continue our series through the Fruit of the Spirit and again focusing our attention upon the Fruit of Faithfulness. And we have been in recent sermons focusing the Fruit of Faithfulness in regard to our duties and responsibilities within our family. Having looked at the Fruit of Faithfulness that is due to us as fathers, as husbands, as wives, as mothers, we're still looking at this fruit of faithfulness as it relates to parents in particular. Galatians 5.22 says, But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith. And Proverbs 29, 15, we learn this truth from Solomon, the wisest mere man to ever live. The wrought and reproved give wisdom. but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame." What happens when parents leave a child to himself to speak and to behave as the child wants to behave at home? Well, you have what has become a very common incident of a child throwing a temper tantrum in public, bringing great shame, not only on the child himself, but also and especially bringing great shame on the parents who act as though there is really nothing in the world that I can do. Such behavior is the expression, dear ones, such behavior in the heart of a child and in the in the life of a child is the expression of that sinful depravity within a child, but is also the expression, I submit you, of sinful neglect on the part of parents who do not take seriously their duty before God to train their children in the nurture and in the admonition of the Lord, first and foremost, within the context of the family. For the home, I submit to you, is the primary training ground for children. If faithfulness in training our children is neglected at home, we ought not to be surprised by temper tantrums that are thrown in public. At such times, it is really the child that is being more consistent than the parent. For the child is simply acting in public the way that the child acts at home. Whereas the parent is being very inconsistent, wanting the child to act different in public than the way the child acts at home. Dear Christian parents, to the degree that we are bearing the fruit of faithfulness in our parenting. We can, by God's grace, experience great joy, delight, and honor by the kind, respectful, and godly behavior displayed in the lives of our children. The Spirit of God teaches from our text today that you parents play an important role in training your children to either bring you joy or to bring you shame. If we would have children that are wise and bring us joy rather than shame, how are our children to be trained? Well, according to our text in Proverbs 29.15, faithfulness is applied in this way. First of all, the fruit of faithfulness disciplines in both deed and in word. The rod and reproof give wisdom, Proverbs 29.15. But secondly, we learned that the fruit of faithfulness leaves not a child to himself, but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame. Proverbs 29 15, the second part of that verse. So let us consider this first main point. The fruit of faithfulness trains and it disciplines in deed and in truth, deed and in word, where again Solomon states, the rod and reproof give wisdom. The very first thing that I would like to note about this passage is that training our children to be wise and not foolish is not like a mathematical formula. The rod plus reproof equals wisdom all by itself. The rod and reproof, dear ones, are means that God uses and that God has given to us as parents in order to train our children But the outcome of godly wisdom in our children is ultimately the result of God's grace and power working in their lives and applying the loving use and the faithful use of discipline to their lives in such a way as to bring forth the fruit of wisdom. In other words, it is our responsibility as parents to be faithful means that God uses and that God has ordained. But it is also, dear ones, by way of the rod and reproof, these as well are means that God has used and given to us to be used in order to train and to discipline our children. It is always, and we must keep it ever in mind, it is always, we don't receive the glory and the credit for the fact that our children become those who are wise and have wisdom. We were the means, we were the tool. God is the one who receives glory and credit. In a different type of context, but stating the same principle, The Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3.6, I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. All glory belongs to Him. God uses many means to bring our children to Christ. and to grant to our children the gracious gift and grace of wisdom. But He is the One who brings forth the increase. You see, dear ones, God is the One who alone is wisdom. He is the One who therefore brings forth wisdom in the lives of our children. Apart from the grace of God, no amount of effort in faithfully training our children would bring forth wisdom, would bring forth faith and trust in Jesus Christ, if God did not bring forth the increase. It is He who uses even the means of baptism uses the means of prayer, uses the means of instruction, and uses the means of rod and reproof to bring forth wisdom within our children. the Lord to bring forth that wisdom, to bless the means, yes, to bless the means that God has given, but to look to Him, not to the means, to look to Him to bring forth wisdom. Well, let's consider the use of these two means of training our children that God gives to us as Christian parents in order that our children might become wise. First of all, the rod gives wisdom. Wisdom in our children is the goal here instated by the Holy Spirit through Solomon. Wisdom. Wisdom