A Family of Hope, Part 1

May, 2004

by: Brock Bolde

I don't know about you, but the more that I look around at the craziness that is stemming from our culture, the more excited I get about what God is going to do. The more I see the family coming under attack and attempting to be redefined by those proponents of the homosexual agenda, the more I believe that God is preparing His people/church for some pretty amazing ministry. We are living in a time in which the boundaries are being stretched and the lines are attempting to be blurred like never before. The cry in our society is tolerance — but only for those who are tolerant of everyone! I believe that we are living in an age in which there is enormous opportunity to boldly stand and trust in the awesome promises that are found in the Word of God; and nowhere is this need to take a stand greater than in the family.

The family has always been the primary means in which God's people were to teach His truths to the next generation. It is within the context of the family that children have the opportunity of being sinned against; for they are no doubt living with a group of people that are not yet saved or at various stages of the sanctification process. There is no doubt that within the context of the family they will hear unkind words spoken and see unkind acts done. It is here that they will wrestle with the internal and external displays of selfishness, anger, pride, etc. But beyond all of these things there is something far greater that our children will have the opportunity to experience — that is the message of redemption. As Christian parents, we have the charge and the privilege of letting our children know about our great Redeemer, Jesus Christ. We get to be the ones to let them know about the great love of God and how, because of that great love, He sent His one and only unique Son into this world to die for our sins. We get to tell them about why He was mocked and beaten; why, although He had done nothing wrong, He was crucified; why the wrath of the Father was poured out on Him. And then, we get to tell them of His power; how the grave was not powerful enough to hold Him; how He rose on the third day and talked with His disciples and was seen by more than 500 witnesses; how He ascended into Heaven; how, some–time very soon, He will return to establish His kingdom.

As we instill these glorious truths into the lives of our children, we bring them to the one and only place where true hope and help can be found — the Lord Jesus Christ. It is here that our families shine like bright lights in a dark and lost world. It is here that the truth of the Scriptures can be revealed for all to see so that the wisdom of this age is unmasked and able to be seen as the foolishness that it is. The need for faithfulness to the leading and shepherding of the family is indeed great! God has called us to be a people of hope, even while in the midst of a fallen world. I know of no better means in which to fan the flames of this hope than to pass it along to the next generation of believers that are living under our roofs. May God give us all the strength and the resolve to accomplish this great work!