Participants: Pastor Stephen Bohr
Series Code: CGC
Program Code: CGC000040
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01:13 Shall we bow our heads for prayer.
01:14 Father in heaven, we thank you once again 01:17 for the opportunity of gathering here in this place 01:21 to seek Your face, 01:25 to seek Your wisdom. 01:27 And as we study about the method that You use 01:33 to discipline Your children 01:35 we ask that You will help us to learn the lessons 01:37 that will help us to properly discipline our children. 01:42 We thank you for the privilege of approaching Your throne 01:45 for wisdom. We thank you for hearing us 01:47 for we ask it in Jesus' name, Amen. 01:52 As we look at scripture 01:55 it becomes very evident 01:58 that the relationship between 02:00 God the Father and His Son Jesus 02:04 is a pattern of the relationship which should exist 02:09 between husbands and wives. 02:13 And so as we begin our study 02:16 I want to describe very briefly 02:20 the relationship that exists between God the Father 02:24 and His Son Jesus. 02:27 And then of course we're going to notice that God the Father 02:30 and His Son Jesus at a certain point 02:33 decided to have children 02:35 just like husbands and wives decide to have children. 02:38 Then, of course, we'll move on to speak about God's method 02:41 of discipline with His children 02:43 as a pattern for the methods of discipline that we should 02:46 follow in disciplining our children 02:49 as husbands and wives. 02:51 Now let's begin by analyzing the relationship between 02:55 God the Father and His Son Jesus. 02:58 I'd like to begin by turning in my Bible... and I invite you 03:02 to turn to your Bible as well. 03:04 We'll begin with John chapter 10 and verse 30. 03:08 John chapter 10 and verse 30. 03:11 This is a very short verse. I don't think... at least 03:15 I don't have to look it up. 03:17 It's one of the shorter sayings of Christ. 03:20 And basically He says: 03:28 Notice the Father and the Son according to this text are what? 03:33 The Father and the Son are One. 03:36 Though they are two they are really One 03:41 in a very special sense. 03:43 We all know that the Father and the Son are two correctly? 03:46 But actually they're One according to this text. 03:51 Now another point that I want to underline is found 03:54 in John chapter 1 and verses 1 to 3. 03:57 John chapter 1 and verses 1-3. 04:01 Here we find a description of the relationship of Jesus 04:05 with His Father. And there's a particular preposition 04:08 in Greek that I want to emphasize. 04:11 It says there: 04:24 Then it speaks about creation 04:26 after that. 04:27 Now in Greek there are two 04:30 main prepositions that are translated with. 04:33 One is the Greek preposition sun, 04:37 s- u-n, which means just to be with someone. 04:41 But the preposition that is used here for with 04:45 that the Son "was with the Father" 04:47 is the Greek preposition tros which means to be with 04:52 but with movement towards. 04:54 In other words, it's with but having a relationship with. 05:00 And so this preposition... When it says that the Word was 05:05 "with God" it means that, yes, He was present along with Him 05:10 but there was a relationship between them. 05:14 They moved, so to speak, towards one another. 05:18 There was a very close relationship between them. 05:21 In fact, we find in John chapter 5 and verse 20 05:25 an interesting description of the relationship between 05:29 the Father and His Son Jesus. 05:32 John chapter 5 and verse 20. 05:36 And this goes without saying. You're going to say: "Well, 05:39 you know, we already knew that. " 05:40 But it's good to read it anyway. 05:42 It says there in John chapter 5 and verse 20: 05:59 And so notice here that the 06:01 Father loves the Son. 06:04 Furthermore, the relationship between the Father and Son 06:07 is described as "knowing each other. " 06:11 Now it's not talking about intellectual knowledge. 06:14 It's talking about intimate knowledge, one of the other. 06:17 Notice in the gospel of John chapter 10... 06:21 John chapter 10 and verse 15. 06:26 John chapter 10 and verse 15. 06:31 It says here... 06:33 Jesus is speaking about the sheep and the shepherd... 06:38 He says: "As the Father knows Me, 06:41 even so I know the Father 06:45 and I lay down My life for the sheep. " 06:48 And so you have this intimate relationship between the Father 06:52 and the Son, and the word "to know" 06:55 is used to describe this relationship. 06:58 And so you have an intimate relationship between 07:02 the Father and Son. 07:03 They love one another. 07:06 They have movement towards one another. 07:09 They are two and yet the Bible says that they are One. 07:13 Another interesting character- istic about the Father and the 07:16 Son is that they share all things in common. 07:19 Notice John chapter 16 and verse 15. 07:24 John chapter 16 and verse 15. 07:28 Here we find this idea that the Father and the Son 07:32 share all things. 07:35 It says here... Jesus is speaking: 07:39 "All things that the Father has are Mine. 07:45 Therefore I said that He will take of Mine 07:50 and declare it to you. " 07:52 So all things that belong to the Father 07:54 belong to Jesus. 07:58 So reviewing what we've studied about the relationship between 08:01 the Father and His Son: even though they are two 08:05 they are One. 08:06 They have communion or movement one towards another 08:11 indicated by the preposition tros. 08:14 It says that the Father loves His Son. 08:18 Their relationship is described as "knowing one another" 08:24 and they share all things in common. 08:29 Now there's another important characteristic 08:33 concerning the relationship between the Father and His Son 08:36 Jesus, and that is that even though they are One, 08:40 even though they are equal, 08:42 the Son is actually subject to His Father. 08:49 In other words, the Son - even though He is equal 08:53 with His Father - recognizes that His Father 08:57 is the head. Now notice how we find this 09:01 in I Corinthians chapter 11 and verse 3. 09:05 I Corinthians chapter 11 and verse 3. 09:10 Here the apostle Paul says: 09:28 So is there an order even in the relationship 09:34 between the Father and the Son? 09:35 According to scripture yes. 09:38 The Father is the head of Christ. 09:40 Which means that Jesus subjects Himself to His Father's 09:46 will and He accomplishes that which His Father wills. 09:52 Now you might be saying: "Well, this is only since sin 09:56 came into the world. " 09:58 But really, the subjection of the Son to the Father 10:02 is something that already existed in eternal ages past. 10:08 For example, and I'm not going 10:09 to take time to read the statement 10:11 but in Patriarchs and Prophets 10:13 page 36 we find that 10:16 moment when Lucifer became 10:18 jealous of Christ 10:19 and he started going among the angels 10:24 and trying to tarnish the reputation of God. 10:27 And so God eventually had to call all of the angelic host 10:32 before His throne to explain the position of Jesus. 10:37 In fact in that page - page 36 of Patriarchs and Prophets - 10:41 Ellen White tells us that the Son did not explain His own 10:46 position to the heavenly angels. 10:48 He was not going to do that contrary to the Father's will. 10:51 He would allow His Father to explain His true position. 10:55 And she says on that same page that Jesus was still 10:59 to fulfill the will of the Father in the creation 11:04 of this world. 11:05 So in other words, even before sin came into the universe 11:08 the Son was subject to the will of His Father. 11:13 And of course, during salvation history we find 11:16 the same thing. I'm just going to mention 11:19 these verses in passing. 11:21 Even after Jesus resurrected from the dead 11:23 in Matthew chapter 28 verses 18 and 19 11:27 Jesus says: "All authority is given to Me 11:32 in heaven and in earth. " Notice: 11:34 "All authority is GIVEN to Me in heaven and in earth. " 11:39 In other words, the authority that Jesus receives 11:42 is a delegated authority. 11:45 Furthermore, in John chapter 5 verses 22 and 27 11:49 we find Jesus saying that: 12:00 In other words, the Father has given the task of judgment 12:04 to His Son. The Father has given all authority to Jesus. 12:10 In Philippians chapter 2 and verses 9 through 11 12:15 when Jesus ascends to heaven after His victory over sin 12:19 we find that it tells us that Jesus ascended to heaven 12:25 and He was given... Notice: He was given 12:29 a name that is above every name. 12:31 He didn't take a name... He was GIVEN a name 12:34 which is above every name. 12:36 And you can notice by the context that it's speaking about 12:38 the Father that gave Him this name. 12:41 And then it says at the end of verse 11 12:44 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow 12:48 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord 12:53 to the glory of God the Father. 12:57 In other words, Jesus lives to be the glory of His Father. 13:01 "He who has seen Me... " Jesus said... 13:04 "has seen the Father. " 13:07 In fact, in I Corinthians chapter 15 and verse 28 13:11 we find a very interesting concept, and that is that 13:14 when everything is finished in this world, 13:16 when Jesus has subjected every- thing in the hands of His Father 13:20 I want you to notice that verse. 13:22 I Corinthians chapter 15 and verse 28 13:25 Jesus will subject Himself to His own Father. 13:29 Notice I Corinthians chapter 15 and verse 28. 13:35 It says here: 13:54 In fact, do you know that we are told in scripture 13:58 Hebrews chapter 1 and verse 3 14:01 that Jesus is the re- flection of His Father's glory? 14:06 In other words, the glory of the Father is seen 14:09 in Jesus. And so we find this interesting relationship 14:14 between Father and Son. 14:15 There are two individuals... they are One. 14:18 One is subject to the head and fulfills His purposes. 14:24 And of course Jesus according to scripture 14:27 never acted independently from His Father. 14:31 He always acted in harmony or in conjunction 14:36 with His Father to implement His Father's will. 14:40 Now there came a time when even though the Father and the Son 14:44 had this very intimate relationship... And by the way, 14:47 I am not describing a sexual relationship. 14:50 You know whenever we talk about, for example, 14:52 a man knowing a woman immediately we think about sex. 14:55 We're not talking about a sexual relationship. 14:57 We're talking here about an intimate, personal relationship 15:01 between the Father and the Son described as knowing 15:04 or described as being One. 15:07 There came a time in which the Father and the Son 15:10 decided that they wanted to have a family. 