includes knowledge of God's Word. True. It includes knowledge. Without knowledge there cannot be wisdom. Knowledge certainly is foundational. knowledge of the gospel, knowledge of God's commandments. But wisdom goes even beyond mere knowledge, mere intellectual knowledge. Godly wisdom faithfully applies that knowledge that we have received, that our children have received, faithfully applies that knowledge to every area of life. It is the application of knowledge in various circumstances that we find ourselves. This is the goal of parenting as stated by the Holy Spirit through Solomon, namely that our children would be wise, not fools, or not even merely smart. not merely academic, not simply able to memorize many passages of scripture, not merely able to memorize various catechism questions, but that they might, by God's grace, be wise in applying what they learn in the many and varied circumstances and situations that they will face in their lives. The Word of God tells us, and Solomon again tells us, the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord, Proverbs 9.10. That is to say, that heavenly wisdom begins in our lives by fearing God. A wholesome, healthy fear of God. Not a slavish, cowardly, and cowering type of fear of God, where we're always ducking, waiting for that hand of God to smite and to strike us. But a holy fear of God that takes God seriously, that takes His promises seriously, that when God promises us something in His Word, we take it seriously. God has put His own name on the line, His own nature on the line to make us promises. We take His promises seriously. We take His warnings seriously. And when God warns us not to go a certain way or a certain path, we take God seriously about that warning. The fear of the Lord, dear ones, is having and holding an awe and a wonder and a reverence for who God is, who He has revealed Himself to be in creation, in providence, and in redemption, that He is our God that we are to bow before, submit unto, because we fear Him with such reverence, such awe of His glory, His greatness, His might, And so, in that respect, God is not simply awesome and worthy of some awe, but God is awful, in the true sense of that word, and He is full of awe. He is full of awe. Whereas many psychologists, teachers, Civil and ecclesiastical leaders tell us that spanking will destroy our children's joy and security, stifle their creativity and expression, and cause them to be themselves violent and abusive. The Lord, the Creator of all, who created the family. The Lord, God, speaking through Solomon, tells us that the rod, when lovingly, faithfully, and reasonably administered, the rod is a means of giving wisdom to our children. Dear parents, it always boils down to this. Who will you believe? Are you going to believe the all-knowing? An all-wise God who cannot lie or some so-called expert with his or her anti-Christian views of child training that are leading millions and millions of children down the paths to destruction. The all-wise God says in Proverbs 22, 15, foolishness is bound in the heart of a child, but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him." When Solomon speaks of the rod here, the rod gives wisdom. The rod stands here in Proverbs 29.15 as representative of all physical discipline. that we as parents may take in order to train our children, as opposed to verbal discipline and correction, which we'll look at in a moment under the word reproof. Two forms of discipline, physical discipline, the rod, and verbal discipline, reproof. The rod speaks of the full extent of physical discipline that a parent may use in the training of a child, just as the full extent that a civil magistrate may use is the sword, or death. According to Romans 13.4, the full extent that a parent may use is the rod, and that is physical discipline. And yet, just because the rod is available as the full extent of physical discipline that a parent may use does not mean that the rod is the only means of physical discipline available to parents. Other means of physical discipline may include separating the child from others. restricting the child of certain privileges, giving to the child certain chores and other duties and responsibilities. The rod is no more the only means of physical discipline than is the sword the only means of physical punishment that the magistrate may use. Certainly that's the full extent, but there are lesser forms of physical punishment that the magistrate may use as well. The rod of correction in the hands of a father or mother does not require them to use the rod for every single act of disobedience, but permits degrees, degrees of discipline with spanking being the full extent to which discipline may go. The goal of discipline is that the child may learn wisdom, as Solomon says. The rod gives wisdom. And we must apply that form of physical discipline, dear ones, that is most effective with our children and most needed within a particular situation. For example, if a child is forgetful or distracted, but not obstinately rebellious or violently angry. The rod is most likely not the means of discipline that is needed in that particular case. However, when a child becomes obstinately rebellious and refuses to obey with great disrespect, or when the child lashes out in angry violence at others, A more severe means of discipline will be needed to make the point that this behavior is unacceptable to the parent, it's unacceptable to God himself. A child who is being spanked or is receiving some form of physical discipline should be able to understand should be able to understand to some degree for what he or she is being disciplined. There