The Christ-Centered Home
Bible Reading: Colossians 3:16-4:1
Colossians 3:18-21, “Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.”
If you are dismayed and disheartened by what you hear about in the news, you are not alone! You’ve no doubt read about heard about the confusion in our culture with respect to families and gender. It is no longer just the existence of traditional genders that is questioned, but there is now confusion about whether a person can change his or her gender at will. Unfortunately, this confusion is not just being discussed among adults, but is invading the lives of children as well. As followers of Jesus, this breaks our heart because we know the truth that God has created male and female with distinctions that are complimentary, and thereby reflect upon His glory, when lived out in God honoring ways.
You realize, of course, that we didn’t get to this point all at once. It was a series of missteps in a decades-long Romans 1:18-32 downward spiral that has brought us here. I remember how things were in my childhood, when the traditional family was not the exception, but the norm. But then came the legalization of no-fault divorce, and then the removal of prayer from our schools, and then the Roe vs. Wade decision legalizing abortion, and then the sexual revolution, etc. The spiritual forces of this darkness have worked hard in its war against families to bring us to this point. Left in the wake of the devil’s assault are countless broken marriages and broken homes and broken lives. And so many lost and lonely and hurting children. What are we to do?
Our passage reminds us that God has a better way. A traditional family is more than a mere tradition, it is rooted in God’s design. By God’s design, a husband and wife are joined in a lifelong commitment called marriage. By God’s design, the man and the women bring children into the world, who are to be counted to be a blessing from God. According to God’s design, each member of the family has a particular role to fulfill—every role instructed and fulfilled in love—as Christ and His Word fill each heart (Colossians 3:16). The husband is to not be harsh with his wife, as men are sometimes prone to be, but to love her according to the example of Christ himself (Ephesians 5:25). He’s to set the standard in the family by his selfless and loving sacrifice, as a servant putting his wife and children’s needs ahead of his own. The wife is called to submit to her husband, but not in how is sometimes thought. Her calling is not that of a house servant, to be ordered around or treated harshly or as a lesser. Indeed, as has been said, the man who doesn’t seek his wife’s counsel in family decisions is a fool. But rather, her submission is likewise according to the example of Jesus, who though a co-equal member of the Trinity, nevertheless subjected Himself in all things to the Father. The children are given but one command, but it is of utmost importance, for the learning of it will work to bear lifelong blessings (Ephesians 6:2-3). In contrast to what we see far too often in our day, children are to be instructed to obey their parents (Colossians 3:20; 2 Timothy 3:2). Jesus likewise serves as the best example for the children, for though he was God come to earth, he nevertheless subjected Himself to his earthly parents in all things (Luke 2:51). With Jesus at the center, a healthy marriage bears witness to His saving and life-transforming power!
Rooted in our passage is the reality that Jesus alone has the power to fix what is broken in a life or in a marriage or in a family. He created all things. Marriage was His idea. He who died on the cross and rose from the dead has the power to restore broken families and broken lives. He who holds together the universe has the power to knit a marriage and family together in love. Jesus is the answer for all that ails us. And, the fact is, there is no other way! Hold fast to this biblical design! And hold your children and grandchildren tightly and love them dearly. Things in our world are changing fast!
CHRISTIAN HOMES
God, give us Christian homes!
Homes where the Bible is loved and taught,
Homes where the Master’s will is sought,
Homes crowned with beauty Your love has wrought;
God, give us Christian homes;
God, give us Christian homes!
God, give us Christian homes!
Homes where the father is true and strong,
Homes that are free from the blight of wrong,
Homes that are joyous with love and song;
God, give us Christian homes;
God, give us Christian homes!
God, give us Christian homes!
Homes where the mother, in caring quest,
Strives to show others Your way is best,
Homes where the Lord is an honored guest;
God, give us Christian homes;
God, give us Christian homes!
God, give us Christian homes!
Homes where the children are led to know
Christ in His beauty who loves them so,
Homes where the altar fires burn and glow;
God, give us Christian homes;
God, give us Christian homes!
LookingtoJesus 