15:16 And so they decided to create Adam and Eve 15:20 in this world. Of course, they had created 15:22 beings in other worlds, but we want to describe particularly 15:25 the children that they brought into this world 15:28 because that's what we have clearly revealed in scripture. 15:32 And so the Father through Jesus 15:35 brought children into this world. 15:39 I want you to notice Colossians chapter 1 and verses 16 and 17. 15:44 Colossians chapter 1 verses 16 and 17 15:48 describes this process of bring- ing children into the world. 15:53 It's speaking here about Jesus 15:56 and it says this: 16:23 So in other words, the Father brings children into the world 16:28 through the instrumentality of His Son. 16:32 And by the way, we know that they sat down and they carefully 16:38 planned before they had their children. 16:41 Now I must underline that we have children 16:44 by procreation whereas the Father and the Son 16:48 had children by creation. 16:51 It's different. 16:52 In other words, there was no sexual relationship we know 16:55 between the Father and the Son to bring in children. 16:58 The Father through Jesus 17:00 brought children into this world. 17:02 So they brought children in by the process of creation. 17:06 By the way, it's interesting to notice 17:08 in Acts chapter 17 verses 28 and 29 17:11 how this process is described. 17:14 Acts chapter 17 and verses 28 and 29. 17:20 Here the apostle Paul is speaking to the philosophers 17:23 there on Mars Hill in Athens. 17:25 And I want you to notice what he says to these philosophers. 17:31 It says there in verse 28: 17:55 What are we? God's what? 17:58 God's offspring by creation according to this. 18:02 Is this a terminology we use when we talk about bringing 18:06 children into the world... offspring? 18:08 Absolutely. 18:09 Now notice Genesis chapter 1 and verse 26. 18:13 Genesis chapter 1 and verse 26. 18:16 You've heard the expression "like father, like son, " right? 18:19 Now notice these children... they were very similar 18:23 to their parents. At least they were in the image and likeness 18:27 of their parents. Notice chapter 1 and verse 26 18:31 of the book of Genesis. It says: 18:38 What does that word Us indicate? 18:40 It indicates a plurality of persons. 18:43 And we've already noticed that the Father and the Son are two 18:46 although they are what? Although they are One. 18:49 And so it says: 19:09 Were the children in the image and likeness of the heavenly 19:12 parents according to this text? 19:14 Absolutely! 19:16 And by the way, I John 3:1 19:18 which we won't read 19:20 says: "Behold what manner of 19:22 love the Father has bestowed 19:24 upon us that we should be 19:26 called... " What? "that we should be called 19:29 the children of God. " 19:31 And so the Father and Son who were in this very close 19:35 relationship at one point sat down, 19:38 they planned, and they decided to have children 19:41 or offspring in their image and likeness by creation. 19:48 Now it's very interesting that this relationship between 19:52 God the Father and His Son 19:53 and the idea of sitting down and planning to have children 19:57 is reflected in the experience of their creatures. 20:00 Notice Matthew chapter 19 and verses 4 through 6. 20:05 Matthew chapter 19 and verses 4 through 6. 20:10 Here Jesus is speaking about the first marriage 20:14 of human history. And I want you to notice how similar 20:17 the terminology is to what we've just studied. 20:19 It says there in Matthew chapter 19 beginning in verse 4: 20:57 Now let me ask you: were Adam and Eve two? 21:01 Two persons? They most certainly were. 21:03 But here it says that they are no longer two. 21:06 They are what? They are one 21:09 when God brought them into the world. 21:11 Does this oneness between Adam and Eve 21:14 reflect the oneness that existed between God the Father 21:17 and His Son Jesus Christ? 21:20 Absolutely! And if I had time I would show you the same 21:23 terminology... we would read the Bible verses. 21:26 But I'll just mention it in passing. 21:28 Let me ask you: is the relationship of oneness between 21:32 Adam and Eve described also as knowing? 21:36 "Adam knew his wife" it says in Genesis chapter 4 21:41 and verse 26. That is much more involved 21:44 than just having a physical, sexual relationship 21:48 by the way. Were Adam and Eve to share all things? 21:53 Absolutely. 21:54 In fact, was Eve to act dependently upon Adam? 22:00 Absolutely. 22:01 Does the Bible say that the woman was to be the glory 22:05 of the man? We might not like that, 22:07 but it says in I Corinthians 11:7 22:10 that the wife is "the glory of her husband. " 22:14 She's to bring honor and glory to her husband. 22:17 Very, very similar idea... very similar terminology. 22:22 And by the way, even in this politically-correct world 22:26 that we live in, which we don't like to hear these things 22:30 because they're contrary to what society dictates, 22:33 God established the order of heaven that even though 22:37 Adam and Eve were one, 22:41 Eve was to be subject to her husband 22:45 as part of God's original pre-fall plan. 22:52 Let's notice what the apostle Paul says again 22:55 in I Corinthians chapter 11 and verse 3. 22:58 I Corinthians 11:3. 23:03 See, in the world we live in people don't like this order 23:06 that God has established. And of course men 23:08 have made it very difficult for women because they have 23:11 used this to simply stomp upon women. 