should be some connection between the understanding of the child and the discipline of the child for the discipline to be effective. It should be administered always in the atmosphere of love, and in the atmosphere of the gospel of Jesus Christ as Christian parents, not in the atmosphere of rage and perfectionism on our part, expecting perfectionism on our part. Through the constant use of spanking for every single act of disobedience, I submit our children may in fact grow callous to the strokes they are given. They may even build up a stronger resistance to our authority and harden their hearts to the truth. If we as parents would capture and lead the hearts of our children, there must be a reasonableness and not a harshness to the discipline that is administered. The discipline must fit the act, degree of disobedience, and the age of the child. But what is so important, dear ones, to remember about the rod, that is physical discipline, is that it is not intended here by God to be a cruel and unusual tool of vindictive punishment, whereby we seek to get even with our child for having disobeyed us. An eye for an eye, or a tooth for a tooth, no. The rod rather, that is physical discipline, is a useful and profitable tool of restorative discipline, restoring teaching, training our children. The parent is not administering and is not to administer retributive justice. As I said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. That's what the civil magistrate is to do. To repay evil with a just punishment, for he is the minister of God a revenger, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil, Paul says in Romans 13.4. But that's not the role of a parent. To the contrary, when a parent uses the rod in chastening his or her children, the goal of the parent is to teach and to train them in the ways of righteousness and truth. The goal in loving discipline, dear ones, is not judgment and is not condemnation, but is rather correction and edification. Thus, biblical discipline is always to be considered by way of administration in love. and not in a fit of anger. Nothing will come from administering physical discipline in a fit of anger, but callousness, discouragement, less likely to see that behavior change from the inside out. Yes, there may be conformity outwardly, but inwardly If it's not administered in love and in the atmosphere of the Gospel, we're not going to change the hearts of our children. The surest way to make a child despise us and to harden his or her heart to discipline is to administer that physical discipline in anger. And to make the child think that you are getting even with him rather than assuring him. you love him, you care for him, you want to be faithful to Jesus Christ and you want them to learn wisdom. The second means that God gives to us, not only the rod gives wisdom, Secondly, reproof gives wisdom. Reproof gives wisdom. You see, it's not only the rod that God says is to give us wisdom, but also the rod and reproof. Whereas the rod in Proverbs 29, 15 focuses on the outward, the physical aspects of loving discipline, Reproof, on the other hand, considers more the verbal instruction and correction of loving discipline, the rod and reproof. Dear parents, it is impossible in various circumstances that a parent will only administer the rod without reproof. We may administer reproofs without the rod, but the rod must always be administered with reproof, with instruction, to get to the understanding, to get to the heart of a child. That verbal correction and instruction administered in love and in the atmosphere of the Gospel is what is needed to bring them to confession of their sin, to bring them to repentance, sorrow, to bring them to the place where they seek God's forgiveness and the forgiveness of those that they have offended. Is it time-consuming to give loving Verbal reproof and instruction when discipline is administered? Yes it is. Does it require diligence and consistency on a parent's part? Absolutely. But how your child, dear ones, will profit from the time you take? Not only to administer the rod, but to take the time. to administer reproof and instruction in the context of love and the gospel of Jesus Christ. To administer the rod that is physical discipline without loving reproof, I submit to you, is to consign a child to ignorance. a lack of understanding as to what he or she has done wrong, why what he or she has done is wrong, and who has been wronged. Maybe the parents, maybe someone else, but never forget that God, to teach your children that God has been wronged as well. It is to send your child running from you to administer physical discipline without reproof and instruction in a loving context. It is to send your child running from you rather than to send them fleeing to you. It is to harden his or her heart rather than to soften it. Dear ones, our Heavenly Father is the example. And He not only chastens us, He not only scourges us, He not only uses the rod of discipline in our lives by way of physical discipline, but our Heavenly Father also lovingly corrects us and instructs us by His Word and His Spirit. In Hebrews 12, verses 5-6, we hear of this loving Father of ours in heaven. Through the Apostle, he says, And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you, as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him, for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. Therefore, dear parents, use the Scripture in your verbal corrections and reproofs. Let your children know that they have not only disobeyed you as a parent, but they have sinned against the Lord as well. And therefore they need to come