“And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.” (Ephesians 6:4)
Scripture places the spiritual instruction of children squarely on the shoulders of their parents. In our generation, a way of thinking has crept up that believes that children are to be discipled by the church. While their involvement in the body of Christ is critical, in no way does this circumvent the responsibility of dad and mom to disciple their children in the faith. The church is to partner with the home and provide parents with tools in order to disciple their children. The most important part of your Christian home should be your “family altar” or family worship time. All televisions are turned off, cell phones and gaming systems are shut down, and God’s Word is opened up and the family prays together. This is very hard for us to do in this fast paced lifestyle that we have created. There are a thousand things demanding the attention of parents, and unfortunately, the spiritual instruction of their children has often been placed on the back burner or taken off the stove altogether. If we are to effectively make disciples in the church, then we must understand the blueprint that God has left for us involving the family unit.
Are you making disciples out of your children? The video below is by Robby Gallaty, pastor of Brainerd Baptist Church in Chattanooga, TN. Robby is a leader in discipleship and has a bunch of great resources to help the body of Christ. Check out this video on the role of parents in discipling their children:
Here is a link to a great website where you will find all kinds of tools to help in the disciple-making process: