Building Families That Will Last Series

Sunday Morning February 3, 2002 Bel Aire Baptist Church

Series: Kingdom Business [#5]

BUILDING FAMILIES THAT WILL LAST

Genesis 24

Introduction:

1. In this series, we have identified the stewardship of life, the stewardship of prayer, the stewardship of the Bible, and the stewardship of money.

2. Today we will look at being good stewards of something that is becoming extinct.

[Play video clip: “Endangered Species”]

3. Statistics show that 1 out of 3 households with children are missing the father. It’s pretty hard to say that our men ought to be the leaders of the household when they are not there.

4. It should not be surprising that 1 out 5 teenagers report that they hate their life and it doesn’t matter whether they live or die.

5. Over 50% of our nation believes that it is not morally wrong to have sex before marriage.

6. When polled about what people like to do in their spare time, 25% said they liked to stay home with family. Isn’t that great? Those taking the survey seem to think so, but what about the other 75%; or the fact that more people reported that they would prefer watching T.V. than spending time with family?

7. Things are looking worse and worse for our families, but it doesn’t have to be this way. So what can we do?

8. I want us to identify three things this morning that will enable us to build families that will last. We will be using Isaac as our example. We find our story in Genesis 24.

Building On The Right Foundation

In our story, we find a progression that is very important. Now I realize that there are some huge differences here in building a family because of the differences in time, culture, and traditions; but there are also some extremely important principles that we must notice.

Those of you that are married have already experienced what I am going to preach about in this first point. That is great! Use this opportunity to teach it to your children or grandchildren. Youth and singles, listen up.

Dating:

Although Isaac did not get to date Rebekah because the custom was arranged marriages, there are still several items here that pertain to dating.

1. Abraham went to great lengths to make sure that his son’s wife was going to be of Israelite descent. He could not allow Isaac to marry a Canaanite woman because they did not worship the same God.

a. So what does this mean for us? The Bible says that we are not to be unequally yoked. Now some would say that this is talking about inter-racial marriages but that is not correct. God is telling Christians to not marry unbelievers. When a Christian marries an unbeliever trouble is sure to follow.

b. If God does not want Christians to marry unbelievers then what is He telling us concerning dating?

Dating Principle #1: Never date someone without realizing that you could fall deeply in love with that person and marry him or her.

2. In verses 5-9 Abraham explains to the servant that God will provide a wife for his son because God had made a promise to him concerning his offspring. Abraham was so sure of this promise that he told the servant that if the woman would not come back with him that he would be released from the oath.

a. The servant also took this very serious because who did he ask for help? That’s right, God.

b. For those of you that are dating, it is not just a good idea, but very important that you do as the servant did and ask God to lead you to the right person.

Dating Principle #2: Marriage is serious business. It is a part of God’s plan in your life whom you marry. Make sure you include God in your decision.

Note: It is not a sin to not get married. It does not mean that something is wrong with you. I don’t believe that God intends for all of us to marry. After all, Jesus did not get married. But for those of us who do marry, realize that God must be at the center of your decision.

3. Also notice that our text points out the fact that Rebekah was a virgin. If this were not an important fact, it would not be in the Bible.

Dating Principle #3: Sex is a part of God’s design for marriage and is a special gift intended only for marriage. Your purity is important not only to you and your future spouse, but it is also important to God.

Building God’s Way

Marriage

Using the word sex from the pulpit makes us uncomfortable doesn’t it? You may be worried about what your kids or youth are thinking but I will assure you they have heard about sex. They may not have had accurate information in the past, but they do now.