23:14 That's why women have reacted, you know, and 23:18 rebelled against the legitimate authority of the husband 23:22 God has established. 23:23 Now notice I Corinthians 11:3. 23:38 You say: "I don't like that. " 23:40 Do you like the last part of the verse? 23:46 Say: "I like that last part but not the part immediately 23:50 before. " Now you can't have half of the verse. 23:54 It's either all or nothing. 23:56 Does the subjection of Jesus to His Father 24:00 make Jesus inferior? 24:02 No! They are equal... 24:06 I might use a philosophical word... 24:08 ontologically. 24:10 In terms of their being. 24:13 But the Son is subject to His Father functionally. 24:17 In terms of function. 24:19 In the same way, husband wife are equal 24:23 in terms of being or existence... ontologically. 24:27 But they are different, and woman or wife is to be 24:32 subject to the husband in terms of function 24:35 according to scripture. 24:37 And God established that order from the very beginning. 24:41 In fact, the apostle Paul says something that 24:44 has led people to say that the apostle Paul was 24:48 a male chauvinist. 24:50 Notice what we find in Ephesians chapter 5. 24:53 Ephesians 5:22-23. 24:56 But wouldn't you admit that if we followed God's order 24:59 both from the male side as well as from the female side 25:03 that things would work a lot better? 25:05 Absolutely. It's when we change God's order 25:09 that we start having all sorts of trouble. 25:11 Notice Ephesians chapter 5 and verses 22 and 23. 25:17 It says there in verse 22: 25:38 Notice he says: 25:39 "Submit to your own husband 25:42 as to the Lord for the husband 25:44 is the head of the... " What? 25:46 "The husband is the head of the wife. " 25:49 Now do you know that if men did what God told them to do 25:54 women would have no trouble subjecting themselves. 25:58 The problem is that men have overstepped their bounds. 26:02 Notice what God says to men which would lead wives 26:07 to respect them and to be subject to them. 26:10 Ephesians chapter 5 and verse 25. 26:14 Here the apostle Paul says: 26:26 Let me ask you: if you had a husband who loved you 26:29 and gave himself for you, 26:32 would it be a lot easier 26:34 to subject yourself 26:36 to the husband as the head? 26:37 Yes. And so the apostle Paul says to the wife: 26:40 "Be subject to your husband. " 26:42 But then he says to the man: "You love your wife. " 26:46 And just like the Father loves His Son 26:49 and the Son subjects Himself to His Father 26:53 in the same way we should have the relationship between 26:56 a husband and a wife according to scripture. 27:01 Now God when He made Adam and Eve 27:04 He placed them in a perfect environment. 27:10 He placed His children in a perfect environment. 27:13 Let me ask you: was every need of Adam and Eve supplied 27:18 in that perfect environment? 27:20 Were all of their physical needs supplied? 27:23 Absolutely. 27:25 They had everything that one could desire. 27:28 Were their mental needs supplied? 27:32 Sure! I mean they had unlimited potential to research 27:37 the mysteries of nature and grow intellectually. 27:41 Were their spiritual needs met? 27:44 Sure! God met with them every day. 27:47 In fact, He set aside a whole day as family day... 27:50 which, of course, was the Sabbath. 27:53 And so God decided that He was going to spend time 27:57 with His children. 27:59 Let me ask you: is this a pattern of what a household 28:03 should be? Should our children feel safe and secure? 28:08 Should their needs - physical, mental, spiritual, 28:13 and emotional - be supplied in our household? 28:17 Yes, because the relationship between the Father and the Son 28:21 and their earthly children should be reflected 28:24 in the relationship between husband and wife 28:27 and their children. And so God according to Genesis chapter 2 28:32 and verse 8 the Lord planted a garden 28:35 eastward in Eden, and there He put man whom He had formed. 28:39 And of course we know that Eve was there also. 28:41 And so you have this beautiful home... this beautiful garden. 28:45 And now let me ask you: does every household have rules 28:52 that the parents must expect their children to obey? 28:56 Absolutely. 28:58 Now as we examine the rules of the heavenly parents 29:03 for their earthly children, Adam and Eve, 29:07 we discover some very interesting characteristics 29:09 about those rules. First of all, the rules were simple. 29:17 Were the rules that God established for Adam and Eve 29:19 complicated? Almost impossible to follow and understand? No. 29:25 The rules were few. 29:30 And in the third place, the rules were easy to obey. 29:34 Now what were those rules? 29:36 Allow me to share some of them with you. 29:38 First of all, keep your room in order. 29:44 Say: "What do you mean? " 29:45 Didn't God put Adam in the Garden of Eden to tend and 29:47 keep it? To keep it up? 29:50 So basically God is saying to His children: 29:51 "Keep your room in order. " 29:54 Also in Genesis 1 verse 29 29:57 He said: "Eat your veggies. " 30:00 I'm being a little bit facetious here. 30:03 But He says: "You know, your food, the food that's been 30:07 appointed for you, is vegetables and fruits. " 30:11 And then the biggest rule is... He says that "There's this tree, 30:18 and I don't want you to play with fire. " 30:24 I want you to remember that one; 30:25 we're going to come back to that. 30:28 By the way, do you notice that God told them first 30:31 what they could do before telling them 30:32 what they couldn't do? 30:34 He says: "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat 30:40 BUT of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil 30:45 you shall not eat. For in the day that you eat of it 30:48 you will surely... " What? "you will surely die. " 30:51 Now let's take a look at this command 30:53 because it's a pattern for how we relate to our children. 