Telling the Truth

Host (Female): Today, our guest speaker, Charles Price, concludes his message "Experiencing the Parenting of God," with more encouragement about our always good, always loving Heavenly Father. He'll get started in just a moment.

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Now, let's go to our guest speaker, Charles.

Guest (Charles Price): Aureliano, the silversmith, is working in his shop one day when he realizes he cannot remember the name for the little anvil he uses. His father, Jose, tells him the name. Aureliano wrote the name on a piece of paper, and he pasted it to the base of the small anvil, "stake."

It didn't occur to him that this was the first manifestation of a loss of memory, but a few days later, he discovered that he had trouble remembering almost every object in the laboratory. Then he marked them with their respective names so that all he had to do was read the inscription in order to identify them.

He realized that the day might come when things would be recognized by their inscriptions, but that no one would remember their use. So he became more explicit. The sign he hung on the neck of the cow was an exemplary proof of the way in which the inhabitants of Macondo were prepared to fight against their loss of memory. This is the cow. She must be milked every morning so she will produce milk, and the milk must be boiled in order to be mixed with coffee to make coffee and milk.

And the story goes on. There were their loss of memory, loss of direction, loss of meaning, loss of purpose. Parents, build good memories in the lives of your kids because there'll be times when they don't know what's coming ahead and they can always look back.

And look back with the security that good memories bring, and we need to think as parents about doing things, good experiences that we plan for our children. Not to give them everything, of course. So nothing is special anymore. But keeping certain things to be special and memorable.

So the advice to the parents given by Moses is, bring good memories to your children. Parents are to build memories for their children. Secondly, parents are to teach their children. Because Deuteronomy chapter 6, verse 4 to 7 says, "The Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength. These commands are to be upon your heart. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you get up."

Now, parents, don't shirk this responsibility. We're grateful for the universal education available to us. We can send our children to school. But they only learn so much at school.

Children may learn facts at school, but they will learn their values at home. Children may gain knowledge at school, but they should learn wisdom at home. You don't learn wisdom from a textbook.

You see, we live in a day when information is available to us freely and easily. We talk about information technology. There is no such thing as wisdom technology. Where did I get those statistics from about divorce in Canada? I pressed a few buttons on my computer. That's where I got them from. Off the internet. But you can't do that for wisdom. You learn wisdom in the home.

And kids will not learn wholesome morality at school because we live in an age of tolerance. We don't want to be judgmental. That's a bad thing. So who's going to teach your children to judge correctly? We are as parents.

It was once true that we could assume the Judeo-Christian ethic at the heart of society. But that is simply not true anymore. There isn't a Judeo-Christian ethic anymore at the heart of our society. Tolerance is at the heart of our society for anything, as long as you don't hurt anybody else.

So where do children learn their morality? Parents, they learn it at home. It's our job to teach them and show them. In Deuteronomy 11, verse 19 and 21, he says there about the Lord, "Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, and when you lie down and when you get up." That covers most of life.

Talk about these things when you sit, when you walk, when you lie down, when you get up. And then he says, "Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates." Well, let me pick up those two phrases quickly. Talk about them when you walk along the road. Of course, they used to walk along the road then because that's the only way you traveled. Now, we don't walk along the road. We jump into the car, and what do we do when we get in the car first thing? Put on the CD.

You've got kids, that is. Put on the radio if you're boring. Noise, little time to talk. And he talks about walking along the road. It's good to do that. Take your family for a walk. It's a great time to talk. There's no agenda. You just talk naturally. You've got time. Nothing else to interrupt you. No television.

And kids who don't talk to their parents. I worked with young people for the last 25 years of my life before I came here. And often kids who felt unable to talk to their parents found they were bottling up so much else. And they weren't able to get it out. And just to talk sometimes was such a relief to them, just to talk. Counselors will tell you, one of the greatest services they can provide to people is just being an ear to listen, to let them talk. It's in the home. We need to talk and provide opportunities to talk.

