“Before The Children Went Away”
( Job 29:1-5)
There is no one in the Bible that can so touch the heart of compassion than God’s servant Job. In one fell stroke of providence, Job was robbed of everything he had in life. Let me take you on a journey down to the Uz mortuary. There is a receiving line that consists of many of Job’s friends and acquaintances, lined up to give Job their condolences and sympathy. Just behind Job and Mrs. Job are ten little caskets all lined up in a row. Job is dressed in sackcloth for mourning and Mrs. Job’s eyes are swollen from the thousands of tears she has cried over the loss of her ten darling children.
In this passage we can almost envision one of Job’s friends walking up to him quietly there at the funeral home and asking him how he was holding up, and how he was going to carry on. We can see Job’s face and hear these words come from his lips as looks with a distant eye in retrospect and exclaims,
“Oh that were as in months past, as in the days of old when God preserved me; when his candle shined upon my head, and when by his light I walked through darkness; as I was in the days of my youth, when the secret of God was upon my tabernacle; when the Almighty was yet with me, WHEN MY CHILDREN WERE ABOUT ME.”
Understand, Job had lost it all. His cattle, his sheep, his oxen, his servants, his land, his houses…and the encouragement of his own wife who said to him…”Curse God and die” Job in a moment of great faith responded, “The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” We admire Job for his strong faith, but at best he was still human and the loss of his seven sons and three daughters must have been the heartbreak of his life. This caused Job to reflect upon his life and say, “Oh that I could go back and do it all over again to those times when the children were still at home.”
Was Job looking back with regret? NO I THIINK JOB WAS LOOKING BACK WITH JOY AT THE HAPPY TIMES HE HAD WHEN HIS KIDS WERE ALIVE.
Yesterday, I went to the hospital to visit and a dear lady spoke to me who had just lost her husband 18 months ago. She said “The thing that keeps me going now is thinking about all the happy times we had together.”
Job was a godly man (Job 1) One that feared God and shunned evil. He directed his family right, he had no regrets about the way he had raised his children, but that did not keep him from missing them.
The loss of Job’s material things made him sad, but the loss of Job’s children really caused him to think and re-evaluate his home situation. Job could not go back because the children were all gone…but there are many here this morning who still have your children about you. You are in the process of raising a family. As we look at Job’s situation let us take a few minutes this morning to re-evaluate where we stand in relation to our family that is about us this morning…
I. THE PROVISION GOD MADE FOR THE HOME
1. God created the home to be a happy place. A place to have some happy times. A place to create fond memories. If your children were put on the spot this morning could they honestly say that their home is a happy place?
For some the home has become a battle ground between husband and wife. A place of abuse.
In early puritan times, a man was expected to make provision for his home both materially and spiritually. If he did not do that he was counted worse tban an infidel and was subject to be brought before the presiding elders of the church and give an account.
A happy home is a home where children are taught to respect God and their parents. A place where children feel cared about and loved and provided for.
2. A happy home is a place where fences have been erected
A man I knew in Maryville, TN who attended our church came to me one day and asked me to pray for his grand daughter. Her pony had been brutally attacked by rottweilers and killed. The owner of the dogs had been warned by the authorities time and again to keep his dogs inside the fence and to not lot them roam the neighborhood, but he refused. Because of this brutal attach the dogs had to be destroyed. Was it the dog’s fault? I think not. It is bred in the instinct of some dogs to chase deer and other animals. The fault was with the owner who did not take the time to erect proper fences to keep the dogs from getting out and doing damage to themselves or someone else.
Young people need fences! They need barriers! They need direction. They need character. This only comes when we learn erect fences for them. Disciplined young people who know where the line is and how far to go are happy young people.
An electric in ground fence is an example of this. Eventually the owner turned it off. The animals got used to the boundaries.
3. Are you providing scriptural teaching and learning at home? Look at Deuteronomy 6. Parents are commanded to teach and train their children in the ways of Christ.
I saw this vividly displayed by a Rabbi and his son in Nashville, TN
II. The Priority Of The Home
A home where Christ is the center. Do you honor the Christ of God in your home? Do you honor the Word of God in your home? We will never see godliness on the street or in the schools until we see a return to godliness in the home!
The Bible says, “Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old he will not depart from it.”
Making Christ a priority in the home while our children are about us is a matter of commitment.
It is not the job of this church to raise your children. If your child does not turn out right don’t blame Lynn. If your children don’t turn out right don’t blame the deacons, the pastor or even your school teachers! The blame goes squarely to the leadership of mom and dad in the home. God has commanded parents to training of their children a priority.
The world’s first institution was the home. The Lord created the home before he created the church. My first priority is not to be pastor of Lee Road Baptist Church. My first priority is to be a Christian father and husband
“That in all things He might have the preeminence”
“Seek you first the kingdom of God and his righteousness”
Does Christ have first place at your house. Never was a question at our house if we would go to church on Sunday in fact, we did not have an option. My dad felt as though he what was best for my life. I was not mature enough to make that decision for myself. AND IT REALLY HURT ME AND WARPED MY PSCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING. I AM NOW A PASTOR!
III. THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF A CHRISTIAN HOME
Is God really real at your house? When Christ becomes real to you, he will become real to your children. In Duet. 6 It said that parents are to talk about the Lord and his commands from the time they rise up in the morning until the time they go to bed at night. WHILE THE CHILDREN ARE ABOUT DO MAKE GOD REAL TO THEM THROUGH YOUR CONVERSATION? DO THEY SEE MOM AND DAD EXERCISING FAITH IN CHRIST? DO THEY EXPERIENCE A FAMILY ALTAR TIME? DO THEY SEE MOM AND DAD WALKING WITH GOD? DO THEY EXPERIENCE THE JOY OF ANSWERED PRAYER BECAUSE MOM AND DAD HAVE BEEN PRAYING FOR THEM?
One of the precious experiences of Jill’s life was the many times she would accidentally stumble upon her dad on his knees praying for his kids.
Moms and dads, the greatest influence on your children’s life is not their Sunday School teacher, their pastor, their school teacher, their coach, their peers…the greatest influence on their life is YOU!
WHAT WILL YOU BE DOING ABOUT YOUR HOME WHILE THE KIDS ARE ABOUT?
