MAY 23, 2010

GOD'S VIEW OF THE FAMILY

Scripture Reading - Psalm 127-128

"Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table: ( 128:3 ).

Read these chapters daily this week to see the family from God's perspective.

Our response to everything in life depends on how we view it. This fact is especially true of the family. Everyone has ideas about family life. The government, the media, the judicial system, educators, entertainers, TV producers-they all promote their views of the family. Many of these influences are strongly and negatively affecting our families. One need only look around to see the devastation. Is it any wonder many have distorted views about family life? To get the proper perspective on family living, we must go to God's Word and see family from God's point of view.

Have you ever looked through the wrong end of a pair of binoculars? Everything appears small and so far away-a completely wrong picture. But when you look through the right end, everything comes into focus. Things that appeared far away and hard to see are suddenly up close, larger, and clearer.

Many today are trying to see God through the family, but that perception makes God appear far away and out of focus. We must look at the family through God. Remember, God created the family. Who knows more about family living than God? Christian bookstores are full of books about family living. Some are good; some aren't so good. The greatest book ever written to families is still God's Word.

This week, we'll be looking at the family from God's perspective through His Word. Hopefully, this study will help your family keep a proper focus.

EXERCISE: Ask family members to look through the wrong ind of a pair of binoculars. Let them share their thoughts. Turn the binoculars around and ask them to look again. Talk about the different view and discuss how perception relates to our views about the family.

- Jack Palmer

MAY 24, 2010

THE PRIORITY OF THE FAMILY

Scripture Reading - Psalms 127-128

"Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it:

except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain"

( 127:1, emphasis added ).

When seeking a proper view of the family, we must understand the priority of the family or why the family is so important to God that we're wasting our time unless we allow Him to build it. Let's look at three reasons the family is God's priority.

First, God created the family. In Genesis 2:18b, after declaring everything He'd created to be good, God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him." Though alone in the Garden of Eden, Adam wasn't lonely. He had wonderful fellowship with God, but God knew he was incomplete. He created a woman ( v. 22 ), Eve, and brought her to Adam, creating the first family. God's uniting of Adam and Eve shows the importance of family to God!

Second, the family is the foundation of society. Genesis 1:28a says, "And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish [ fill ] the earth, and subdue it." As a result, humanity came into existence. During the flood, all humans except Noah and his family were destroyed. God told Noah and his family to "replenish the earth" ( Gen. 9:1 ). In both instances, God used one family to populate the earth. God's choosing to use the family in this way shows its importance to Him!

Third, the family is the heart of the Church. In 1 Timothy, where God gives requirements for spiritual leadership in the Church, the family plays a major role ( 3:2, 4, 5, 11-12 ). Before a man is qualified to lead in the Church, he must be a proven spiritual leader to his family. The Church can never be stronger than its families. That fact makes the family important to God!

POINTS TO PONDER: There's no question the family is important to God. How important is your family to you?

-Jack Palmer

MAY 18, 2010

LEAVE IT

ALL BEHIND

Scripture Reading - Matthew 6:19-20

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth

corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven,

where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt,

and where thieves do not break through nor steal."

Have you ever watched a funeral procession slowly make its way to a cemetery? The funeral director sits in the lead car. Then comes the funeral coach followed by the minister and the family vehicles. The lineup then includes vehicles of friends and acquaintances.

Have you ever seen a moving truck in the procession? Of course not. There's no need for a moving van or cargo trailer when someone goes to the grave.

The explanation is simple. When people step out of this life - when death takes them from this world - they take nothing with them. After the death of a wealthy man, someone asked, "How much did he leave?" the answer? "He left it all." That's right. When we die, we leave everything behind. No matter how much we accumulate or accomplish in this world, we cannot take any possessions from this world to the next.

A simple test helps us determine which things in this life will have value in the next. You can determine the true value of anything by evaluating what it will be worth to you in 1,000 years. Unfortunately, many things that occupy our lives aren't going to be of much value in eternity.

Someone has said, "Someday, all I will have is what I gave to God." As families, we must carefully evaluate the value system we are establishing in our homes. To only for the "here and now" will leave us bankrupt in the "then and there."

APPLICATION: Pass a $20 bill around to each family member. Ask each person to suggest a way the money could be worth something in 1,000 years.

- Tom Palmer