I'd like you to take your Bible and turn with me to a passage my parents taught me when I was a little boy. And it's a foundational passage every family ought to have their children memorize, Ephesians chapter 6. If you'll turn there with me in your Bible, you'll remember last week we began in a little series on God's plan for the family. I'm so glad that God is a God of order. God is the great orderer, He's the wonderful authority who in love establishes the family unit as the foundation unit for society. God knew what He was doing when He put Adam and Eve there in the garden together. And He created that very first family. You remember last week, we looked at an Old Testament passage in Deuteronomy chapter 6. And we saw God's plan for the family as outlined there, laid out to the children of Israel, and yet those principles hold for us today. And we saw that godly training begins with the parents. That is, it begins not with the children, but it starts in our hearts. We who are the adults are to have in our heart a love for God, a relationship with God. It all starts there. And then we also saw that then godly training of the next generation is the parents' responsibility. Yes, we can get others to help us and assist us, but ultimately, God says it's the mom and dad who are to be teaching when you get up in the morning, when you go to bed at night, as you go along the pathway, when you sit down to eat. The parents have that primary responsibility to train up the next generation. And we saw then that it must start in the home. Godly training must start in our homes. We've got to take this seriously. Nobody should be more concerned for our children, our grandchildren, than the parents. Those who are given that immediate responsibility. We said also it's everyone's responsibility. That is, how the next generation turns out has everything to do with the future of God's blessing on churches, communities, and nations. We all should be concerned about the next generation. It's something that should be near and dear to our hearts. Now, someone might ask, well, why is there such confusion and chaos going on today? with the family unit, such a high rate of divorce, such confusion with children who have no direction, no moral values. Why is there such confusion? I think as we... Just give a simple look at it. We recognize that, by and large, we've abdicated our God-given responsibilities. It's not that God doesn't have a plan. It's just that God's people aren't following God's plan. And a nation that once highly respected God's Word in many, many circles now disregards the plan of God, which does work. God does bless His truth, and He blesses His plan to rear the next generation. Think about it for a moment. By and large, oftentimes our young people are being allowed to be reared and values placed into their hearts through society, through the peer group, through the television set, through Hollywood. Now, if our children are the product of our society, then they will be the children of chaos. They will be the children of confusion if they're the product of our society. Our American court system is in disarray. Our court system today has lost its moral basis. Now there are sanctions for the mass murder of millions of unborn children annually. It's just accepted. It's what is now the approved view within our courts for many years. A court in Kansas City sentenced a woman to four months jail for killing a litter of unwanted kittens. Well, there's no place, I don't believe, for animal cruelty, but our society has lost all perspective for the reality that people are created in the image of God. People are God's unique creation. It's for the murder of people that the Bible lays out capital punishment to be enforced by government. Why? Because people are created in the image of God. And as our society has lost its conception of a creator God, that there is a designer, and there is a creator, and there is a plan. Well, in doing that, our society has lost concept of right and wrong. A court in Wisconsin gave a man 12 years in prison for animal cruelty, and animal cruelty is wrong, and it should be punished. But two days later, after he had started serving his sentence, a Delaware court sentenced a woman to only 30 months in prison for killing her newborn infant. The situation was that she had thrown the newborn from the third floor of a motel room into a garbage bin below. The child died of exposure, abandonment, and massive skull fractures. You see, we live in a society today that has no concept of the value of human life created in the image of God. The Vice President, of the Humane Society of the United States, Michael Fox, made this statement, quote, the life of an aunt and the life of my child should be granted equal consideration. It's just hard to fathom when you lose your concept that there's a creator God who's created man in his own image, You have no value system. It's just whatever anybody thinks and wants to say. And it's amazing how people can be in positions of leadership and authority and have no real moral basis for their thinking other than what comes into their mind. Well, this effect of allowing society to train up the next generation obviously has led to great confusion about our values, about the family. Many government-funded schools and universities attack regularly God's Word, attack family values, attack the truth of Scripture. A government is seen by many as the one that needs to be in the role of supervising and directing all education and all training, that the solution is government. Marriage and family is often ridiculed and minimized. Anti-family values are often promoted. There are regular attacks in our secular universities and often our secular schools on the Bible, on inclusion of God in the Pledge of Allegiance. There's the removal of the Ten Commandments. We can't have that on our walls. That might give somebody a sense of right and wrong. Prayer is attacked and removed out of our schools. Male responsibility for servant leadership in