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TITLE: Household of God: Christ-Centered Zones – Ephesians 6:1-4 AIM: The family is to be Christ-centered, like all other areas of life. INTRO: As Blythe & I traveled to/from VA last weekend, saw lots of signs which looked something like this (slide) – “Work in Progress” – Work Zones. Had to slow down, of course, & perhaps merge into one lane. A hassle – making good time & all of sudden stalled. Of course, the aim of state/workers is to make the road safe to travel. But seemed at times that passed from 1 wk zone into another. That’s not unlike the Christian life, is it? For most/all of us, there are so many areas of our lives that need work, under construction – wk zones; & we often have to slow down & let God do His wk, & yes, it’s a hassle. Of course, the aim of God is to make us like Christ, to further His Kingdom & glorify His name. Our lives & every area of our lives, should be not only work zones, but Christ-centered zones. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians bears that out. 2013 theme: HofG – understanding that we who are in Christ are together the HofG & seeking to learn from Scripture what it means to be the HofG. I submit to you that members of God’s household move seamlessly (or should) from one Christ-centered zone to another. It’s not that our lives are broken up into zones, but we can recognize areas that need our attention & cooperation w/God as He works in those areas. Our scripture text for today features one of those God ordained/designed Christ-centered zones – the family. Eph.6:1-4 [READ]. As look back over some of what we have covered thruout the year, can recognize that our personal Christian lives are to be Christ-centered. Paul exhorts us who are in Christ to put off the old self (way used to live apart from Christ), learn to think new (God’s instruction thru His Word), & put on the new life (Christ-likeness). Stop lying & speak the truth to one another; stop stealing & start working/giving; stop being controlled by anger, start dealing w/it; stop denigrating others & build others up by your words; stop seeking revenge & start forgiving, etc. Put away that which is not Christ-like & start imitating God. Can see how our own personal relationships w/Christ & personal lives move right into & affect relationships w/others. The Church is also to be a Christ-centered zone – relationships w/in the body & the corporate ministry of Church are to be Christ-centered. Led by the Holy Spirit, we’re to speak into one another’s lives & encourage worship/growth by our examples. And we’re to submit to – place selves under - one another in our thinking/ acting. Then too, the marriage relationship is to be a Christ-centered zone. As Christians, our marriages are to mirror the relationship between Christ & the Church. Wives are to submit to their husbands in the same way as Church is to submit to Christ. Husbands are to love their wives with the same kind of self-sacrificing love expressed by Christ as He gave Himself up for us, dying on the cross. Our text this AM makes it clear that the family, specifically the relationship between parents/children, is to be a Christ-centered zone. Next week we’ll look at vs6-9, which calls for the workplace to also be a Christ-centered zone. All of these are to work together & we should move from one to another w/out hesitation, being focused on, centered in Christ in every area. The family is certainly a vital cog in the wheel of our lives. The development of our children & the growing/working together for Christ of the family unit is of utmost imp. Parents, you may be earnestly pursuing careers, portfolios, but we must realize the absolute imp of our responsibility to our children/family. Nothing is more imp. Your legacy will be your family, & it has to be different in a positive way in the church. Strong, healthy families lead to strong, healthy churches as well as strong, healthy children & future generations. As Paul continued his teaching about imp of submission to one another, having expressed how it was to work in marriage, he then focused on the family – parent/child relationships. As did w/marriage, he began w/the one under authority in the family – children. In the family zone, if you will, children are to obey their parents – submit thru obedience. Note that this is indeed a spiritual matter – “In the Lord.” Out of reverence for Christ, children are to obey their parents. Of course, children have to be taught to obey & to reverence Christ & to understand how the 2 go together. Understand, you who are under your parents’ authority, that God has placed you there, not to squelch your development, but to enhance it, & to protect & guide you. If you have understanding enough that you know Christ as your Savior/Lord, & know that you are to follow Christ, then you should know that obedience to your parents is part/parcel to following Jesus. It’s the right