Sermon Tone Analysis

\\ Psalm 78:1-8

\\

1   *Listen*, O my people, to my instruction; *Incline* your ears to the words of my mouth.

2   I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old, 

3   *Which we have heard and known*, */And our fathers have told us/.* 

4   We will not conceal them from their children, But tell to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, And His strength and His wondrous works that He has done.

5   For He established a testimony in Jacob, And appointed a law in Israel, Which He commanded our fathers, *That they should /teach/ them to their children*, 

6   That the generation to come might *know*, even the children yet to be born, That they may *arise* and *tell* them to their children, 

7   *That they should /put/ their confidence in God, And /not forget/ the works of God, But /keep/ His commandments,  *

8   And not be like their fathers, A stubborn and rebellious generation, */A generation that did not prepare its heart, And whose spirit was not faithful to God/*.

(NAS)

\\ I want to speak to you this morning about *The Next Generation*, that is, our children and specifically about our responsibility to them.

However, before I do so, I feel that it is necessary to lay some ground work and thereby establish a foundation upon which to build.

So with that in mind, let me begin this morning by pointing out that there are those who believe that children are members of the “church” by virtue of being born into believing families.

This is why for example, certain religious groups and denominations baptize infants.

But this practice stems from a misunderstanding of the /nature/ of the Body of Christ.

The Bible clearly teaches that membership in the Body of Christ is brought about by the /second birth/ not the first birth.

One must be born again.

John 3:3  Jesus answered [Nicodemus] and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is *born again*, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

 

John 3:7  “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be *born again*.’

 

1 Peter 1:3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be *born again* to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

 

1 Peter 1:23  for you have been *born again* not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, /that is, /through the living and abiding word of God.

Since it is the /second birth/ that determines membership in Christ’s Body, it is clear that the */ordinance/* of baptism is to be administered to those who are /born of the Spirit/ into God’s spiritual family, not to those who are /born of the flesh/ into a physical family.

Now let me pause here because I just used a word which may be unfamiliar to some of you, the word, */ordinance/*.

In its biblical or theological use, this word simply means – /something ordained or decreed by God/.

It is the biblical view and therefore the view of this church, that baptism is one of two ordinances given to us by the Lord Jesus.

In Matthew 28:19, the Lord commanded:

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, */baptizing/* them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit…

 

The other ordinance is the Lord’s Supper.

Both the Lord Jesus in Luke 22:19, and the Apostle Paul quoting Him in 1 Cor.

11:24, commanded that the Lord’s Supper was to be observed regularly, “/In rememberance of Jesus/.”

I just wanted to make sue that I did not assume understanding before proceeding…

So, once again let me point out that the Body of Christ is not something you can be born into /according to the flesh/.

It is something into which you are born /by the Spirit/, conditioned solely upon */belief/* in Christ’s substitutionary sacrifice.

This being the case, I want to pose a question to you, which is this, “How then do the /unbelieving/ children of /believers/ fit into the community of faith?”

It is clear from scripture that  that they are not yet members of the Body of Christ so in that sense, they are no different than the /unbelieving/ children of /unbelievers/!

As such, they are lost and without Christ.

I know that this is a hard word to hear.

And I also know that no parent wants to believe that their little darling is lost, I know that I didn’t.

But it is true none the less.

Now right now I know that every mother and even a few fathers are mentally preparing to stone me but before you do, I am going to ask right up front here, that you stick with me for the rest of the message.

If you will, I trust that you will see that I am not a /child-hater/ nor am I a /doomsayer…/

Again, let me reaffirm my previous comment:  the Body of Christ  is not something you can be born into /according to the flesh/.

It is something you are born into /by the Spirit/, conditioned solely upon belief in Christ’s substitutionary sacrifice.

So I ask the question again, “How do the /unbelieving/ children of /believers/ fit into the community of faith?”

May I suggest, *AND PLEASE HEAR THIS*, that /unbelieving/ children of /believing/ parents, (although indistinguishable /spiritually/ from /unbelieving/ children of /unbelieving/ parents), are at the same time */graciously/* */privileged/*.

Now Mom and Dad, that statement should go a long way in helping me get back into you good graces!

In fact, it is my strong conviction they should be seen and treated as /dearly loved/ and precious */charges/* or */wards/* of the Church!

Although they are not yet born again, they are none the less being kept as it were, under a /spiritual guardianship/ awaiting the day of their */personal/* awakening to faith in Christ!