before Him in prayer. Lead them, lead them in prayer at that time, after, at that time that they are disciplined. Lead them in prayer that they may understand that they have indeed sinned against the Lord, and that by God's grace, that discipline would penetrate the outward and into the inward part of their being. Our verbal reproof, dear parents, And though I'm speaking specifically to parents, obviously this is something for those of you who are not yet parents or those of you who are no longer parents because your children are no longer at home. This is something that we all again, need to hear and to understand, either by way of our actual, the children we presently have, or by way of preparing us when we do have children, or by way of being older that, by God's grace, we might be able to help others who are going through that trying time when children are young and are needing correction and discipline from the parent. Yelling at the top of our lungs at our children, though that is verbal in nature rather than physical in nature, again is not going to accomplish what we hope to accomplish. Calling them names like stupid and idiot, other choice names, uttering angry words like I hate you. Maybe not meaning it, but uttering it nevertheless, just because one is in such a fit of rage or so angry. Or something like, I wish I'd never had you. You see, those are not words of loving correction. The use of such names and words, uttered in anger, are like swords to the very heart most children would rather incur the sting of the rod than the sword of the tongue, for the effects of the rod heal much, much more quickly than the sword of the tongue in bitter, resentful, hateful words." Dear ones, not only should correction be given on but also encouragement should be given. Encouragement. Those who have no encouragement and no comfort to keep on working or encouragement from parents when a job is done well will likely become very discouraged and not want to continue but want to give up, because it will appear no matter what the child does, the child cannot please that parent. Dear ones, much more time, much more time should proportionally be spent using verbal, verbal correction than using the rod. It's much easier in some ways to simply get it over. but just administering the rod, physical discipline, spanking your child. But the fruit of faithfulness is manifested in our lives as parents, impatiently reproving and then spanking, if necessary. And it will be the far more profitable use of time in the long run. In the long run, it will be profitable, even if we do not see the immediate effects of it. Have you ever considered that God, dear parents, God is growing you as a parent? In the fruit of faithfulness, in lovingly and patiently disciplining your children as a means of sanctification in your life, as much as a means of sanctification in your child's life. These troubles within the family are meant to sanctify you as a parent, as a child of God. The discipline, the correction needed on the part of your child is meant to sanctify you as a parent. The Lord is teaching you faithfulness, patience, self-control, love, and mercy as you take the time to instruct, pray with, and lead your child in confession of sin and repentance and forgiveness of sin. Are you frustrating God's means of sanctification in your own life or are you growing by God's means of sanctification in your life. The second main point, which will be much briefer, is this. The fruit of faithfulness leaves not a child to himself. Solomon says, but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame. Proverbs 29.15, the latter part of that verse. The child is left to himself when a child is left to indulge his own desires, left to indulge his own words, left to indulge his own behavior without loving discipline in the form of rod and reproof. The word used here in the Hebrew language is also used to leave to oneself. This word is used also for cattle who pasture, who are left to themselves at liberty to do whatever basically they want and the boundaries are drawn very, very, very far out there somewhere. There are boundaries, but nothing certainly close or immediate. And a child left to himself will bring grief and sorrow and will bring shame to a mother and no doubt to a father as well. but perhaps in a particular way to a mother in as much as she bore. She bore this child in her womb and gave this child birth. If we leave, dear ones, even our garden to itself, what will happen? Weeds will spring up. Weeds will take over. Fruit will not be produced. And if we leave our children to themselves, likewise, likewise, there will be just weeds that sprout up. Simply by our inactivity, we do not have to plant the weeds. We simply do nothing and leave the child to himself or herself. And from their own natural sinful nature will sprout forth those weeds that will choke out the life, choke out the Gospel, choke out the Word of God, choke out the commandments of God. Let us not imagine, dear ones, that God ordinarily saves our children and makes them a blessing to Himself. to us as parents or to others if we simply leave our children to themselves. Simply leave them without the loving use of the rod and reproof. The words spoken about Eli, the priest in the Old Testament, you'll recall that Samuel as a young child had been brought under the care of Eli. And Eli did not restrain his sons. In fact, we read the following in 1 Samuel 3, verse 13. This was the message of God spoken to young Samuel about Eli. The Lord said, For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knoweth, because his sons made themselves vile And he restrained