thing to do – “for this is right.” Paul pointed to the 10 Commandments, the 5th one specifically: “Honor your father & your mother…” You honor/esteem your parents by obeying them. Then he reminded us that this is the 1st commandment w/a promise. It’s promising to obey your parents. “That it may go well w/you & that you may live long in the land.” Now, I don’t know for sure, but when my dad said to me, “If you want to see your next birthday…” he may have been referring to that phrase. Living longer depended on my obedience in that moment (never really said that). Rebellion takes away from our lives, as many of us have experienced. Yet, in our sinful nature, rebellion comes so very natural. That’s why we need the discipline of God & of our parents. However it plays out, obedience to our parents as they seek to guide us in doing what is right, is good for us, & we are wise to follow their lead. Of course, just as some wives may have ogres for husbands, some children may have parents who abuse, are bad examples. It such cases, seek help from others – relatives, teachers, pastors, etc. But obedience is the general rule. Also, in this “family zone,” parents are to raise their children well. “Fathers” – includes mothers as well, but Paul makes it clear that fathers are to take the lead in raising their children. Now, mothers are generally w/their children more than the fathers are, but it’s the father’s leading of the family that is to prevail, set the course. That means that fathers must be involved in their children’s lives. Of course, parents are to work together, support one another in the raising/discipline of children, but again, the father needs to take a leading role/responsibility. The bane of families in our society is the absence of the father. Fathers, we must man up & be responsible for our children’s development/well-being. Note that Paul 1st said to fathers that they must not “provoke your children to anger.” That phrase means to “rouse to wrath, exasperate.” Someone by the last name of Wood wrote, “The gospel introduced a fresh element into parental responsibility by insisting that the feelings of the child must be taken into consideration. In a society where the father’s authority was absolute, this represented a revolutionary concept.” Things are much different in our society, where often the child is the central focus, but this admonition by Paul remains true. David Gudzik wrote that “Parents/fathers provoke children to anger, exasperate them thru unkind, over-critical attitudes. In so doing they torment instead of train, giving unnecessary justification to a child’s natural rebellion.” I would suggest we also provoke our children by our absence or ill-treatment or unrealistic expectations. We parents are to influence our children for God, but too often we drive them away from God. We need God’s help – much prayer should be involved in parenting. What we’re supposed to do, w/God’s help is to “bring up” our children – that means to nourish/nurture them up to maturity. Calvin translated “bring them up” as “let them be fondly cherished.” Again, this nurturing to maturity requires your presence, dads! Don’t leave it to your children’s mother or grandparents or Sunday School or Youth Group. Dads, your children need you! And again, bringing up children is to be a Christ-centered process. “Bring them up in the discipline & instruction of the Lord.” That word discipline, according to Strong’s, refers to the “whole training & education of children…the cultivation of mind & morals… [also including] the training & care of the body… [involving] admonition, reproof, punishment… [aiming] at increasing virtue…” Discipline is aimed at shaping the person, & parents are entrusted by God w/the privileged responsibility of shaping their children. Obviously God is the Potter & He shapes those who are His, but He definitely uses parents to shape their children. Gudzik correctly pointed out that “both [these words – discipline/instruction, training/admonition] are used to describe the purpose of the Scriptures. Parents are to raise their children on the Word of God. That wd “instruction” is “nouthesia.” Counseling which is called “nouthetic” is counsel/admonition based on the truth. What does God say? That’s how we are to teach our children. Of course, we must know the truth of Scripture if we’re going to teach it to our children. And we need God the Holy Spirit to teach us, as we read/study His word. So, our families – parent/children relationships – are to be Christ-centered. Is your home Christ-centered? It’s imp not only for the sake of the family/children, but also for the church – this church. Christ-centered homes = strong, healthy families; & strong, healthy families lead to strong, healthy churches. That should be our hope/aim, which means we should be praying for each other & all the families of our church because we are a household of households. We are the Household of God!