the home is attacked. There's an encouragement of divorce. There's a downplay of the importance of the role of the mother in the home and in the family. Pornography is encouraged. Sexual immorality is often encouraged. And even as we speak, multitudes are rallying to support the killing of unborn human infants for any reason. For any reason, you may kill. If they're unborn, they're fair game. Well, someone might say, is there hope in the midst of all this confusion? Is there hope? And we can readily say, praise God, there is hope. There is a God in heaven who is still at work and he's at work and lives and homes and communities and the hearts of people who will turn to him. He is a loving God, but he's also a God of truth. And as we've seen from the scriptures, he's a redeeming God, though man walked away from God. God, in His love, built a bridge through His Son, Jesus, and provided a way for we who are sinners, individually, to be reconciled to a holy God through His Son, Jesus Christ, who, in love, paid the debt for our sin on the cross. God not only reconciles individuals to Himself, but God reconciles families, husbands and wives, can learn to love each other again, can learn to be unselfish and kind, through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit once we receive Christ as our Savior. And then whole family units can be restored. Relationships of rebellion between parents and their children who are turning away from God and God-given authority can be restored because we serve a God of hope. But what it requires then is that we come back to the basic principles of Scripture. These principles are not complex. These principles are given so that we might understand them, so that we might implement them into our lives and families and help others to do the same. And so in this passage to which we turn to Ephesians chapter 6, remember sitting around the family table at mealtime and having my father lead us in memorizing these verses. These are some of the first verses we ever memorized. I had a wise father. a wise mother who understood the value of God-given authority honoring and obeying your parents. So if you'll follow along with me there in Ephesians chapter 6, children obey your parents in the Lord for this is right. Honor thy father and mother which is the first commandment with promise that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth. And ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the nurture and the admonition of the Lord." In these four verses, you have simple, basic principles. If applied in our homes, we'll change our homes and we'll be used of God to mold the future generations. I want you to look with me at three areas where these Bible principles address truth for us. The first area is mandates for the children. Here's clear direction for children. And this is addressed in chapter 6, verse 1. Children, obey your parents in the Lord. for this is right. Now, the word children here refers to all of those who are yet under their parents' roof, under their parents' support. This would include young adults, teenagers, young people, sons and daughters. Obey your parents. Honor your parents. Two key truths. Let's see if we can understand them better today that we might apply this in our lives and encourage others to do the same. The prodigal son was a typical son. He wanted to be out and have his own apartment. He wanted to get out from under authority. I just want to be free from the authority of home and family. You know what? It's a blessing to have a family. Young people, thank God if you've got a mom and dad who love you and care about you and want to know where you're going and what you're doing because they love you. The prodigal thought, hey, Family love and responsibility is something to run from. I'll tell you what, he learned quickly that that was a wrong attitude, that he'd been ungrateful for how good God had been to him. And in the pressures of life, he began to realize what a wonderful thing it is to have parents who care, parents who love. And we see in the Prodigal, an example of us all, that we have this natural bent to live independently, not only of God, but of all authority. The Bible says, all we like sheep have gone astray. We've turned everyone to his own way. The Bible warns us in Proverbs, to be not wise in your own eyes. It doesn't matter what age we are, we can become prideful. And God says He gives grace to the humble. When we admit, God, You're the designer, You're the creator, I need You. I need You to know how to run my life. I need Your authority in my life. That's a wise person. You know, one thing we can say to our children is that One of the greatest joys you'll bring to my heart is if you turn out to be a wise person. A wise person is someone who looks at life from God's point of view. And if you, from your heart, learn to look at life like God does, oh, that will bring joy to my heart. More than if you make millions of dollars, that's a temporal thing that will pass away. But if you have wisdom, it doesn't really matter how much money you make, you will please God. And in pleasing God, that will please my heart. You know, that's the kind of thing we need to teach our children. And Solomon taught that in the Proverbs. Over and over he taught that principle. Well, the word obey. That's the first responsibility. What does it mean to obey? It means to willingly submit to the God-given authority of your parents. To do as you're told. To obey is an action. It's to do what's right and to do what you were told. Now granted, Our parents do not have absolute authority in the sense that if they tell us to murder or kill or do something that's directly against God's Word, then always God is the higher authority. But by and large, even unbelieving parents want what's best for their children. And children are to obey their parents. They're to obey their parents. I believe it's so important that we teach our sons and daughters first-time, immediate, complete, obedient action. First time. Immediate