but glad his son was doing something positive and possibly great. Perhaps Simon told his wife, “I have my concerns, but let’s see where this takes him.”

Was Simon still alive when everything fell apart for Jesus and His disciples on that consequential Passover night? Did he receive the news from some of the other disciples about what had happened to Jesus…and what had happened to his son? Did John later show Simon what he had written?

During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him… (John 13.2)

For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “Not all of you are clean.” (John 13.11)

I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ (John 13.18)

After saying these things, Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified, “Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” (John 13.21)

Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Then after he had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night. (John 13.26–30)

I don’t know how Simon raised Judas, but my heart goes out to him, especially if Simon learned later of the great forgiveness of Christ and that his boy could have repented and been restored to the Lord. Instead of reconciliation, Judas’ story ended in bitter suicide.

What a tragedy! I do not want my father to be in the same place as Simon, and I strongly hope none of my sons puts me in that place. Tragedies stand as warnings; they show us what to avoid. It would have been better for Simon’s son had he never been born. But he was born, and he lifted his hand against the most magnanimous friend, the most powerful Lord, the most generous King.

Lord, protect us from an end like Simon’s son!

The first four of the Decalogue (“ten words”) have to do with man’s relationship with God:

1. Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.
2. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.
3. Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy.

The last five concern man’s relationship with his fellow man:

5. Honor thy father and thy mother.
6. Thou shalt not kill.
7. Thou shalt not commit adultery.
8. Thou shalt not steal.
9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house or thy neighbor’s wife...or anything that is thy neighbor’s.

Many call these the “two tables of the Law.” The first table falls under the greatest commandment: “Thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might” (Deuteronomy 6.5). The second table falls under the second greatest commandment: “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” (Leviticus 19.18).

Interestingly, the Fifth Commandment is stated positively, while the rest that follow are negative. Paul also points out it is the first commandment with a promise attached: “That it may be will with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth” (Ephesians 6.2–3).

The first table of the Law begins with God’s authority. The second table begins with authority in family structures. If authority is not recognized and respected, families disintegrate, and if families fall apart so does society. If children do not first learn to obey their parents in their parents’ house, they most likely will not honor their parents after they leave home. If they don’t honor their parents, they will likely not honor the aged. They will tend to exhibit what C. S. Lewis called “generational snobbery,” in which the children think they know more and have more wisdom than their parents and grandparents. They will have a misguided notion that their generation is the wisest of all generations. In truth, they may be the dumbest and most foolish of all.

Worst of all, they will not honor God. Those who put no other gods before Yahweh God also honor their parents, and those who honor their parents also honor Yahweh God.

After honoring God, honoring our parents is critically important. That does not necessarily mean fawning over them and adoring them in overly-emotional ways. It does not mean you necessarily have to like your parents all the time, because sometimes parents are not gracious, kind, or loving towards their children. But you must still honor your father and your mother because they came before you and God saw fit to bring you into existence through them.

Praise God for godly-minded parents who work hard to train their kids and grandkids, who show grace, and who cherish their children.

But whether your parents fit that mold or not, you are called to honor them. Honor them by providing for them in their old age and taking care of their physical needs. Do not speak evil to them or about them. Pray for them. Share the gospel with them in a respectful way.

The Fifth Commandment is a primary foundation for a stable family, church, and society. No wonder God ended His words to Israel in the Old Covenant with this promise:

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.” (Malachi 4.5–6)

Our families need healing! The gospel includes family structures working the way God created them to function. Healthy families is not just a beautiful side consequence of turning back to the Lord—it’s a main mission of families who turn to the Lord.

Do your kids honor you? If not, next ask yourself if you honor your parents. Have you shown your kids what it looks like to honor your parents, or do they hear you griping, mocking, and voicing your displeasure about them?

Do I honor my parents? God promises me that if I honor my parents, I will live long upon the land He gives me!

Have you noticed the spiritual armor in Ephesians 6 includes a breastplate but no backplate? We do not turn our backs on the enemy; we advance forward swinging the sword of the word of God. The weapons of our warfare are powerful to destroy the strongholds of the enemy (1 Cor. 10.4-5). God calls all Christians, both men and women, to the fight, but He tasks us men with leading the charge.

Switching our thoughts to the physical plane, men should also be ready to fight for their loved ones to protect them. This is controversial because Jesus did say, after all, to turn the other cheek and love our enemies. But Jesus also said there was a time to take up the sword (Luke 22.36), and Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 3.1–8 there is “a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up . . . a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.”

There is a time to fight.

Godly wisdom teaches us when we should fight, how we should fight, and how far we should go in the fight. Often, we want to fight when we shouldn’t, and when we are in a fight, we tend to go too far. Defending yourself against a bully doesn’t mean you should pulverize the bully’s face.

We should never start a fight, for that would violate the principle of living at peace with all men (Heb. 12.14; Rom. 12.18), and we should “repay no one evil for evil” (Rom. 12.17). But if a man strikes or shoots a robber who has broken into his house in the dead of night, he has not started the fight. The robber proved he intended violence when he invaded an inhabited house, and only a fool would flip the lights on and kindly ask the robber if he were just planning on a peaceful visit.

To train in a martial art or in weaponry (gun, knife, staff, etc.) is to train for battle. The word “martial” in martial art means battle—it’s literally a battle art. I love martials arts, in part, because I can train to be more in control in the event of an attack on my family, friends, or person. The more you understand about the battle arts, the more ability you have to decide in your level of response. You don’t necessarily have to break a man’s bones to stop him. You could choke him out or pin him to the ground on his face with a knee in his back while you wait for the police. However, if he is crazy high on drugs and doesn’t respond to pain, you might have to incapacitate him in a more painful way.