30:59 Did God tell them what they could do 31:01 and what they couldn't do? 31:03 Was it clear? 31:06 Was it simple? 31:07 Was it easy to obey? 31:10 Absolutely. 31:12 Did the heavenly parents teach Adam and Eve 31:16 what was right and what was wrong? 31:18 The distinction between right and wrong? 31:20 Of course. 31:22 Is that our role as parents? 31:24 To teach our children the distinction between 31:27 right and wrong? Absolutely. 31:30 Did the heavenly parents encourage Adam and Eve, 31:33 their children, to choose the right and to reject the wrong? 31:37 They most certainly did. 31:39 Is that our role as parents? To teach our children 31:42 the difference between right and wrong 31:44 and also encourage them 31:46 to choose the right over the wrong? 31:49 Absolutely. 31:51 Now let me ask you: did God explain to Adam and Eve 31:55 the consequences of disobedience? 31:58 He most certainly did. 32:00 Must we explain to our children 32:03 what the consequence will be of violating the rules and 32:06 regulations of the household? 32:08 Yes we must. 32:10 And we must do it what? Very clearly. 32:14 Did the heavenly parents allow Adam and Eve to make 32:18 the wrong choice? This is a terrifying option! 32:24 Or did God the Father and the Son hover around 32:28 Adam and Eve, you know: "No! You can't do that. 32:30 You can't do that. " Always supervising them? 32:33 No. The Father and the Son explained to Adam and Eve 32:37 their children: "Look, this is the rule of the house... 32:41 don't eat of the tree. 32:43 Eating of the tree is wrong; 32:45 abstaining from eating from the tree is right. 32:48 That's a clear distinction. 32:50 PLEASE choose to follow the rule of the household. " 32:54 "Now if you don't, the conse- quence is going to be death 32:58 and we don't want you to die. 33:01 That's going to be the consequence: death. " 33:05 But God said: "I'm going to give you the freedom of choice 33:08 even to choose wrongly. " 33:11 But I want you to notice that God also says 33:13 "You're going to have to live with... " What? 33:16 "You're going to have to live with the consequences. " 33:19 Is that the way we should approach our relationship 33:22 with our children? The very way that we should 33:25 approach our relationship with our children is revealed 33:28 in the way in which God the Father and His Son Jesus 33:30 related to their children Adam and Eve. 33:35 But of course in distinction with God the Father and His Son 33:39 Jesus remained subject to His Father. 33:41 He always did His Father's bidding... His Father's will. 33:45 The Bible tells us that Eve strayed from her husband's side. 33:49 She became independent 33:52 and she acted independently. 33:55 And as a result, of course, you have sin. 34:00 Now I find it very interesting 34:03 what the devil did when he came to the tree 34:07 to tempt Eve. 34:09 The devil knows that Adam and Eve are God's children. 34:13 And so what he's going to try and do is get God's children 34:17 to disobey their heavenly parents. 34:21 And I want you to notice 34:23 the argument. 34:24 Genesis 3:4-6. 34:28 Genesis chapter 3 and verses 4 through 6. 34:34 It says here... Actually, let's read 4 and 5. 34:36 We'll read 6 a little bit later. 34:39 It says: 35:07 Now let's take a look at what's happening at this tree. 35:10 What is the devil telling these children of God? 35:14 He's saying: "Look, your parents think they know everything. 35:21 You're old enough... you're smart enough 35:26 to take care of yourself. 35:28 The household rules that your parents have established 35:33 are too strict. You need to declare your independence. 35:39 You need to learn to think for yourself 35:42 not simply do what your parents say. " 35:46 Are you seeing what's happening here? 35:49 The devil is trying to get them to act independently 35:52 and to disobey their parents 35:54 if you look at this from the perspective of a family 35:58 relationship. And let me tell you something: 36:00 whenever the children act independently from their parents 36:04 the result is a disaster. 36:07 I know it from personal experience. 36:12 I'm not much into telling personal stories as you've... 36:15 as you've noticed in this seminar... 36:17 'cause I like to expound upon scripture, let scripture speak. 36:22 But you know when I was growing up I spent from 36:26 my 8th year to my 14th year 36:28 in the city of Caracas, Venezuela. 36:31 I studied all of my primary education there. 36:35 And I was quite a pill there in primary school. 36:40 If you met some of my teachers they would tell you that. 36:43 I've become regenerated since then. 36:48 Somewhat. 36:50 But anyway, I remember my parents would tell me 36:53 "Steve, don't throw stones. " 36:58 And I'd think, you know... "You might hurt someone. " 37:01 I'd think: "Yeah, they think I can't handle a stone. " 37:06 And I remember that I used to like to light sparklers. 