Preaching That Strengthens the Home

PREACHING THAT STRENGTHENS THE HOME

It is indeed an honor and a privilege to speak on the Spiritual Sword Lectureship. The theme, “The Glory of Preaching; Passing the Torch” is one that is timely and needed. We have reached a critical time in preaching where it is difficult to find sound preachers and even more difficult to find sound congregations in which to preach. How great it is to see the torch of sound preaching being passed from one generation to the next. I have the utmost respect and love for my father. He excels in all that he does and will stand firm for that which is right. Although I had an earlier start in Christianity, he has surpassed in knowledge and ability more than I will ever hope to accomplish. I am indeed blessed to have such a father.

INTRODUCTION

There is a consensus that the overall United States divorce rate had a brief spurt after World War II followed by a decline, then started rising in the 1960’s and even more quickly in the 1970’s (due to the no-fault divorce laws), then leveled off. In the 1980’s there was a slight decline. In the 1990’s the divorce rate was forty to fifty percent. The number of children whose parents divorced grew by 700 percent from 1900 to 1972. The proportion of children living with one parent has grown from 12 percent to 28 percent from 1970 to 1996. Today, half of all children will witness the breakup of their parents’ marriage. Of these children, close to half (or 25% of the children) will also see the breakup of the parents’ second marriages. Divorce is consistently associated with juvenile emotional disorders, crime, suicide, promiscuity, and later for the children, their own marital difficulties. Ten percent of children of divorce will go on to be part of three or more family breakups. A Creighton University study found that married couples from different religious backgrounds divorce at a higher rate and are more likely to drift away from religion than those who wed within same religion.

These statistics were taken from various web sites via the Internet. While statistics are not always an accurate source to prove things, they do indicate major problems. This author lived in Jacksonville, Florida for over seven years. Duval County professes to have a divorce rate of seventy-six percent. While that statistic may not be accurate, a very large percentage of Bible studies I conducted was with couples on their second to fourth divorce. It was common to conduct five Bible studies before having one that did not have a divorce dilemma. The breakup of the home is having a negative impact on the church and its growth. It is causing many to simply not deal with the matter for fear of losing members. It is also causing many to teach that which is false. There is indeed a great need to preach that which will strengthen the home. I do not believe the situation to be so dim as to give up. There is hope for our homes. One of the most exciting statistics I read involved a recent survey among teenagers where they asked them to name their top goals for the future, one of the highest-rated goals was to get married and have the same spouse for their entire life. Surely, if our young people are concerned, we should be too. What kind of preaching strengthens the home?

PREACHING THAT STRENGTHENS THE HOME IS AUTHORITATIVE

Titus, a preacher of the gospel, was commanded by the apostle Paul to “…speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee” (Titus 2:15). Again Paul directed Timothy, “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (II Tim. 4:2). Preaching, therefore, that strengthens the home will have its foundation in the word of God. A preacher who denies the verbal, inerrant, plenary, inspired word of God, can never preach that which will strengthen the home. The word of God clearly defines the responsibilities of the father, mother, wife, husband, child, brother, and sister. Since the Word of God is authoritative, then the responsibilities the Word of God teaches are binding not mererly suggestions. The foregoing conclusion is the home without responsibility is chaotic and doomed to fail.

The very foundation of the Bible is the book of Genesis. The foundation of the book of Genesis is Genesis 1. Within the first chapter of Genesis is the power behind all that is, “God said” (Gen. 1:3,6,9,11,14,20,24,26,29). What God has said is the authority for all that I do. “God said” is the basis for inspiration, revelation, faith, and worship. When one preaches he must rely on inspiration, the God breathed word. He must give a “thus saith the Lord” (Exodus 4:22). In doing so, the home can build upon the correct foundation (I Cor 3:11). In order to have strong homes we must always build upon this foundation.

PREACHING THAT STRENGTHENS THE HOME IS ONE THAT IS EXEMPLIFIED

One’s influence as a preacher cannot be belittled when one considers the strength of preaching. Preachers do live in glass houses and must safely guard their influence. This need for safeguarding is well illustrated in Leviticus 4.

If the priest that is anointed do sin according to the sin of the people; then let him bring for his sin, which he hath sinned, a young bullock without blemish unto the Lord for a sin offering….And if the whole congregation of Israel sin through ignorance, and the thing be hid from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done some what against any of the commandments of the Lord concerning things which should not be done, and are guilty;…When a ruler hath sinned, and done somewhat through ignorance against any of the commandments of the Lord his God concerning things which should not be done, and is guilty;…And if any one of the common people sin through ignorance, while he doeth somewhat against any of the commandments of the Lord concerning things which ought not to be done, and be guilty;…(Lev. 4:3,13,22,27; emphasis mine).

The question that must be considered from the above passage is, “Why have a separate sin offering for the priest, whole congregation, common people, and ruler?” By possing this question we see it is possible that one sin is worse in nature than other sins. We can see this in the teachings of Christ who stated, “Look up latter end). Note also the apostle Peter stated,

“For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, the DOG IS TURNED TO HIS OWN VOMIT AGAIN; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire (II Peter 2:20-22; emphasis mine)

No doubt one may commit a sin that is of a more grievous nature than others. Yet if the priest, whole congregation, ruler, or common man commit the same sin there would still be separate sacrifices. It may be that the preacher and member of the congregation may commit the same sin yet the consequences are not the same. Those who are in positions of leadership must carefully safeguard their lives because the sin they commit will have a more negative influence than those who are not in a leadership position. Therefore if one preaches to strengthen the homes of those to whom he preaches, he needs to have a stable home. How difficult it would be to preach with all authority (Titus 2:15) when one has lost the respect of the people. If you have their respect they will listen to the necessary reproving and rebuking

PREACHING THAT STRENGTHENS THE HOME IS CHRIST CENTERED

Paul the apostle declared, “For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified” (I Cor. 2:2). Paul centered his preaching on Christ. He knew that the gospel consisted of the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord (I Cor. 15:1-4). Paul realized that there was no other foundation to lay than Christ ( I Cor. 3:11). Therefore our preaching must be built upon the same foundation. The home is of divine origin and was built by God (Matthew 16:18). When one studies the second chapter of Genesis he discovers the beauty of God’s creation of marriage. It is God who gave us the need for marriage and companionship, for “it is not good that the man should be alone” (Gen. 2:18). Marriage that is not built on the foundation of Christ is doomed to fail. Therefore preaching that strengthens the home will be Christ centered.

