SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/3/2023 8:55 AM
My Worship Time Focus:
PT-8 “Jesus Loves the Little Children”
Bible Reading & Meditation Focus:
Matthew 19:13-15
Message of the verses: “13 Then some
children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray;
and the disciples rebuked them. 14 But Jesus said, "Let the children
alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven
belongs to such as these." 15 And after laying His hands on them, He
departed from there.”
In our SD for today we want to begin by looking at
five key words which can prove to be helpful in giving guidance to parents and
Christian workers in leading children to Christ. The first word is remember. Remember what?
Well remember that every child is created by God and, in that sense, already
belongs to Him. Let us look at a couple
verses from the Psalms to help us out here and the first one comes from Psalm
139:13-14 “13 For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. 14
I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful
are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.” “Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The
fruit of the womb is a reward” (Ps. 127:3).
It is in the plan of God and His desire that every child be returned to
Him for His use, something that we saw in the case of Samuel. “Train up a child in the way he should go,
Even when he is old he will not depart from it” Pr. 22:6).
Now we move onto the next key word which is teach.
As a Christian parent we have the high calling of bringing up our
children “in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4). There is a wonderful example of this found in
the life of Timothy as we see that He was very useful to Paul because from
childhood his mother, Eunice, and his grandmother, Lois, had taught him “the
sacred writings which are able to give…the wisdom that leads to salvation
through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:15; cf. 1:5).
MacArthur adds “That pattern of godly instruction
was set forth early in Israel’s history.
Through Moses, God commanded His people to believe in and worship in the
right way: ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one!’ (Deut.
6:4). He also commanded them to
personally and sincerely accept that truth with uncompromising conviction and
devotion: “And you shall love the Lord
Your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
might. And these words, which I am
commanding you today, shall be on your heart” (vv. 5-6). More than that, they were commanded to teach
godly truth and obedience to their children, talking about those things at home
and in the community, from the time they arose until the time they went to bed
(v.-7). God’s Word was to be taught to
their children and exemplified before them.
“As
important as special times of family Bible study and prayer are, only
consistent godly living by parents will clarify and cement God’s Word in their
children’s minds, hearts, and lives.
Parents should also provide visual reminders of God’s Word. Just as Israelites were to bind God’s Word on
their hands and foreheads and write it on their doorposts and gates (Deut.
6:8-9), so Christian parents can have Bible verses and plaques throughout the
house to reinforce spiritual truths.
When Bible stories and truths are sung, further reinforcement is given.”
Later
on in that Deuteronomy passage God gave ancient Israel a final warning not to
forget Him and His Word after they had come into the Promised Land and were
surfeited with material blessings. “12 then
watch yourself, that you do not forget the LORD who brought you from the land
of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 13 “You shall fear only the LORD
your God; and you shall worship Him and swear by His name. 14 “You shall not
follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who surround you,” (Deut.
6:12-14). Well the problem with Israel
is that they forgot the Lord once they were satisfied living in the Promised
Land and He had to take them out of the Lord, then bring them back into the
Land, then take them out again and then in 1948 bring them back into the Land
again, but even now they do not really know the Lord, and won’t until the later
days of the Tribulation period.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: I know that I never want to forget the Lord
who saved me a little over 49 years ago.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Trust that
the Lord will give Sandy and I a safe trip to Circleville OH to watch the
basketball tournament, and then safely back home again. I also hope that our girl’s team will
represent themselves in a way that will bring honor to the Lord, which is what
they have been doing.
3/3/2023 9:37 AM
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