and complete, obedient action. I think it's also wise to teach our children when they're young, that when we speak to them, to look at us. To give us eye contact. And when a direct command is given, that they respectfully answer with a, yes, ma'am. Yes, sir. Why? Because that's showing honor. And it's acknowledging, I have heard what you've said, and I am committed in my will to do it. That's what we need to be teaching in our homes. Now, it is a struggle, as we've said, for all of us. This causes us to pray much for our children, for we see that they have the same nature we have, born from our mother's womb, going astray, wanting our own way, not wanting to be under authority. We quickly learn to say the word no. We quickly learn to exercise our independence. And yet, it causes us to pray for our children. Oh Lord, help my child early to come to faith in Jesus Christ. To a true repentance of heart. Where they turn from going their own way, to choose to go God's way in their life. Where they choose to believe in Christ and receive God's Spirit through faith, so that there is within them the power of God to help them Go the right way. In contrast to that human nature, which will always be bent in going our own way, we need to pray much for the heart of our children and the heart relationship that they must have with God if they're ever to please Him. Notice, we're to obey your parents. Now, your parents are those through whom God has given you life. God has given you your very existence through them. You are to honor your parents, and I am to honor my parents. Forever we should honor them. This is a Bible principle. We are, as long as we are under their roof and under their authority, to obey them. And this is what God calls us to do. Our parents sometimes will delegate parts of their parental responsibility to be complemented by others. School teachers, Galatians talks about children being under the tutor until the time appointed by the father. Sometimes some of our authority we partner and we entrust others to help us. Coaches, teachers, Awana workers, Sunday school teachers, youth workers, young people. Do you realize that when you honor those who are in authority, you're honoring your parents? And when you're honoring your parents, you are honoring God. But the opposite is true. When you have a rebellious attitude, when you have a self-willed attitude, when you have an attitude that, I'm just going to do what I want to do, I don't care what anyone thinks, you are dishonoring your God-given authorities. You are dishonoring your parents. And above all, you're dishonoring God. Authority comes from God. It didn't just happen. There would be total chaos in this world except that God established authority, and He established it for our good. And we see here the command, obey your parents in the Lord. That is, God has so designed it that you obey your parents. That authority is flowing down from Him. There should be a love for God, because He created you. You owe Him everything. He gives you your next breath. And you should love God, and you should honor God, and your God-given authorities. This is right. That is, God requires it. And it's our children learn to obey with the right heart attitude from an early age. And as they grow older, and we teach the moral why. Here's why we do that. Our children then honor God not only in what they do, but why they do it. And we begin, as they grow older, to teach them the reason we're truthful is because God is true. The reason we're to be pure is because God is pure. The reason we're to be loving and kind is because God is loving and kind. All of the values come back to the character and nature of God. And we were created to give a right opinion of who God is, reflect glory back to Him by our actions and by our attitudes. Well, as we love God with this kind of a hard attitude, then family government, glorifies God. How is family government founded? It's founded on obedience and respect. If we lose it at that level, we've lost it. If we don't have obedience in our homes and respect in our homes, our children will struggle the rest of their life in their other God-given authorities. They'll struggle at work. They'll struggle with other people. They'll struggle in the local church. They'll struggle throughout their life if they don't learn to rightly relate to God-given authority in the home. You see, if we cannot control our children when they're young, We will never be able to train them as they grow older. We must learn to have loving control in the home. Now, the first command for young people, for children, sons and daughters, obey. The second command, honor. Honor. Now, honor is an attitude. Obedience is an action. Honor is what's in your heart. It's why you do what you do, not just because of a fear of punishment, but because of a love of what's right, a love of God, a love for your parents, honor. Now, this was God's very first command that he gave in the Old Testament when he gave the moral law, the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20, verse 12. And after four commandments about God, for God is first, we must direct our relationship first toward God. The very first commandment, as he got into human relationships, was the family. It's the hinge command, because if things aren't right at home, then things will be a struggle in other relationships of life. Commandment number five, to honor your mother and father. God starts then with home and family. He makes it a priority. Home and family is a priority to God. He knows because He designed it that way. It's the only command given that relates directly to the family. If we learn to honor our parents, that makes or breaks relationships. And it makes or breaks the home. Now, this principle of honor is taught all through the Bible. Young people, learn to read the Proverbs. Parents, read the Proverbs to your children. You will find this principle over and over and over. Teach line upon line, precept upon precept. Proverbs 1.8, My son, hear the instruction of thy father and forsake not the law of thy mother. 