One does not have to speak specifically on the responsibility of father, mother, wife, husband, or children to strengthen the home. One can simply preach Christ and compare. When Christ came to earth he subjugated His will to the Father. Thus did Paul say that “ …the head of Christ is God” ( I Cor. 11:3). Christ did not feel inferior to the Father as He humbly accepted this role. Paul declared to the wife, “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and He is the Savior of the body” (Eph. 5:22,23). The wife can use Christ as an example and submit herself to her husband without feeling inferior to that husband. Likewise Christ had a tremendous love for the church. He was willing to die for the church. Paul, therefore, makes this comparison, “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it;” (Eph. 5:25). In preaching Christ, the home indeed has a foundation upon which to build a strong home.

PREACHING THAT STRENGTHENS THE HOME SHOWS A DISTINCTION BETWEEN A MAN AND A WOMAN

“Men and women are equal” says the ERA. “…He which made them at the beginning made them male and female”, said the Christ (Matt. 19:4). God made us different. We have different needs and different communication skills. Paul recognized this difference when he wrote Ephesians 5. Paul clearly tells the husband to love his wife (Eph. 5:25,28,29,33). Yet such love is not mentioned when discussing the responsibility of the wife. The wife is told to be in submission (Eph. 5:22). And in that submission to reverence her husband (Eph. 5:33). Therefore the greatest need in a woman’s life is relationship. The greatest need in a mans life is respect. The area that causes the most problems in marriage is improper communication. Men and women communicate differently. Our communication is directly connected to our needs. Man’s need is significance. A woman’s need is relationship. In that need for relationship, the woman becomes an observer. She therefore communicates with observations. She may observe that something in the house is broken and in need of repair but if she is not specific in her communication with her husband he will not hear the message to repair the problem. Men can be more specific in their communication yet a man feels that if he has said something one time it remains the standard. For example, “I told you I loved you, if I change my mind I will let you know.” Yet this reasoning does not fulfill the need of the wife. Peter declared that one is to dwell with his wife “according to knowledge” (I Peter 3:7). Therefore, he must seek to understand her needs and seek to fulfill them. Likewise should the wife strive to understand the need of the husband and seek to fulfill his needs.

PREACHING THAT STRENGTHENS THE HOME IS PREACHING THAT WHICH MAY NOT WANT TO BE HEARD: MARRIAGE, DIVORCE, AND REMARIAGE

Preaching that strengthens the home is preaching God’s command on marriage, divorce, and remarriage. Because the divorce rate is increasing at an alarming rate, many preachers/elders are now looking for loopholes in Gods law. It is easier to shove it “under the rug” or attempt to justify it by human reasoning, than preach the truth. It takes a great deal more strength to teach as Christ did, “except it be for fornication” (Matt 19:9). Man has taken a simple teaching and attempted to make it complex and obscure. Yet when truly faced with the simplicity of the doctrine many conclude they are not subject to the law, stating, “I am not in covenant.” Yet Christ settled the covenant issue when he said, “whosoever.” Therefore this teaching applies to all.

PREACHING THAT STRENGTHENS THE HOME SHOWS A DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE HOME AND THE CHURCH

There are three divine institutions taught in the scriptures. There is the church (Matthew 16:18), the state (Romans 13:1), and the home (Matthew 19:4-6). Although there may be some overlapping of functions, they are all three distinct. The church is not to function as the home. The home is not to function as the church. There is an overlapping of responsibility of the church to teach the truth (Eph. 4:12; Matt. 28:18-20; I Tim. 2:12;4:16). To fulfill this responsibility we have bible study where all can come and learn the will of God. Yet the ultimate responsibility of teaching the children falls on the home. Fathers are given the charge to bring up their children “…in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4). The older women are taught to teach the younger women (Titus 2:5). If one were to rely only on the church to train his child in the Word of God and he faithfully brought that child to bible school, it would still take that child sixteen years to pass the first grade. The churches responsibility is to become an aid to the home. If a child does not learn the Bible than the blame must fall on the home. Too many parents expect the church to change their child for good. If the church fails, then the parents place their children in a “Christian school” expecting the school to change the child for good. Yet if we are to follow Gods pattern, the parents need to teach their children the will of God so that wherever the child goes in life that child’s faith will stand. If our homes are to be strong, then preachers need to teach our homes to do a better job in teaching their children. Parents spend time and money to ensure that their children have a well rounded education. They spend vast amounts of time and money on sports even to the extreme of missing worship and bible study if the event calls for it. A large amount of money is given for tutors to spend hours in math, science, history, and English. Yet very little time is spent teaching the Bible. Then again, you cannot teach what you do not know. Herein lies the real problem. The parent does not study enough to be able to teach the child. Our homes are destroyed for a lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6).

CONCLUSION

If there is to be preaching that strengthens the home, there must be strong preachers. There must be those who are willing to preach, stand for right, and set the example. There must be preaching that comes only from the Word of God. Our homes will never be strong if preachers avoid preaching that which others do not want to hear yet is what God has taught. May we continue to pass the torch of preaching to those who will continue to follow these principles.