Gospel Pictures #1- Parental Guidance

In Sunday's message we thought about the awesome picture of the Gospel that adoption provides us with. How kind that God would use images in His Word that we find so emotive to help us understand more clearly how He chooses to relate to us through the salvation He has provided for us. Over the next few Tuesday's we are going to pause to think on some of those pictures and how we conduct ourselves in the equivalent human that He has given us can clarify or cloud what we believe about the Gospel. Today we are going to look at the parent picture with three things that spoil the Gospel picture, particularly in our kids, and one thing that spurs the Gospel picture.

Things that spoil the Gospel picture u paint #1: Inconsistency- Produces low expectations of God's reliability
How often have your kids come to share something from their life with you when you have been watching television or on Facebook and you have given them half attention or no attention; where 'just a minute' stretches to an hour in your economy of time. When were we last wowed by the idea that God gives us His attention? Whe we pray He hears, when we cry out He responds out of His compassion and tender mercy towards us. It's not just reliable in listening, but also reliable in doing. Are you good on delivering on what you promise your kids so that when you talk to them about God's promises they understand that they can be trusted? There are two things in this- be wise in the promises you make, watchful not to allow your mouth to write cheques that your life cannot cash, and working on ensuring that you don't just keep your promises but use them as opportunities to point to the greater promise keeper.

Parent? Things that spoil the Gospel picture u paint #2: Indifference- Produces low expectations of God's faithfulness
Immutable is the doctrine word that means that God does not change- He is faithful. In the hands of a loving and merciful God such divine consistency is designed to produce deep conviction about the salvation offered. Likewise, speaking of the salvation security we can find in God's steady substance , Malachi 3: 6 says 'For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.' Hebrews 13: 8 says of the source of our salvation that, 'Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.' Lamentations 3: 22-24 directs us further, The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,“therefore I will hope in him.” The never, never, every's of God's character are designed ot produce trust and hope in our soul. We are far from immutable, but are there ways that our inconsistency might detract from the Gospel in the lives of our kids in terms of how we spend our time, how we show our love, our tone of voice. how we discipline the (or don't). For example we often will find it easier to be inconsistent in disciplining our kids which can be down to a number of things, energy levels or easyness. Could it be too, that we want our kids to like us, we should be careful that we don't try and make oursleves more popular than God and miss out on the richness of the example of our Heavenly Father who 'disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.' (Hebrews 12: 10-11)

Parent? Thing that spoil the Gospel picture u paint #3: Insensitivity- produces low expectations of God's grace.
Someone once said that having kids is like having your heart walking around outside your body- what an amazing picture. We need to be careful though in case such familiarity might breed contempt. It's time to lose the off-hand 'grow up' and shut up' and replace it with a 'look up.' In reality, if we are prone to the grow/shut up response it is likely fruit of a lack of looking up in our own hearts and we probably need to retreat to a quiet place for a Biblical check up. Charles Spurgeon once said, 'train up a child in the way he should go – but be sure you go that way yourself.' That seems like good advice but so too is this- Recognise you will fail, and when you do show your kids the only place where failures flee. Take them to the cross with you and show them the salvation you have received there, take them to the throne of grace with the confidence of someone who is 'in Christ' and show them the mercy and grace you receive in your time of need.

Thing that spurs the Gospel picture u paint: Inspiration- produces high expectations of God's glory.
What do your kids see as the thing that defines your life? The thing your speak most about, the thing you invest most time in, the thing that you are reinforcing as being crucial to your family are the things that they in turn will be most influecne by. The bottom line is this- As you are inspired by God and His glory so are they. How about resolving today that the legacy of greatest significance that you will leave for you kids, by God's grace, is not the importance of financial security, a great career, popularity with peers, an amazing marriage but the joy of life lived for the glory of God, fuelled by His great grace which is ours through His great Son.