37:10 Down there they do it at Christmas time... not July. 37:14 And I used to like to light them, and when they were burning 37:17 real nice just throw them as far as I could 37:19 without even looking where I was throwing them. 37:21 "They said: "Don't light sparklers. Don't throw them. " 37:24 "Ah, parents... they think they know everything. " 37:27 They would also tell me: "Steve, don't play with matches. 37:33 You might burn something down. " 37:36 "Ah, parents... they think they know everything. " 37:39 I had some very interesting experiences. 37:42 One day at school I had this great big rock 37:48 and I hurled it against the ground. 37:52 And I didn't notice that there was a student that was crossing 37:55 in my path, and it hit him in the ankle and broke his ankle. 38:00 My punishment was that I had to every day 38:04 I had to go with my dad to this young man's... young boy's 38:10 house and help him get into the car, take him to school. 38:15 After school I had to help him get into the car 38:18 and we had to take him home. So a lot of my afternoon was 38:21 cut into having to do this. 38:23 If I'd just listened to my parents and not thrown stones 38:26 that wouldn't have happened. On another occasion 38:30 I had this sparkler burning real well 38:33 and I took the sparkler and I hurled it into the air 38:36 and I didn't notice that there was a balcony and there were 38:38 all kinds of clothes hanging on the balcony. 38:42 And one of these sparklers fell into the clothes 38:46 that were hanging there. They were dry already. 38:48 And suddenly there was this raging fire. 38:51 The clothes were burning on the porch. 38:53 I was afraid the whole apartment complex 38:56 was going to be burned down. 38:57 The fire department came very quickly. 39:00 Then at this place I lived in Caracas... the name of the 39:03 section of town was El Paraiso. 39:06 You know, we had this great big field in back of the 39:09 apartment complex and it had these big tall weeds 39:12 and it was dry season. 39:14 And me and my friends would go back there and we would play 39:16 like we were camping, you know? 39:18 And of course we had matches. 39:20 And so we would take these matches, and we would light 39:22 the matches. We could put it out any time, you know. 39:25 Little fire. And so, you know, we lit this match 39:28 and a little bit of the dry grass began burning. 39:33 And we were observing it. And then when we tried to 39:35 put it out we couldn't. 39:37 And soon that whole field was raging with fire. 39:41 And you know, we went into our houses and we hid 39:45 because we are afraid what the fire department would do. 39:48 And suddenly about three or four fire trucks came 39:50 and they started... You know, there were some propane tanks 39:54 in the back of the building. We were afraid that the 39:56 propane tanks were going to explode. 40:00 Parents know best. 40:03 Do you know why? Because they have experience. 40:07 What if Samson had listened to his parents? 40:11 You know, Samson says: "Oh, this beautiful woman 40:15 in the land of the Philistines. I want her. " 40:19 And his parents say: "Now Samson, 40:23 have you ever read what God says about marriage? 40:27 That we're supposed to marry within the household of faith. 40:33 Within Israel. " 40:35 And do you know what Samson says? 40:38 Says: "Get her for me because she has pleased my eyes. " 40:43 And do you know what? That decision cost him his eyes 40:47 because they were poked out. 40:50 His life was a disaster 40:53 because he did not listen to his parents! 40:55 And so God created Adam and Eve... His children. 40:59 He said: "Obey Me and be happy. " 41:01 But the devil comes and says: "Ah, come on, you need to 41:03 act independently. Think for yourself... 41:06 don't just do what your parents tell you. " 41:09 And as a result, they sinned 41:12 and we have this world full of misery today as a result. 41:17 That's the reason why we find in Exodus chapter 20 41:21 and verse 12 some very wise counsel 41:24 from our heavenly Father. 41:27 Exodus chapter 20 and verse 12. 41:30 I'm sure we're all acquainted with this commandment. 41:35 It says there... this is the fifth commandment: 41:57 What is the result of honoring your father and your mother? 42:01 Long days. 42:03 If Adam and Eve had honored their heavenly Father, 42:06 would they still be living upon the earth? 42:09 They most certainly would. 42:11 Now we live in a world of sin, but if we follow the counsel 42:14 of our earthly parents would our lives be a lot happier? 42:18 And longer? And better? Absolutely. 42:21 By the way, do you know what it means to honor 42:24 our father and our mother? 42:27 Notice the book of Ephesians chapter 6 and verses 1-3. 42:32 Ephesians chapter 6 and verses 1 through 3. 42:35 Here the apostle Paul is going to quote the fifth commandment 42:40 and he's going to tell us what honoring our parents means. 42:44 Just like Adam and Eve should have honored their 42:46 heavenly parents, they shouldn't have listened to the devil, 42:49 on an earthly plane, children should listen to their parents. 42:53 On an earthly level. 42:55 Because the relationship between 42:57 the Father and the Son 42:58 and Adam and Eve should be 43:00 reflected in the relationship 43:01 between parents and their children. 