And when he says, "Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates," it'd be a bit bizarre if we did that literally. But meaning that there are symbols in your home, all around your home, of truth. And part of the routine as your family is that you bring God in. You pray at mealtimes together. That's so important. That you pray at bedtimes. There'll come a time, of course, when your children will not want that. And that's okay.

But while they're young, when they're young, praying with their bedtimes, a great time to talk and doing things together like this, to instill your values, sponsor a needed child together as a family is a great way to show the care that needs to be part of our lives for other people. Giving together to some need or some person teaches our children. This is important.

We consciously bring God in to every part of family life. So parents are to teach their children. Thirdly, parents are to be an example to their children. Again in Deuteronomy, several verses, but just very quickly, Deuteronomy 4:40: "Keep these decrees and commands which I am giving you today so that it will go well with you and your children after you."

"You obey God," he says, "it'll go well with your children after you." Deuteronomy chapter 6, "These are the commands, decrees, and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you, to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess so that you, your children, and their children after them may fear the Lord your God." In other words, as you teach and you obey, rather, you obey what God has given you, this in itself will impact your children.

Deuteronomy 12:28: "Be careful to obey all these regulations I'm giving you so that it may go well with you and your children after you." Interesting because these verses teach the obedience of the parents to God is going to leave its mark on their children and their grandchildren. Their children's children, he says here.

There's a saying you probably heard before, "The best things in life are not taught, they're caught." I know the people who've impacted me most in my life have not just been those who've explained things well to me, though I'm grateful for that, but those whose lives have created an appetite in me for something better that they seem to have.

You see, what we see is always more real to us than what we hear. In the old days, when they used to show real-to-real films, sometimes, if you remember those days, as many of you probably do, sometimes the soundtrack would not be well synchronized. And the speech would be slightly behind the movement on the screen. And whenever you experience that, and I grew up with Christian films and most of them were like that. He used to show on Saturday nights, as evangelistic things.

But whenever the speech was not synchronized, the comment always made, "The speech is slow." Nobody ever said, "The visuals are fast." Why? Because the visuals are what's real. And you measure the speech in its relation to what you see. You see, whatever you say to your kids, what they see is going to be more real to them.

And as parents, we need to allow children to see the reality of God in our lives. That means we need them, allow them to see our vulnerability as well. That's where you see God in our weakness. You see, it doesn't mean you have to be a perfect parent to model something to your children. Not at all. It just means you have to be honest about your failures. It means you have to learn to say sorry as a parent.

You see, the reality of God in our lives will be seen in how we respond to failure, how we respond to mistakes, how we respond to wrong, how we respond to sin in our own lives. I mean, your kids know you're not perfect. I mean, they know you. But make sure it's you that tell them you're not perfect, not them that have to tell you.

Because out of that vulnerability and weakness, we become an example. And able our children in their failures, and they will fail, in their mistakes, and they will make them, in their sin, and they will commit them, to know what to do because they've seen it modeled and the word "sorry" is not an unfamiliar word to them.

And the fourth thing is the parent's behavior has consequences on their children. Deuteronomy talks about this both positively and negatively. Positively, in Deuteronomy 5:29: "Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always so that it may go well with them and their children forever."

If they will fear me, incline their hearts to me, it'll have consequences on their children. It'll go well with their children, he says. Deuteronomy 12, verse 25, writing about the prohibition of eating blood, that's the context. He says, "Don't eat it so that it may go well with you and your children after you because you'll be doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord. Because you do what is right, it'll go well with your children." Now, the point is this, that obedience of the parents is going to bring good consequences to the children.

Host (Female): We'll get back to Charles's message in a moment. But first, we want to share this note from a listener named Joy, who says, "I love your broadcasts so much. They cheer me up and encourage me too." Thanks for the encouragement, Joy. That's the kind of encouragement your support today will bring to more people around the world as you help share the teaching and resources of Telling the Truth so others can experience life in Christ.

And we'd like to encourage you this month with a wonderful four-message series from Jill Briscoe, called "Eight Things That Make a Marriage Work," as well as a beautiful printed Bible verse about marriage. In her series, Jill Briscoe teaches eight biblical keys to a healthy, life-giving marriage and shares her own insights from her 60 years of marriage to Stuart. We'll send you "Eight Things That Make a Marriage Work" and the Bible verse print as thanks for your gift today to help more people experience life in Christ through the teaching resources of Telling the Truth.

