In one of his lessons this year he shared from Deuteronomy 22, a rather unusual passage with a number of illustrations that might seem hard to understand in today's society. However, he summed them up by noting that there are some things that we as believers can not hide from. We can't hide from those who need the Lord. We can't hide from those brothers and sisters who have done astray. And we can't hide from the domestic scene.
He spent considerable time dealing with verse 8, "When you build a new house, then you shall make a parapet for your roof, that you may not bring guilt of bloodshed on your household if anyone falls from it." The verse talks about establishing a parapet or rails on a roof top. In Bible times most folks had flat roofs and they would entertain friends by climbing a set of outside stairs to the roof which was their patio. And it would be the responsibility of the host to have railings around the roof to prevent guests or family members from falling off the roof.
That seems like a strange message in today's world since we don't normally host our family and friends on our roof. But, he equated this to four rails that parents need to establish for their home and in turn for their children.
Rail number one is a home based on the Word of God. Today there are many things competing for the hearts and minds of our children and parents need to establish the Word of God as the foundation of their home. We need to follow Biblical principles and teach the importance of them to our family. Nothing can distract from the importance of that in our home.
The second rail is that of prayer. We as parents need to continually bring our family members before the Lord. We need to pray not only for their daily activities but also that they might develop a passion for the Lord and His kingdom. Unfortunately, sometimes we get too busy to pray, especially for our family. We must have a passion to do this.
Rail number three is righteousness. As parents we need to constantly lead lives ourselves that please the Lord. Our children soon see if we are just serious about Christianity on Sunday or if it is part of our everyday life. How do we react to things? Are we honest in our dealings? How do we treat our family members? Is following Christ in everything really important to us?
And the fourth rail is that of love. Our love for them must be real no matter what they do or how they may fail. And there are times that this can be very difficult, especially if they have strayed away from the Lord. We may not condone their choices but we must love them as Christ loved us, even when we were sinners.
Now if we have all four rails established, then they must step over the rails to fail. And that may happen. It may be impossible to stop them if they make that choice. Our priority is to pray fervently for them, to stand by God's Word, to live righteous lives ourselves, and to love them with our whole heart.
Now my family is grown up and they must establish the four rails for their households. But I still need to uphold the railings in my home and in my dealings with them. Our family is the greatest mission field that God gives us and one which is so often neglected. But it remains our responsibility to establish and maintain these railings.
Years ago my wife and I established several goals that we had for our home and our family. These include these four railings. We have posted them on the wall in our living room as a reminder for us and for them of what we feel is essential in life. And we pray daily that all of our family members will recognize, understand and attempt to follow these "railings" That is our prayer.
Are the four railings established in your home?
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