Rebuilding Our Christian Family and Households

One of the increasing benefits of the current pandemic is the recognition of the long awaited desire of many workers to work from home. Because of the harsh fatality of the virus especially for the elderlies and those with respiratory illnesses, the new work arrangement at home is highly advised. This is a big win for workers with families and lives with them.

Although there are other emerging issues on the isolation measures of each nation, we cannot deny that it has great opportunity for each member of the household to benefit from it. One of these is revisiting the status of our relationships with each family member and rebuild it in an approved and delightful ways like a Christ’s led family project.

For sure, as individual is unique, each family household also differs in many occasions. Paul has given many exhortations and advices from his letters to churches with regards to our conducts for households. I wanted to encourage you to join me in looking into one of it in Colossians 3:18-25.

Colossians 3:18-25

18 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. 22 Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. 23 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. 25 For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality.

This passage is so impactful for a heeding heart for the voice of the Lord through the wisdom given to Apostle Paul. He is encouraging each member of the family to conduct their relationship in these manners as he also elaborated in his other epistles. But this one is exhorted in short, simple and impactful central theme that in any of these relational works, we do it for the Glory of God alone.

Wives - Submission to their husbands as the authority of Christ represented with them.

Husbands - Love their wives with care and compassion. You represent Christ, therefore, you also manifest His Love towards your wives and households.

Children - Obedience to parents as it is pleasing to the Lord. Obedience is a form of giving honour which is the commandment with a promise guaranteed by the Lord.

Father - Lead with authority but not provoking children to get discourage, instead, encourage them at all times as the best driving force to teach our children.

Servants - Authentic and Genuine Obedience at all times, not only when others can see us or just want to please others only. Practicing a servant heart is practicing fear of the Lord, such is the beginning of wisdom which will flow to the family who have such atmosphere and environment.

Paul’s advice that to be reminded of these conducts, let us think about that everything we do is for the Lord and not for men around us. We know that the great audience knows our ways, our hearts, and our thoughts. If one of these are rebellious, there will be great consequences in our household relationships and attracting evil in the hearts of each member and inviting punishments in long run which may have lasting effect to our relationship with one another.

Let us take this advantageous period of time in one in a century event of our lifetime that in the midst of chaos, our home grows in a loving relationship while buying back the time that was missed.

NOW is another great opportunity, DON’T missed it again.

Thanks be to God for giving us a family!

Comments

Explore The Most Read Post for the past year

Put Our Hope In God, not in uncertainties

(Midweek Devotions, 1 Timothy 6:17-21 - 25 Oct 2023) 1 Timothy 6:17-20 17 Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. 20 Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, 21 which some have professed and in so doing have departed from the faith. Grace be with you all. We are in the final last 5 verses in book of First Timothy, an important pastoral letter which is very helpful for any man of God called to this important vocation. Definitely, this book is by extension equal

Sanctified - A Pleasing Servant of Christ

(Midweek Devotion - 1st Timothy 5:22-25, 13 Sept 2023) 1 Timothy 5:22-25 22 Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor take part in the sins of others; keep yourself pure. 23 (No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.) 24 The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. 25 So also good works are conspicuous, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden. After we have been reminded of Paul's apostolic instruction to give honour due to our elders, especially those who work in preaching and teaching; Paul is now giving us warnings of the continuing influences of sins to each and every believers. He warn us of three things: (1) do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, (2) taking part in the sins of others, (3) and keeping ourselves pure. Laying on of hands is particularly referring to the ordination of someone to install in the position of lead

Respect - To Serve Them Even Better

(Midweek Devotion, 1st Timothy 6:1-2, 27 Sept 2023) 1st Timothy 6:1-2 1 All who are under the yoke of slavery should consider their masters worthy of full respect, so that God’s name and our teaching may not be slandered. 2 Those who have believing masters should not show them disrespect just because they are fellow believers. Instead, they should serve them even better because their masters are dear to them as fellow believers and are devoted to the welfare of their slaves. One of the great things about the Sacred Scriptures is that, it does not talk about God alone but also talks about His creatures behaviour, particularly human being, more specificallly those who are His people. 1st Timothy 6 gave us an idea of how both one who are UNDER authority and one who are IN authority should behave as bearers of the name of God. The Bible clearly values authority and how important one should submit to an authority over him. The Bible itself claims authority for Truth, thus, no wonder that th

Paul's Description Of A False Teacher

(Midweek Devotion, 1 Timothy 6:3-5 - 04 Oct 2023) 1 Timothy 6:3-5 3 If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, 4 he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, 5 and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain. The bible is quite vocal in its warning against (1) a false prophet or false teachers, and (2) a false teaching or false doctrine. Jesus’ ministry had repeatedly criticise the Jewish religious leaders in their time and keep on correcting them in many occasions or warning the crowds or the Jewish people who follow their teachings. Paul in this part of his epistle to Timothy is similarly giving some warning to his child in faith and dealing with the spre

Godliness with Contentment is Great Gain

(Midweek Devotion, 1 Timothy 6:6-10) 1 Timothy 6:6-10 6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. One of today’s common deception in modern Christianity movement is the use of the Gospel as a solution to life of prosperity. Though the Bible have shown us many great examples of people of God who received and accumulated great wealth in their obedience to God, that does not mean that we also have to focus of such things in our walk of faith. What does the Bible said about prosperities and how the people of Go

IAFB Australia Incorporated

Search This Blog