them not. He left them to themselves. He restrained them not. Now we're not told here that Eli instructed his sons in that which was evil. We're not told that Eli set a bad example before his sons. In fact, Eli taught his sons what was right, and even reproved them. But that, apparently, was all that he did, according to 1 Samuel 2, verses 22-25, where we read these words. Now, Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel, and how they lay with the women. that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? For I hear of your evil dealings by all this people. Nay, my sons, for it is not good report that I hear ye make the Lord's people to transgress. If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him. But if a man sin against the Lord, who shall entreat for him? Notwithstanding, they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the Lord would slay them. Eli did not restrain his sons by means of some physical discipline and restraint when they were young. He left them to themselves by way of restraint. Certainly, again, he taught them, but he did not restrain them. He left his sons to themselves to run their own course in their life. Eli may have set boundaries for his sons, But Eli did not enforce those boundaries when they were young and when they went astray. Dear ones, if all we do is talk to our children, but do not enforce the good and reasonable boundaries that God has given to us, we will teach our children By so doing, we will teach our children that there really are no consequences to disobedience to parents, or to any other lawful authority, or to God himself. This the sons of Eli learned when God brought judgment and destroyed them. If we as Christian parents would not leave our children unrestrained and leave them to themselves. What guidelines and loving disciplines should we follow? Let me give you several guidelines to follow. First of all, And some of these will sound familiar, perhaps, from a previous sermon, but I think some people only listen to the sermon, so I want to, again, include what is necessary. So first, the first guideline. Be clear in what you ask your child to do. At times, it is not so much a case of disobedience as it is a case of misunderstanding. End your instructions by asking him or her, do you understand? Have them repeat back, especially have them repeat back if this has been a problem with a child, either forgetting, not understanding, have them repeat back what you just asked them to do. Instead of barking out orders from a distance, from the other side of the house, yelling at the top of your voice, Be kind as parents. Be kind in your words. Be gentle in your words to your children. If you want your children to show good manners in public, show them good manners at home. And when your instructions are followed, look for the opportunity to express to them your appreciation. and encouragement. 2. Before administering discipline, be sure that an express violation of your word has been committed. Don't rashly administer discipline upon a suspicion. Treat your children with fairness and reasonableness. Discipline the child when it is clear that he or she has expressly disobeyed. A third guideline. Don't, don't utter endless threats about the discipline to come. Endless warnings, which in fact may never come at all because they are so long delayed that the child forgets why he or she was threatened to be disciplined in the first place. Parents who merely threaten their children as a kind of leverage, but never intend to discipline and to administer discipline, are teaching them not to trust their parents, not to believe their parents. Administer discipline as soon as you are able to do so for the child's profit so that the child can connect the discipline that he or she receives with the act of disobedience. Otherwise, I submit, the discipline will lose its effectiveness. They don't understand if they've forgotten what they have done. Remember, there are degrees of discipline that may be used in the home. Verbal reproof, loss of privileges, separation from friends or family members, added responsibilities, and spanking. There are even degrees of spanking as well for the degree of disobedience. I would submit that as parents we should give a stronger dose of discipline, as was said earlier, to flagrant offenses such as blasphemy, cursing, clear, rebellious, in your face disrespect, violence against others, violence by way of destruction of property, lying stealing, and any willful, obstinate acts of disobedience, whereas various infirmities, infirmities and weaknesses such as forgetfulness, rashness, or unintentional acts on the part of our children should be treated less seriously, or less severely, I should say, not less seriously, but less severely. Likewise, a milder form of discipline should be used for a first-time violation. But you may find it necessary to increase that degree of discipline for repeated and willful acts of disobedience. These are just reasonable ways that we can, as parents, apply the rod of reproof to our children. A fifth guideline. Be liberal and generous in your encouragement, commendation, expressions of love, and even rewarding your children for jobs well done. Such love, I submit, will have the effect of making any discipline that they receive much, much more effective and be seen as a connection with love. be seen as an expression of your love in seeking to capture and to lead their hearts and not simply their bodies. A sixth guideline. If you would train your children to behave properly in public, you must be consistent in giving them that same training at home. When parents do not take the