Your support enables countless people across the globe to stand strong in the unchanging truth of Scripture. And we're so grateful for friends like you. Request your copy of "Eight Things That Make a Marriage Work" when you call 1-800-889-5388. That's 1-800-889-5388. Or, you can give online at TellingTheTruth.org. Now, here's guest speaker Charles Price, once again.

Guest (Charles Price): Every act of obedience that we as parents make to God is an act of investment in the well-being of our children. That indicates. You see, we serve our children well by living with integrity. Proverbs 14:26 says, "He who fears the Lord has a secure fortress and for his children it'll be a refuge." The one who fears the Lord, his children have a refuge, a hiding place to come running back to that's secure. My mum, my dad, fear God and love God. That's one of the greatest contributions we can make to our children is to fear God.

But it's also true negatively that the disobedience of parents can have bad consequences on the children. Deuteronomy chapter 5 talks about this, talking about worshiping false gods. And Deuteronomy 5:9 says, "You will not bow down to them or worship them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers, to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me." What does that mean, "punishing the children for the sins of the fathers?" Does that mean God is vindictive in some way and takes it out on the children?

Well, no, God is not vindictive, but it is the natural consequence. That is, that when the parents live in disobedience and mess up their lives because they will not obey God, there are going to be consequences negatively in their children. And this principle has been seen so many, many times. And maybe some of us here today feel that you're reaping the consequences of your parents' behavior, by great emotional or psychological damage that has resulted in your own life.

Although that's a solemn warning there in Deuteronomy, it isn't, fortunately, the final word on the subject in the Scriptures, because later Jeremiah talks about this very thing when he speaks about the new covenant that God is going to make with his people. When he's going to send Christ, who's going to reconcile humanity to God and put his spirit in men again, men and women again. And he says of that event, talking about the new covenant that's coming in Jeremiah 31:29, "In those days, people will no longer say, 'The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge.' Instead, everyone will die for his own sins. Whoever eats sour grapes, his own teeth will be set on edge."

"The day's coming," says Jeremiah, or says God to Jeremiah, "when I'm going to intervene and make it possible that children can be liberated from the sins of their parents." Because by coming into Christ, you get a new, you become a new creation and you develop a new past. Your past can be cleansed. Now, I don't pretend there aren't psychological issues that people face from their past, but here's hope that in Christ that cycle can be broken. We know the cycle of often children who've grown up in homes where the father abused the mother, they grew up to treat their wives the same way, and they grew up to treat their wives the same way.

Not because they want to, but because somehow this is the way it's done. But that process, that cycle can be broken when we come to Christ. We become a new creation. Old things pass away, and we have resources now for newness of life, newness of living.

So the four things in Deuteronomy: parents are to build memories for their children. Remember, remember, remember, don't forget. Parents are to teach their children. Although we entrust our children to our schools, the wisdom and values they will learn at home. Parents are to be an example to their children. The children see the realities in their lives.

And parents' behavior has consequences on their children. We can damage our children unless we learn to walk humbly with God and obedience to him. You know, if these things are true of parents, if God reveals himself as a parent, they're true of God. God gives his children memories. Every time we take the communion, "do this," says Jesus, "in remembrance." I want you to have good memories here.

God teaches us, that's why he's given us his word and given us his Holy Spirit. One of the tasks of the Holy Spirit is to lead us into truth. God has given us an example in giving to us Christ. In him we see the model of what true humanity is meant to be. And God has acted in ways that have consequences in our lives. We can relax in his love, in his patience, in his kindness, and in his grace.

And I suppose it's probably true when we stand before God in heaven, the question won't be, "What kind of worker were you? What kind of businessman were you? What kind of pastor were you?" It's probably, "What kind of father were you?" It's probably the more important question. "What kind of husband were you? What kind of wife were you?" But one last thing, don't set out to produce perfect children because you won't, because they've inherited your genes. And also, it's not your business.