3.1. My son, forget not my law, but let thine heart keep my commandments. 4.1. Hear ye, children, the instruction of a father. 7.1. My son, keep my words. 10.1. A wise son maketh a glad father, but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother. Remember, as a young person writing in the margin of my Bible, how to make a happy pappy. I said, that's how you make your dad happy, is be a wise son. I remember understanding that principle. Not that I always did it, but I understood that principle because I was taught that in my youth. 1721, the father of a fool hath no joy. Proverbs 19.26, a son that causeth shame bringeth reproach. So you see, obedience is the action. Honor is the attitude. God wants the overflow of your heart, young people, to be that you honor God, and you show that you honor God because you honor your mom and dad. And you honor your God-given authorities. You have a right attitude toward them. It's a choice you make. It's a submission you make that's ultimately in your heart toward God. Well, we need this in our lives as parents if we want to see this in the lives of our children. We must be submissive to God. Our children must see that when God speaks to us, we respond. We're willing to humble ourselves. We're willing to acknowledge when we're wrong. And we're willing to be humble and tender toward God and be teachable. We all struggle with authority in our life, but God is our ultimate authority. When we submit to Him, so many other things fall into place. Well, in honoring our mother and father, You see, at all ages, we tend to rebel against authority. I have mentioned to you before, remembering getting to that age where I was bigger than my mom. And I thought, hey, I'm bigger than she is. I don't have to obey her anymore. And I thank God for a big six foot three dad that took me by the shoulders and said, son, you will honor and obey your mother. You may be bigger than she is, but you're still going to honor her. Well, I was getting too big for my britches. I needed to be reminded by a godly father that God was holding me accountable to honor my mother and father at all ages. It didn't matter how big I was. Well, we ought to submit then. Why? Verse 1, for the Lord's sake. Obey in the Lord. We ought to do it just because it's right. Just because God said it. That's enough. But God adds a special blessing with it. What's that special blessing? That it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth. Here is a command with a promise. God is so gracious. He says, look, if you will honor and obey your parents, I'm going to bless you. I'm going to bless you for that attitude of coming under my authority. A key to societal stability is respect and reverence for parents. It's a key for their God-given authority. And as we respect them and honor them, God will honor us. And he said, it will be well with you. We want God's blessing, don't we? Not God's judgment. And therefore, we need to obey and to honor. There was a young man. age 16, and he wanted nothing more in life than to join the Navy. That was what was in his heart. He wanted to go see the world. He was excited. And he hoped maybe someday he'd be a captain of a ship. Well, his mother wasn't too thrilled. And at age 16, she walked with him down to the port. He had put all of his goods in his knapsack. food and clothing, and he put that knapsack in the long boat which would be taking him out to the ship, and as he said goodbye to his mother, his mother said this, she just couldn't help it, overflowed out of her heart, she said, son, I just have no peace about your going off to sea. I just don't feel right about it. I have prayed a great deal about this, and son, I really wish you wouldn't go. What's the scenario today, do you think, in most cases? Young man, knapsack's in the boat, he knows where he's headed, and his mom pours out her heart. I think most of us know that many young people today would say, sorry mom, it's my life. This young man couldn't do it. He couldn't do it. He went back to the longboat, picked up his knapsack. He said to one of the sailors, he said, I can't sail off and break my mother's heart. Can't do it. He went back home. Guess what? He never did become a captain of a ship. But he one day directed a whole navy. He one day directed a whole army. He one day directed the marines. He one day directed a whole nation, for his name was George Washington. And George Washington was taught in his youth to honor God and to honor his parents. And you know what? God blessed him because he chose to obey God. God blessed him. He was a man of character, molded in his youth in a godly home. Daniel Webster made this comment about Washington, quote, America has furnished to the world the character of Washington. And if our American institutions had done nothing else, that alone would have entitled them to the respect of mankind. God started this nation off with a godly leader who came from a godly home. We can be thankful for that example, and we can learn from it. Washington took God's word seriously. So did his parents. God help us to do the same. Amen? God help us. We are molding the future generations. The children growing up here in these homes and in these ministries are the future. They're here now, but they will be the future leaders. And we are molding their lives. The choices young people you're making today as teenagers and young adults will have an eternal impact, not only on you, but on generations to come. Well, there's a second mandate here, and that mandate is not only for children, but for parents. Do you see it here in verse 4? Ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath. Fathers, men, are to take a servant leadership role in the home. If you'll go back and compare chapter 5, verse 18, and 21 through 29. Men are to be loving leaders in the home. The term here for fathers is also used broadly for parents in Hebrews 11, 23, where Moses was hit of his parents. So really, the principles apply to both father and mother, though I believe father is to take the spiritual lead as a servant leader. What's the very first principle for parents? Number one is loving leadership. Do you see that in verse 4? Provoke not your children to wrath. Loving leadership. You know, we tend to struggle so much with the balance of love and authority. Colossians 3.21 puts it this way. Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged. And so fathers are given right away, and mothers, this principle, have loving leadership. Now, in Bible times, pagan people were often known for domineering authority. Oftentimes, the husbands were just totally domineering toward their wife, toward their children, and had very little or no sensitivity. And I think the Bible is teaching us here that authority should be reasonable. Authority should not be harsh. Authority should be loving. And we see that in the Scripture. Ephesians 5.18 says, Be filled with the Spirit, men and women. We're to submit to God. And Galatians 5 tells us that the fruit of a Spirit-filled life, first of all, is love. And it's tenderness, it's kindness, it's self-control. Dads who are out of control with their authority and harsh, drive their children away from understanding God's authority. That God is holy and He will punish sin, but He's a loving God. He's a patient God. He's a merciful God. Our children should see in mom and dad a picture of what God is like. God is not harsh. God is not unreasonable. God is not out of control. And we must not be. We must be a picture to our children of God. I have shared with you the sauerkraut story before of how I know as a parent, I didn't always do it right. And I often had to come back and ask forgiveness. The time we were headed for the church potluck and all the kids were in the back seat and the potluck had, so we had sauerkraut. You could smell that stuff in there. And the back seat of that car was immaculate. My aunt had driven the car and it wasn't even worn out. We hadn't had it for long. And boy, sure enough, if they didn't spill the sauerkraut right all over the car seat and it went down in the crack. I tell you what, I lost it. I lost it. And I verbally let my kids have it. You know what? They hadn't intended to do that. It was wrong that it happened, but it was not an intentional thing. But you know what? At that point, I was an idolater. As I look back, you know what I was worshipping? My car. I was worshipping my car. And I was upset about my car. And I had to come back to my children and my family and say, I was wrong. I was wrong in what I said and the way I said it. You see, I was being to them an illustration of an idolater. I was bowing down and worshiping a car rather than worshiping God and properly instructing my children. None of us will do it perfectly. None of us are perfect parents. But thank God we've got a forgiving Heavenly Father. Amen? And when we do wrong, we need to ask God to forgive us. And when we do wrong toward our family, we need to ask our family to forgive us. And we can forgive one another and grow together. We can learn together. And that's what God wants us to do. And so the Bible reminds us that children, yes, they're trying at times, but children to be looked at as a joy, a blessing. Psalm 127, children are the heritage of the Lord. The fruit of the womb is His reward. Has God blessed you? Well, if He's blessed you with children, then you are blessed. And you can impact your children, but you can impact other people's children. God can bless you, whether you're married or single, whether you have children or don't. You can have an impact on future generations. Children are not to be looked at as a burden, but as a blessing. And so here is a responsibility, loving leadership. A second responsibility, nurture. Bring them up in the nurture. The word for nurture here means discipline. Discipline is essential. You see, parents are to be not oppressive, but parents are to be authoritative. You are the representative of God to those children. God has authority. He does say, do, and He says, do not. And we need parents who will love their children enough to say, do, and do not. Parents will say, this is what's right, this is what's wrong, and here's why. That's loving leadership. Bring them up in the nurture, the discipline of God. You see, we have to get control of our children while they're young. They need tight boundaries, not unlimited freedom. Did you ever just let a three-year-old go wild? You know, you'll lose your drapes off the walls. You don't do that. Children need boundaries. Now, if we don't get control of them while they're young, Oh, they'll have trouble all through their life. We're to train them. And if we're to train them, we must have them under control. Discipline. The Bible warns over and over in Proverbs, correct your child. Don't heed for their crying. Love them enough to correct them. Don't be a soft parent who just is permissive and lets your child do whatever they want to do. Now, don't be an abusive parent who's insensitive, but be an authoritative parent. Some have broken down child rearing into phases. The first phase is discipline, ages 1 through 5. Discipline. Children in their early years need discipline. They need to learn what no means. They need to learn first-time obedience. It is so vital in those early years. Then, the Bible says not only nurture, but admonition. The word for admonition here means instruction. That is, the parents are the chief instructors of their children. Parents, what is our relationship to our child? No one should have a closer, more intimate relationship with our children than we do. The measure of your effectiveness is the measure of your relationship. What's the quality of your relationship with each and every one of your children? We must work at that relationship. You see, involve ourselves. There should be no other influence greater on the life of any one of your children than your influence. You're the one that God gave to them and them to