43:03 And the devil will try to lead our earthly children 43:06 to disobey us just like the devil tried to lead... 43:10 and actually led... Adam and Eve to disobey God. 43:12 Are you understanding the parallel? 43:14 Now notice Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 1: 43:27 Now do you notice that it doesn't say that 43:29 children are supposed to blindly obey their parents? 43:33 It says: "Children, obey your parents in the Lord. " 43:39 Which means that if your parents require you to do things that 43:43 are contrary to what the Lord wills 43:49 we have a right to disobey our parents. 43:51 Are you understanding what this text is saying? 43:53 It says: "Obey your parents in the Lord. " 43:56 The same is true with a husband and a wife. 43:59 The apostle Paul says: "Wives, be subject to your husbands 44:03 in the Lord. " If your husband demands 44:06 something that is against the will of the Lord, 44:09 the wife has a right to insubordinate herself 44:12 if you please in that particular aspect. 44:16 Because there's a legitimate realm of authority 44:19 and an illegitimate realm of authority. 44:21 So the apostle Paul says: 44:40 And then the apostle Paul goes on to give some counsel 44:43 to the parents. He not only says to the children 44:45 "obey your parents" but he says to the parents - 44:48 and this is very wise counsel - he says: 45:05 Is it possible sometimes for parents to incite 45:09 their children to rebellion? 45:11 It is. And to "provoke them to wrath" 45:14 the way the apostle Paul says? 45:16 Now that didn't happen with Adam and Eve 45:18 because God did not provoke Adam and Eve to wrath. 45:22 God the Father and His Son were good parents. 45:26 They didn't provoke their earthly children to rebellion. 45:30 But, you know, we live on an earthly plane 45:33 in a sinful world. 45:35 And it might be tempting for us parents to lose our temper 45:38 and to make matters worse 45:41 as we relate to our children. 45:44 Now did Adam and Eve disobey their parents? 45:49 Yes, they most certainly did. 45:52 In Genesis 3 verse 6 we're told that 45:55 Eve listened to the voice of the serpent. 45:58 She ate of the fruit. 46:00 She gave the fruit to Adam and Adam also ate. 46:05 Now what do children usually do when they disobey their parents? 46:13 They go to their parents and say: "We disobeyed! " 46:15 No, what do they do? They try to cover up or to hide it. 46:19 Is that what the earthly children did? 46:22 Is that what Adam and Eve did? 46:23 Yes they did. 46:25 They actually hid in the midst of the garden. 46:29 Did God seek them out and say: 46:32 "You disobeyed Me, didn't you? You disobeyed Me! " 46:36 Is that the way it worked? 46:37 No? 46:39 The heavenly parents called the children and said: 46:42 "Children, now tell Me what was it that happened here? " 46:45 "Did you disobey the household rules? " 46:50 See, they ask before they dictate what the punishment 46:56 is going to be. Does that teach us something 46:59 about our relationship with our children? 47:02 You know, sometimes... I know from my own personal experience 47:06 our children do something that they're not supposed to do 47:08 and even before we even find out whether they did it 47:12 what are we doing? 47:14 We're accusing them. 47:16 "You did it! You dummy! 47:19 I told you not to do that. " 47:21 You know, instead of first of all gathering all of the facts. 47:24 And after having all of the facts 47:27 THEN the sentence is pronounced. 47:32 Now listen up. Did God bail Adam and Eve out? 47:42 Or did they suffer the conse- quences of their disobedience? 47:49 Did God allow Adam and Eve to suffer the bitter consequences 47:53 of their choice? He most certainly did. 47:56 Do you know that Ellen White says that Adam said to God 48:03 "I promise, I promise, I promise 48:06 that I'll obey You from this day forward. " 48:11 "Not even once more will we disobey You. " 48:14 "Please don't cast us out of the garden. " 48:17 "Please don't make us suffer death. " 48:22 "Please, please, please. " 48:26 Yet did they suffer the consequences of their choice? 48:30 Yes. God did not what? 48:33 He did not bail them out. 48:34 Now we're going to talk in a moment, in the long run 48:36 He bailed them out... 48:38 but not the immediate punishment for their sin. 48:45 What God said was going to happen took place. 48:48 Isn't it true that many times we bail out our children 48:51 from difficult situations when they disobey? 48:54 Are we doing them a favor when we do that? 48:57 When we're always bailing them out? 49:00 And always repairing and fixing things without them having to 49:04 suffer the consequences. Listen folks, 49:07 it was very difficult for God to see Adam and Eve 49:10 suffer the consequences of their choice. 49:13 And it's very, very painful for us sometimes to see 49:16 what happens with our children 49:17 when they suffer the consequences of their choices. 49:22 But we have to let it run its course. 49:25 The law of sowing and reaping. 49:28 "Whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also... " What? 49:31 "reap. " 49:33 By the way, is suffering the consequences good or bad? 49:42 Does God allow us to suffer the consequences of our choices 49:45 for our good or for our evil? For our good. 49:52 Or else He would have nipped it in the bud. 49:54 You say: "How's that? " 49:56 Go with me to Hebrews chapter 12 and verses 5 and 6. 49:59 Hebrews chapter 12 and verses 5 and 6. 