Host (Female): You're hearing from guest speaker Charles Price with today's teaching on Telling the Truth. He'll be back shortly with the conclusion of his message. But before he returns, whether you're already married or plan to get married someday, you'll want to know how to build a marriage that's not only long-lasting, but also joy-filled. That's why we'd love to send you Jill Briscoe's four-message series "Eight Things That Make a Marriage Work" as thanks for your gift of support this month.

In it, Jill shares timeless truth on marriage from the Bible, along with practical day-to-day advice from her own marriage to Stuart. You'll find that Jill's wit and wisdom make this series a fun and encouraging listen that's sure to encourage you at whatever stage of marriage you find yourself. And as extra thanks for your gift, we'll also send you a beautifully printed Bible verse about marriage to encourage you each day. Through your generous gift today, you'll help more people experience abundant life in Christ through the unchanging truth of God's Word as you make it possible for Telling the Truth broadcasts like this one to continue going out across the globe.

So be sure to request your copy of "Eight Things That Make a Marriage Work" when you give a gift today. Call 1-800-889-5388. That's 1-800-889-5388 or give online at TellingTheTruth.org. Now, here's Charles with the conclusion of today's message.

Guest (Charles Price): We need to set out to be a good parent, but we leave the results to God. There are only two men in the scriptures described as being sons of God. Jesus was the son of God, and Luke in his genealogy goes right back to Adam and says, "Adam was the son of God."

Adam, the son of God, had a perfect father, placed in a perfect environment. He was given perfect instruction. He had a perfect example, but he turned out to be a rebel. God knows what it's like to have prodigal sons, and there's nothing wrong with his parenting. You see, we can't guarantee our children. We can teach them wisdom. We can't guarantee they will learn it.

It's still true as Proverbs says, "Train up a child in the way he should go when he's old, he will not depart from it." And by the way, that's not a promise. Don't try claiming that one as a promise. It's a proverb. That means proverbially, generally, you train a child in the way he should go and he'll stick with it. But Proverbs also tells us a man may have a fool for a son.

I talked to a lady last week, struggling with her 14 and 16-year-old sons. Her husband has left the home, and she's struggling with them. Finds it very difficult to exercise any control over them. Lovely lady. I said, "Have they recently gone out of control?" She said, "No, it's become harder now, but they've always been difficult to control." I didn't say this to her, of course, but it's true, and I thought, you know, if you want to train your teens, don't start training them when they're 13, 14, 15, 16. You train your teens when they're three, four, five, and six. That's when you produce a teenager.

Wordsworth wrote, "The child is father to the man." The child is father to the man. The kind of child a person is produces the kind of man or woman they become. And our responsibility as parents, with love and kindness, with clear parameters in the home, clear, secure understanding of what the children do. And of course, those parameters grow as the children grow. They get extended as the children grow.

Inside the parameters, free to live as they please. Outside, there are consequences. And the child becomes the man and the woman. Well, it's a solemn responsibility. And in the 21st century, this is just a little bit of wisdom from one of the most ancient books in the world, written by Moses, an old man, the year before he died.

"I want to remind you," he says, "about history." In these last years, what God has done. "I want to remind you so you parents will take these things and you'll teach them to your children. You'll bring them into the experience of your children, that your children will become men and women of God in years to come." And you can't beat that in the 21st century because the basic needs are still the same.

Host (Female): Thank you, Charles. We hope today's message encouraged you. Before we go, remember that when you give today to help keep Telling the Truth broadcasts like this one going out around the world, we'll send you "Eight Things That Make a Marriage Work," Jill's four-message series, all about how you can build a strong, fulfilling marriage that stands the test of time.

So call now to give and remember to request "Eight Things That Make a Marriage Work," along with the Bible verse print on marriage, with our thanks. 1-800-889-5388. 1-800-889-5388. Or, you can give online at TellingTheTruth.org.

Thanks for listening today. We hope you'll tune in again tomorrow to hear Stuart Briscoe's teaching on a passage of Scripture that's become quite controversial over the years. Join us next time and experience life on Telling the Truth.