ABOUT OUR CHILDREN

Children grow up with no clear understanding of right and wrong and with little direction to their lives. The greatest responsibility that God gives parents is the nurture and guidance of their children.

 Proverbs 13:24 says “He that spareth his rod hated his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.”

It is not easy for a loving parent to discipline a child, but it is necessary. Lack of discipline puts parents’ love in question because it shows a lack of concern for the character development of their children.  Disciplining children averts long-range disaster. Don’t be afraid to discipline your children. It is an act of love. Remember, however, that your efforts cannot make your children wise, they can only encourage your children to seek God’s wisdom above all else.

There is this old saying “A rotten apple spoils the barrel”. Our friends and associates affect us, sometimes profoundly. Parents should know their children’s friends and help in advising them to select godly children as friends. Proverbs 13:20 says “He that walketh with the wise men shall be wise; but a companion of fools shall be destroyed”

When the friends of your children are godly, definitely, they will impact godly values in them and they will not compromise their path in order to gain worldly acceptance. But when you leave your children unchecked as regards to the friends they keep, they may fall into the hands of the foolish children who will turn them away from God and as a result obtain that destruction that comes with following foolish friends. Mathew 18:6 says “But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it was better for them that a milestone were hanged about his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea”.

Children are trusting by nature. Because they trust adults, they are easily led to faith in Christ. God holds parents and other adults accountable for how they influence these little ones. Jesus warned that anyone who turns little children away from faith in Him will receive severe punishment.

2 Cor 6:14 says “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness”

There is every inclination for a growing child to make friends with godly if not guided. It is the duty of the parent/s to do everything in their power to avoid a situation that could force their children to make friends with the ungodly; this does not mean isolating them from the ungodly, because it might weaken their Christian commitment, integrity, or standards. Hebrews 12:9 says “Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the father of spirits and live?

Who loves his children more – the father who allows the children to do what will harm him or the one who corrects trains and even punishes the children to help him learn what is right? It’s never pleasant to be corrected and disciplined by God, but his discipline is a sign of His deep love for us. So when parents correct their children, they should make them understand it as a proof of your love and not hatred.

 2 Timothy 2:16 says “But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness”

Parents should know that what they do is more important to their children than what they say and who they are is more important than what they do. Therefore, they should not argue in front of their children because such argument will get them confused and even harmful to their physic.

DOES GOD JOIN ALL MARRIAGES BETWEEN A MAN AND WOMAN TOGETHER?

God's purpose was that two people come together as one and made one by an act of commitment followed by sexual union and should continue until death separate them or act of unfaithfulness or desertion. It is by the act of sexual union that a man and a woman are made one, joined together in the act by God. God's law of marriage applies to all men whether they are Christians or not because all will stand before the judgement seat of Christ one day and give an account of the things they have done in the body as stated in 2 cor.5:10 "For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body".

When we look at the bible teaching on marriage as mentioned by Jesus in Matt 19:5-6, God joins marriages between man and a woman together. God said in Genesis 2:24, that when a man and woman leave their parents and are married for the first time it is acceptable to God. Once they are married,God has joined them together and no man can separate them. This is God's law of marriage. God emphasizes that this union is not made by man but by God. Does this refers only to a christian marriage? If that were true, then all non-Christian marriages would not be marriages, they would simply be a man and woman living together in an adulterous relationship.

When two people are joined in a marriage and they consummate that relationship in the marriage bed, it is a union made by God. Even the marriage that was consummated as an act of rebellion against God is still a marriage which God has made into an indissolvable union. This does not make God guilty of sin because He cannot sin. Rather,in accomplishing His divine purpose, God ultilizes the sinful desires of man. For example, God allowed the brothers of Joseph to commit the dastardly crime of selling their younger brother into slavery so that later, Joseph, as Prime Minister of Egypt, would be able to save them from starvation. Likewise, God can utilize a sinfully contracted marriage for His own purposes. God informs us that once a marriage is consummated, a union has come into being by the action of God. 

Then when we talk about Christians being  an unequally yoked with unbelievers as mentioned in 2 Corinthians 6:14, the most common understanding of this verse is that Paul is telling Christians not to marry an unbeliever. He clearly said this in his first letter to the Corinthians. That is an appropriate interpretation and application. Contrary to the wisdom of our age that says what we believe is really not important in the grand scheme of things and that two different religions should have no problem living under the same roof, the reality is the opposite. If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, you have no business entering into a marriage with a non-Christian. More than that, as a follower of Christ you are united with Christ and He dwells in you by the presence of the Holy Spirit. With your spouse you are also to become one. You are to be united in a deep and very real spiritual way. That can’t happen if your spirit is united with Christ and theirs is not.

But the imagery and context here goes beyond that of marriage. The verses following 6:14 bring to mind images related to worship. The Corinthians had a huge problem living in the midst of numerous temples to false gods and a society that was built on such idolatry. Paul is telling the Corinthians to make sure that they keep their fellowship with Christ and their worship of God free from the pollution of idolatry. The references to the Temple, to idols, to Belial, and a quote from Leviticus and Isaiah bring the worship context to the foreground. This is a verse about compromising who God is and our worship of Him. We are not to mix with the religious practices of the idolatry of the world.

EXTRA-MARITAL AFFAIR

An extramarital affair is the most difficult situation that can affect a marital relationship. It eliminates the emotional bond between spouses, violates the basic trust each partner has for each other and it jeopardizes the health and well being of both parties. An affair is not only a sexual event—it is an emotional event. It is usually a consequence of the emotional distance between the married couple. In a rather paradoxical manner, the extramarital affair may also temporarily create closeness between the couple but will ultimately send the relationship into a terrifying state of panic. Usually, poor relationships between a husband and wife result in one of them or both seeking extramarital affairs. Sometimes, the involved partner will justify that the affair is an attempt at “disrupting the status quo” in his or her marriage - that is you must live together as custom demands but can still catch some fun outside because it is accepted in the world). If the relationship has drifted into stagnation, lack of emotional contact, habitual criticism and argument, constant conflict, or just plain emotional distance and coolness, then the affair will eventually put the final nail into the coffin. Culture does play a very significant role in our attitudes and actions regarding marriage. Christian marriage must not be shaped by culture, but by the cross of Christ, the Word of God, and the Spirit of God: Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts, which wage war against the soul (1 Peter 2:11; Romans 12:1-2; Ephesians 4:17-24). When Christians comes to marriage, we dare not allow the world (our culture) to shape our thinking, our attitudes, or our actions. WHOSOEVER INDULGES IN EXTRAMARITAL AFFAIR LACKS UNDERSTANDING AND DESTROYS HIS OWN SOUL! DO NOT ALLOW FIVE MINUTES EXTRAMARITAL PLEASURE DESTROY YOUR SOUL! The consequences are too much to bear.

Most times, why people engage themselves in extra-marital affairs is this single reason that they are not satisfied by their partners or their partners do not have time for them. Marriage is not where you can go out to catch some fun when you are not satisfied at home. It is sacred! If you are not satisfied sexually, it is your responsibility to work on improving your sex life until it gets better. This flimsy reason for engaging in extra-marital affair will only take you to hell eventually if you do not repent now.

There is no place for all fornicators and adulterers in heaven. Be wise!