The Five Pentecostal Principles of Parental Perpetuation
Pentecostal: A Christian, walking and living in God’s Word
Principle: A basic truth, law, or assumption. A rule or standard, especially of good behavior.
Parental: relating to, or characteristic of a parent
Perpetuate: To cause to continue indefinitely
Proverbs 17:6 Children’s children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers.
2 Thes. 3:1-5
1 Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:
2 And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith.
3 But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.
4 And we have confidence in the Lord touching you, that ye both do and will do the things which we command you.
5 And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.
Paul gives 5 principles here to these young Christians in the church to impress on their hearts the great need to carry through in these things.
They are:
1. Prayerfulness 1 Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:
Paul was asking them to remember in prayer the one who wrote this letter to them.
Paul was the greatest missionary, the greatest evangelist, the greatest teacher the church world had ever known,
yet he felt the need of the prayers of these converts in order that he might better fulfill his ministry.
Allow me to change this verse just a little:
Finally, husbands, pray for your wives,
Finally, wives, pray for your husbands… that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you.
Add this… if people prayed more for their spouses, there would be a lot less criticizing done of them!
Some people …that’s all they do is criticize.
BUT when you take your wife or husband before the throne of God in prayer… that criticizing gives way to a spirit of helpfulness.
Then instead of criticizing… it’s…. what can I do to make my spouse’s job easier on him/her?
BUT this morning, we’re dealing with Parenting: How does PRAYER and PARENTING relate?
They really go hand in hand. Because successful parenting is going to take a lot of prayer!!!!
How can you perpetuate prayer in your children’s lives? How can you get them to have a prayer life?
a. By you having a prayer life. B. By you being the example.
Do you recall what Perpetuate means? Perpetuate: 1. To cause to continue indefinitely
Ephesians 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit
So we must perpetuate PRAYERFULNESS in their lives.
When do you start? 2 years? 4 years? 6 years? No, immediately.
If you have already developed a habit of prayer, it will not be difficult to do this with your family.
2. The 2nd Principle of Pentecostal Principles of Parental Perpetuation is PRESERVATION
2Thes. 3:2 And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith.
It is a sad fact that some WILL NEVER BELIEVE and be saved.
No matter how clearly and tenderly or boldly the
Gospel is preached, some will never open their
heart and mind to the word of God.
The reason they will not believe God’s word and the contents of it is because THEY DO NOT WANT TO BELIEVE… for in believing and receiving, there will have to be a forsaking of sin.
AND most enjoy their sin too much to forsake it.
Paul refers to this type of people as UNREASONABLE and WICKED.
And his desire is to be DELIVERED from these type of men
PRESERVATION: To treat fruit or other foods so as to prevent decay. To keep in perfect or unaltered condition
We as parents have an awesome duty and responsibility to PREVENT DECAY in our children….
To keep them in a perfect or in an unaltered condition.
Deut. 6:5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
Do you see the perpetuation here? In order for our children to become perfect, we must strive for perfection ourselves…. To love the Lord our God with ALL our heart, soul and might.
AND in order to PRESERVE our children from unreasonable and wicked men,
WE MUST BE PRESERVED OURSELVES.
And if we want our Grandchildren to be preserved, we must perpetuate Godly living on down to our children who will pass it down to their children, and so on…
That’s perpetuation!!!
3. The third Principle of Pentecostal Principles of Parental Perpetuation is: PROTECTION
2Thes. 3:3 But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.
Paul realized that these new converts were now exposed to all kinds of danger.
He knew that Satan would do his best to turn them away from their new found faith
THEREFORE… he makes a bold statement!
THE LORD IS FAITHFUL.
God will do his part!
God will fulfill his obligation to his Children
Listen to what Jesus said in John 10:27-29
27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.
3 But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.
Stablish: Gr 2) to strengthen, make firm 3) to render constant….
God will make you consistent! Not up and down, in and out.
AND just as the baby chicks stay underneath their mother’s wings…there is protection!
BECAUSE when you are out from under the WINGS… you are out of PROTECTION!
Song of Solomon 2:15 Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.
Our children are tender…
They must have protection!!! WE must keep them as sheltered as possible
That’s why we take a stand against television because all it does is desensitize them.
There is a problem when a father ties up his dog at night and lets his boy run loose!
When he spends more time and effort on his thorough bread dogs and horses than his daughter.
WE must Perpetuate PROTECTION to our children. So that they will raise their children the same way!!!
So sad to see one family in our church, grandparents, who are now raising their own grandchildren, because their own children will not be proper parents!!!
4. The fourth principle of Pentecostal Principles of Parental Perpetuation is PERSEVERANCE
4 And we have confidence in the Lord touching you, that ye both do and will do the things which we command you.
There is some DOING in this Christian walk.
It is not just sitting back and letting everyone else do the work… there is work for you to do…
AND to stay in the Love of God.. it takes doing. It takes perseverance.
To keep your marriage together…it takes perseverance!!!
Perseverance: To persist in or remain constant to a purpose, an idea, or a task in the face of obstacles or discouragement.
Eph. 6:18… after Paul gives instructions for putting on the armor… he says.
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
Perseverance; to keep pressing on until the task is done despite the circumstances.
IF we don’t persevere then our children will not understand the importance of perseverance!
IF we are not faithful to persevere in our Christian walk, in our church faithfulness, in our
Tithe paying, in our giving, in our doing our part for our church,
Then don’t expect your children to follow in your footsteps!!!
Too many parents have stood and testified great, but lived terrible!!!
5. The fifth Principle of Pentecostal Principles of Parental Perpetuation is PATIENCE
5 And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.
Christ will return! There is no doubt! There is no question about it. We just don’t know WHEN….
therefore, the admonition to PATIENCE.
Does not the farmer tend to his fields? While the precious seed is growing, does he not keep the weeds out?
Does he not keep his crops watered?
You see, these Thessalonians fully expected the Lord to return in their lifetime… and some had to be instructed to have patience and wait for the Lord.
They were giving up their homes and jobs, and ended up having to live off of others to make it….
Paul was saying… BE Patient,,, but continue in steadfastness. Continue working.
Continue in the Love of God.
But there is also another inference here about patience: as the Lord has directed our hearts, and we patiently wait for Christ… we must also teach this principle of patience to our children as well.
BUT you know what oftentime happens? We really don’t believe or act like we believe that Christ is returning…. Spend much more effort, time and money on monetary things, on worldly ambitions, on earthly goals, and in doing so, are teaching our children that MATT. 6:33 is not really that important!
33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
To perpetuate PATIENCE in our children and to their children, and their children’s children… is to teach them how important the coming of Christ really is, and to fully expect it!
Teach your children to live today as if the Lord could come back today!!!
The Five Pentecostal Principles of Parental Perpetuation
1. Prayerfulness 2. Preservation 3. Protection 4. Perseverance 5. Patience.