What do I mean when I say, that they should be seen as /dearly loved/ and precious /charges/ or /wards/ of the Church?

Simply, that their attachment to a believing family at the /natural level/, obligates the entire Christian community and */especially/* those of us who are members of the same local body, to see ourselves as */foster care givers/* at the spiritual level.

Let me say that again:  Their attachment to a believing family at the /natural level/, obligates the entire Christian community and */especially/* those of us who are members of the same local body, to see ourselves as */foster care givers/* at the spiritual level.”

There are very special, clear, biblical, commands which bind /natural parents/ and the /Christian community/ to children.

Plainly, God has given /us/ that is, /natural parents/ and the /Christian community/, a special mandate to lead /them/ to faith.

*Now I want to be very clear.*

It is certainly and primarily the explicit God given responsibility of the /natural parents/ to fulfill God’s mandate in the life of */their/* children.

However, this mandate is also given to each member of the Body of Christ, in general.

In fact, I would like to suggest that the relationship of the Body of Christ to children in general but */especially/* to children within believing families, is one of */spiritual guardian/*.

If this is true, and I believe that it is, we must ask the obvious question, “What does God require of a /spiritual guardian/?”

or in other words, “What is our */calling/* as parents and as a community of Christians toward our children?”

I would like to answer that question using the passage we read initially.

Look again with me at Psalm 78:4-7.

I see here, six stages in our */calling/* as parents and /spiritual guardians/.

!! 1.  First Our Calling Begins With God.

Notice in verse 4 that there is a commitment to, “…/tell to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, And His strength and His wondrous works that He has done/.”

As parents and /spiritual guardians/ there must be an */absolute/* commitment to the fact that all Christian parenting and all Christian education */begins with God/*.

He alone is the One Ultimate, Unchanging Reality.

Everything in parenting and education comes from Him.

But not only is He the source, He is also the goal.

That is to say that everything is */for Him/*.

He must be the first, the last, and the focal point of Christian parenting and Christian education.

God must be the main focus in how children are reared, in how children are taught, and in how children are disciplined.

It all begins /with God/ and it all is built /on God/ and it all is to be shaped /by God/.

*/Brothers and Sisters, if you leave here this morning having heard nothing else I say, I want to burn into your conscientiousness, into your very spirit, the following point.

/*

If there is one memory that our children should have of our families and of Sugar Land Bible Church it is this; *they should remember God*.

They should remember that God was first.

They should remember that God was central, and they should remember that there was a true */passion/* for the supremacy of God in all things.

!! 2.  The Second Stage In Our Calling As Parents And As Spiritual Guardians Is The Understanding That There Is A Fixed Deposit Of God's Truth, In The World.

Verse  5 declares that, “[God] established a testimony in Jacob, And appointed a law in Israel.”

God has /testified/ and God has /taught/.

The Hebrew word translated "law" is the familiar word, (/tôrâ/  תּוֹרָה).

It is used 221 times in the Old Testament and literally means “/teaching or instruction/.”

The root of this word however, signifies, /"to throw" or "to cast" with the strong sense of control by the subject/.

Picture with me an ornamental rug dealer who has a one of a kind rug.

It is rolled up and safely stored, because it is greatly valued by the owner.

When a potential buyer comes into the store to buy it, what does the owner do?

He takes that beautiful ornamental rug and he throws it out so it can be seen, admired and examined.

God has similarly thrown out His law or teaching or instruction for all those interested in learning about Him.

And He has done so by giving us the Word of God.

Consider how blessed and special we are in that we have *that* testimony and *that* teaching in a book, the Bible, which reveals not only the way to God, but God Himself! 

Through the Bible, and only through the Bible, does the ultimate and all-important Reality, reveal himself to us.

And this is done with absolute clarity and supreme authority.

You will recall that my point in stage one was that */God is the most important thing/*…but if this is true, /then certainly the Bible, which is the God given revelation of Himself to man, is more important than anything else *but* God./

And the implications of this fact for parenting and spiritual guardianship are tremendous.

As one speaker has stated,

This means that the Bible will be the sun in the solar system of all that we teach our children.

/It will not be one among many books/.

It will be the central book, the all-permeating Book.

"The other books are dark planets; the Bible is the light-giving sun.

All other books will be read in the light of this book.

All books will be judged by this book.