behavior of their children seriously in the privacy of their home, why should parents be surprised when the children do not take their own behavior, the child's own behavior, seriously in public? Dear parents, we should not become so involved in our conversations with one another in our fellowship with one another, in the enjoyment of that, that we totally lose sight and forget all together about our children. Again, the rod and reproof, rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself or herself brings shame upon mother and likewise upon the father. The seventh guideline. Make your restorative discipline an opportunity to present the gospel of Jesus Christ to your child by means of confession of sin, by means of repentance and forgiveness and restoration. That's over. Let's move on. Reassure them that the Lord forgives If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Verse John 1, 9. Reassure them that the Lord forgives us as we come to Him with a humble heart and seek His forgiveness. And always end discipline with a big hug and a kiss followed by, I love you. Now, parents, we can, after going through a sermon like this, feel overwhelmed, like we have failed here and here and here, and we can just kind of see those pile up before us. But that's, again, not the purpose of God's Word. The purpose of God's Word is certainly to show us where we have failed, but the purpose, the end of God's Word is for us to fall upon the mercy and the grace of Christ, to work within us that which we see we lack and where we failed. That's sanctification. That's the goal of this process. It's not only for our child to be sanctified, but for us as parents to become sanctified as well. And those of you in particular, who say, but I wasn't raised in a Christian home. I did not have the benefit of Christian parents to even resemble anything like was presented in the sermon today. Well, this is not a time for you to become hopeless, for you to say, there's no hope for me, this is the way I was raised. No, to the contrary. There is hope. There is hope because you have the example of your Heavenly Father. Your Heavenly Father is a perfect Father and you can learn of His ways and the way to love your children and the way to physically discipline and verbally discipline your children. And moreover, There is hope for you, dear parents, regardless of what you were taught or regardless of how you were treated in your home. Because, dear ones, the same wisdom that you desire for your child is available to you. That same wisdom of applying Knowledge of the Lord in your lives, that wisdom is available to you. I ask you, who is called in the scriptures wisdom? Who is called wisdom? Is the Lord Jesus Christ not our wisdom? Has He not become to us wisdom according to 1 Corinthians 1.30? but of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom." The Lord Jesus Christ is made unto us wisdom. And this promise of wisdom in your life It's available. In fact, in James 1, verses 5-6, God promises to give wisdom to those who seek it from Him, who ask in faith, believing that He will give the wisdom that He has promised. And in Proverbs 8, wisdom is personified and cries from the street corners, Receive the wisdom that I have for you. Do not be foolish. Do not turn aside. Come unto me. Treasure wisdom more than gold and silver. So there is hope. There is hope for you. Dear parents who may not have been raised even within a Christian family or a Christian home, who saw the contrary types of examples in your upbringing, there is certain hope that regardless of the home, in which you were raised. You, by God's gracious work in your life, can have a Christian home, which you did not have when you were raised up as a child. You can give your children a Christian home. You can grow in faithfulness, the fruit of the spirit of faithfulness. You can grow in wisdom and give your children that wisdom in Jesus Christ. that you did not learn or that you did not receive as a child. For Jesus Christ is your wisdom. Come to Him, even now. Grow in Christ as your wisdom, even as He invites you, as He calls out to you, even now. Amen. Let us stand together in prayer. Our Heavenly Father, we praise Thee that Thou art a perfect and a sinless Father, and Thou dost train us as parents as to how we are to raise our children. And we look to Thee, O Lord, for we are weak, we are frail, we are sinners, we blow it, we fail in every respect it seems. That Thou art a perfect Father, and Thou dost give to us that which is good. Thou dost give to us Jesus, who is our wisdom, to teach us how to raise our children, to be faithful. The fruit of the Spirit Thou dost give unto us, in order that we might, Lord, be faithful and apply wisdom in our raising of our children, training of our children. Father, forgive us. Forgive us as parents for the many ways we have failed. Grant to us, O Lord, a broken and contrite heart before Thee, that we would take these souls that Thou has given to us, that, Lord, we would set God the example before them, that we would teach and instruct them in the ways of the Lord, that, Lord God, we would apply physical discipline and verbal discipline in love and in the context of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Have mercy upon us and our children, O Lord. Lead our families. For we ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Stillwater's Revival Books is now located at PuritanDownloads.com. It's your worldwide online Reformation home for the very best in free and discounted classic and contemporary Puritan and Reformed books, MP3s, and videos. 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