50:02 By the way, did our heavenly parents suffer immensely 50:05 when Adam and Eve sinned? 50:07 Even though they allowed the 50:09 consequences to come? 50:10 Yes they did. Do we suffer 50:12 immensely when our kids make 50:13 wrong choices and they blow it 50:15 and they make a disaster of their lives? 50:17 Does it pain us? 50:18 It most certainly does. 50:19 But they suffer the consequences of their choices 50:22 so that they can what? So that they can learn. 50:28 You see, the punishment is a learning experience. 50:32 Notice Hebrews chapter 12... 50:37 Hebrews chapter 12 and verses 5 and 6. 50:41 It says here 50:44 in Hebrews chapter 12 and verses 5 and 6: 50:48 "And you have 50:54 forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you 50:58 as to sons. " Now notice, God speaks to us as sons. 51:32 No matter how hard it is... 51:34 You know, sometimes my parents suffered even more than I did 51:37 when they had to punish me. 51:40 And you know what? When my parents said they were going to 51:42 punish me I got punished. 51:45 And they knew what was the best punishment. 51:48 See, discipline has to be consistent. 51:51 You lay down the rule. You say: "If you break the rule, 51:53 this will be the consequence. 51:54 I forgive you, yes. But the consequence... 51:57 you'll still suffer the consequence. " 51:59 Is it possible to love and still have the children 52:02 suffer the consequence for their choice? 52:04 Do they learn through it? They most certainly do! 52:06 And the way that my parents really could make me suffer 52:10 was not by spanking me. They soon discovered that 52:13 that one doesn't work that well. 52:16 You know what really worked was them leaving me 52:20 without a meal or without dessert. 52:25 Oh... that was terrible! 52:28 That really made me feel like never doing it again. 52:33 And they always made us suffer the consequences 52:36 no matter what. Painful for them. 52:38 I knew that they were hurting. 52:40 They were hurting more than I was. 52:42 But they knew that it was necessary so that we could 52:45 learn from our experience. 52:48 Notice also Proverbs 23 verses 13 and 14 52:52 on this same point. Proverbs 23:13-14. 52:58 Here we find some very wise counsel. 53:02 The wise man Solomon... By the way, he's not speaking 53:06 from an ivory tower. He knows what he's talking about. 53:35 That is an extremely politically-incorrect statement 53:39 in this world today. 53:40 'Cause the idea is: let the children grow like weeds. 53:45 No discipline... no punishment. 53:48 There's even children who are suing their parents 53:52 for their parents punishing them. 53:55 Perhaps that's the reason why the apostle Paul 53:58 has told us in II Timothy 3 verses 1 and 2 54:02 in that long catalog of sins that are going to exist 54:05 at the end of time... one of the list - and by the way, 54:09 I'm going to read. It says: 54:25 Is that true today? 54:27 It is SO TRUE today. 54:31 And young people, children: believe me that when your 54:34 parents ask you to obey them it's for your good 54:38 and it's worth listening to them 54:40 because they've lived a lot longer than you have 54:43 and they know. Have you ever heard the expression 54:46 "Father knows best? " 54:47 That is true! 54:50 Father does know best; mother does know best. 54:54 Now did you notice that in Proverbs - the passage that we 54:58 read - says that by punishment 55:01 the child will be saved from death; he will be saved 55:06 from hell or Sheol? 55:12 Let me ask you this as we bring this to a conclusion: 55:15 even though our heavenly parents 55:20 allowed the punishment to fall upon Adam and Eve 55:24 was the purpose of that punish- ment ultimately redemptive? 55:30 It sure was. 55:32 Did God forgive His earthly children? 55:35 He most certainly did. 55:36 Did He give a promise that He was going to restore them 55:39 ultimately? Yes! 55:41 The purpose of the discipline was their restoration. 55:45 And that's shown by Genesis 3 verse 21 55:48 where we're told that God also for Adam and his wife 55:53 made tunics of skin and clothed them. 55:59 In other words, God is saying: "Even though you're suffering - 56:01 dust you are and to dust you shall return - 56:03 even though I'm casting you out of the garden, 56:05 you're suffering the immediate consequences of your sin 56:08 I want you to know that in the long run 56:12 the purpose of all of this is to restore you 56:15 and to save you from death... to save you from Sheol... 56:19 so that you might be saved in God's kingdom. " 56:23 And so the relationship between God the Father 56:27 and His Son and His children Adam and Eve 56:32 is actually a model or an illustration 56:36 of the relationship which should exist 56:39 between husbands and wives. 56:41 And the relationship between husbands and wives 56:45 and their children is illustrated by this 56:48 relationship between God the Father and His Son. 56:50 It teaches us how to teach the rules. 56:54 What to say to our children. 56:56 The necessity of implementing the discipline for the action 57:01 chosen and yet the love with which we want to restore 57:06 ultimately and see our children saved 57:10 in God's kingdom. 57:12 And so Genesis addresses very clearly 57:15 the issues of husband and wife 57:19 and the relationship they are to sustain with their children. 57:24 May God bless us and teach us these lessons. |
Revised 2014-12-17