Abraham, David, and Moses knew there was a time to fight, and they stepped forward when the time came. They fought for their loved ones and their people. When David ran to kill Goliath, he was finishing the fight that depraved, bully Goliath had started. When the four kings (Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Ela, and Tidal king of Goiim) defeated the five kings of the plains (Bera king of Sodom, Birsha kind of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the unnamed king of Zoar), Abraham grabbed 318 trained men (all born in his house), tracked those kings down, and defeated them in order to save the captives, including his nephew Lot (Gen. 14).

Societies remain safe because men willingly stand against enemies.

Our constant battle is with Satan and the forces of darkness, but from time to time we must physically protect our families and loved ones. It’s a duty we should embrace, and we should ready our minds for potential action. Praise God we currently live in such a peaceful society, but even still there are bad actors.

Obviously, we should fight only when we have no other option, but there is a time to fight. Physical altercations interact and intersect with our spiritual battles—they are connected. Again, how will we defend ourselves? Will we hate our enemy in our hearts, or will we fight in such a way as to love them as far as we can? Do we intend to annihilate anyone who would sin against us, or do we temper our responses with mercy? In the moment, we fire at center mass until the target is neutralized, and that might or might not kill the attacker. We do that to protect the family. But if we find him still alive, groaning on the floor, do we put another bullet into his head because of the seething hatred in our heart?

God has called us to live in a sinful world, and we sometimes must make difficult choices. May we learn self-control, may we have the strength to stand against the enemy, and may God save us from situations we cannot handle.

For who is God, but the LORD?
   And who is a rock, except our God?—
the God who equipped me with strength
   and made my way blameless.
He made my feet like the feet of a deer
   and set me secure on the heights.
He trains my hands for war,
   so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
You have given me the shield of your salvation,
   and your right hand supported me,
   and your gentleness made me great.
You gave a wide place for my steps under me,
   and my feet did not slip.
I pursued my enemies and overtook them,
   and did not turn back till they were consumed.
I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise;
   they fell under my feet.
For you equipped me with strength for the battle;
   you made those who rise against me sink under me.
You made my enemies turn their backs to me,
   and those who hated me I destroyed.
They cried for help, but there was none to save;
   they cried to the LORD, but he did not answer them.
I beat them fine as dust before the wind;
   I cast them out like the mire of the streets. (Psalm 18.31–42)

Abraham was chosen for a purpose. In Genesis 18.19, God took counsel with Himself concerning Abraham,

“For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what He has promised him.”

God did not say this about Sarah, though she was an essential helper to Abraham in this mission. God spoke to the fathers, and the fathers, then, carried the responsibility of teaching God’s word and God’s ways to their households.

God wants a righteous and just people, and Abraham’s responsibility was to guide his family along that righteous way. But it was for a singular purpose: so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what He has promised him.

What Had the Lord Promised?

A Multitude of Nations!

Part of the promise is found in Genesis 17.4: “Behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.” And in 17.6, “I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you.”

A Land!

Another part of the covenant is found in Genesis 17.8: “And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.”

A Seed!

A third and the greatest part of the covenant is found in Genesis 22.18: “And in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”

How Does Circumcision Fit?

In Genesis 17, God gave Abraham the sign of the covenant—circumcision.

Often I have wondered why God chose this as the sign. Noah’s sign was a rainbow in the heavens. Abraham’s sign was trimming the foreskin off the male organ. The first seems wonderful, grand, and glorious; the second seems a tad barbaric.

But observe the significance of the sign; it has to do with the male organ which passes the seed along. All the promises to Abraham had to do with bearing a son, who would bear more sons, who would eventually become a great nation. God desires godly offspring (Malachi 2.15).

In the New Testament, Paul writes of circumcision being a “putting off the body of the flesh” (Col. 2.11); in other words, the cutting of the flesh symbolized purification, a removal of sin. To Abraham and the Israelites, circumcision signified keeping the seed-line pure, anticipating the growth of their nation and eventually their coming Messiah.

Circumcision also points back to God’s original mandate to mankind in general: be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.

Circumcision Today

In Deuteronomy, twice God speaks to Israel about circumcising their hearts.

Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn. (Deut. 10.16)

And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live. (Deut. 30.6)

The New Testament continues the idea of circumcising the heart. In the face of intense opposition, Stephen bravely dressed them down, saying, “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you” (Acts 7.51). Paul wrote of those who were truly Jews: “But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God” (Rom. 2.29). In Philippians 3.3, he distinguishes between those who simply mutilate the flesh and those who walk by faith: “For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.” Colossians 2.11 may be the clearest of his teachings on the spiritual nature of circumcision today:

“In Him [Christ] also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised with Him through faith in the powerful working of God who raised Him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This He set aside, nailing it to the cross” (Col. 2.11–14).

So there remains a parallel sign today for the Christian, and that sign is baptism, the sign of the New Covenant. Baptism signifies a washing away of sin (Acts 22.16; 1 Cor. 6.11) and a death, burial, and resurrection with Christ (Rom. 6.1–4; Col. 2.12).

The sign of the Old Covenant pointed forward to the Seed of Promise, to Christ, and the sign of the New Covenant points backward to the work of Christ in the cross and His resurrection for the forgiveness of our sins.

In every case it’s about Christ Jesus our Lord!