you. Parents take leadership. We're to be the leaders, not the peer group. Not the culture. Not the television set. We, the parents, under God, are to be those leaders. That means then, parents, that if you were to view your child as the stick figure, all of these arrows, these shapening influences that come into their life, they're under your oversight. You're to see what's coming into their life. You're to be wisely looking for right-shapening influences. You have that responsibility for what comes into their lives while they're under your watch. You cannot force their choices, but you're accountable for their influences. Well, that's a big job. As they grow older, we add the moral why. We add understanding and teaching of God's character, His principles, His authority, His nature. Discipline is the first phase, age 1 through 5. Training is the second phase, age 6 through 12. Training. Training. We're like an athletic trainer. We can stop the player at any time. We can make corrections. We can teach. We can explain. We can illustrate. It's practice time. They're not really in the full game of life yet. We are in charge. Godly influences. We build those around them. Home, church, and school. Do all you can to get all the help you can to assist you. But you be the leader. It's your job. The third phase is coaching phase. Coaching phase is age 13 through 19. You see, at this point, as young people, as teenagers, they're in the game of life for themselves. We can send in plays now. We can even call for huddles and some timeouts, but we can't call for long, long timeouts now. Life gets more complicated. Hopefully, we've established our right to rule. And that's the key to effective coaching, is they know that mom and dad love them, and they're in charge. And we do all we can to get those best influences around them. We watch what kind of music they listen to. We watch what they look at at TV and what kind of friends they hang around with. What they're doing in church and school. We do not abdicate our role. We are to raise up the next generation. Phase four is friendship. Oh, that's what we wanted from the beginning. Intimacy between us and our child. But you know what? You don't get friendship by being their buddy when they're little and just saying, hey, we're buddies. Just whatever you want. No, that's not how it starts. Early on, they need tight boundaries with love. They need teaching. They need learn right behavior. Why? So that in adulthood, there's freedom. Freedom for them to be a responsible person. Freedom to do what's right because they know what's right in their heart. And because they choose to do what's right. Why? Because they love God. And they love other people. That's the goal. That's the goal. And you know, you and I will never cease to influence others, as long as we're on the face of this earth. Your life is influencing other lives. Your example, influencing children and grandchildren and future generations, We need to do what we ought to do. Now, that takes us to the third area, and that's the mandate for the family. The mandate for the family. You'll notice that we are to bring them up in the nurture and the admonition of the Lord. You see, what it's all about is it's all about God. It's not all about us. That's what life's all about. And that's what our children need to learn. It's not all about me. It's all about God. And if you were to visualize in your mind a family, that represents honoring God and obeying God. I think you can picture it this way, and I've seen this illustration and we've taught it in our parenting classes, but if you were to have a family, mom and dad and child, and they all gather and join hands in a circle, looking inward, What do you have? You have a family looking to Jesus, looking to the Bible, looking to God. You have an interdependent family. There's a union of hands, but we all have one heart, and that is to help each other, to be sensitive to each other, to be kind to each other. I think that can represent a healthy church, too. A healthy church is a family where we hold hands, and we're all looking to help each other. We care about each other. We're not divided. We're unified. But there's another way to have a family, and that is this, the independent family. The independent families where everybody's joining hands, but they're all looking out. They're just looking at their own interests. What do I want? What do I want to do? It doesn't matter about the rest. And you know, it looks like a family, because everyone's joined hands, but as the pressures of life come, that independent family, that person who thinks only on their own things and not on the things of others, that selfish child that never learned to honor and obey in their youth, you know what happens? The pressures of life come, and that family begins to break apart. Because it only looked like it was unified, but it didn't come from the heart. You know, that's the same thing with a church. We can't have an independent spirit. We need an interdependent spirit. We are dependent on God. We're here to help each other. We're here to love each other. We're here to serve God together. God help us. to grab this mandate for the family, that we would do all we can. Maybe we've reared our family, or maybe our kids have gone on, or maybe we're a single person, but we can support those who are rearing up that next generation. We can have a heartbeat that says, you know, God has a plan. He's got a plan for children to honor and obey. God's got a plan for parents to be loving leaders, to discipline and to instruct. And He's got a plan for godly homes that love one another, that care about one another, godly churches that love one another, that care about one another, that when a watching world looks, they see that family, they see that church, and they say, that must be what God is like. God is a God of love. God is a God of truth. God is a God of honor and authority. God is a God of blessing. People need to see God. in our hearts, in our homes, and in our church.