Called to Serve Family

 When we look at the family in today’s culture, I think a lot of us may ask, “Where is the family?”  Sadly, in today’s culture, in and out of the church, the family unit has changed dramatically.  Some people try to argue that this could still be a good thing and should not necessarily be looked at as a negative, but let me argue that many of the ills we have in our society is because of the breakdown of the family unit.

Malachi 4:6

And he will turn

The hearts of the fathers to the children,

And the hearts of the children to their fathers,

Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”

One of the reasons I believe the breakdown has occurred is because I believe the Millennial Generation would be better classified as “The Fatherless Generation.”  We have a generation as adults now that grew up in single parent homes with the majority of those homes being single mother scenarios.  Now, by saying this is a negative thing, am I saying that single mothers are weak and failures?  Absolutely not!  In fact, I think single mothers are amazing and should be praised for the challenges that they have met and overcome raising a child on their own.  However, biblically speaking, this is not the scenario that God wanted for His creation.  God did not want men to be absent from the family unit so much that God set in the law of Moses, strict guidelines for the men of Israel to do to help widows who had children.  In fact, the whole law of a Kinsman Redeemer has this principle at heart.  Thankfully, we have the promise of God that He will ultimately turn the hearts of the fathers to the children.

So, why the breakdown?  Why do we have this “fatherless” generation?  Ultimately it’s because of turning away from God’s Word and obedience to Him.  Especially when it comes to the sanctity of marriage.  I’m speaking as a young single man that is still in the dating world today.  We are lambasted with a culture that states that there is no problem with sleeping with your partner outside of marriage.  This has taken commitment out of our society.  Think about that for a moment.  This is a very truthful statement and if we look at our culture, we see it now more than ever.  How many people stay committed to even the basic tasks anymore?  Ask a teacher how focused their student body stays anymore?  For crying out loud, and ironic at the same time, look at the dating world.  I see social media post after post of women begging for a man that can be committed and faithful.  Why do we have this problem?  Again, because if we don’t show commitment to something as serious as the sanctity of marriage, then why should we on anything else?  The reason why the sanctity of marriage has been bucked against is the same reason why all sin has taken place.  Men are selfish at heart.  We want to fulfill our deepest desires and have them now.  Besides being a fatherless generation, we are also the immediate gratification generation as well.

So what does God’s Word say about how we are to serve the family and to keep these things sacred.  

Number one, men, we are called to a very high calling.  As husbands, we are called to be the exact replicas of Christ in the home.  You read that right.  The exact replica of God.  Ephesians 5:25 says,

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,

We are to love our lives exactly as Christ loves us.  Do you know what that means?  That means serving her, healing her, feeding her, supplying her needs, meeting her in her storms, and even loving her to the point where you sacrifice everything for her.  Has Jesus ever cheated on His church?  Of course not!  Did Jesus come to earth to only tease us with a relationship and then never follow through?  Absolutely not!  Again, men, our example is Christ and that is such a huge calling.

Number two, ladies, you have a high calling yourself, especially at the point that me will hold strong to verse 25.

Ephesians 5:22-23 says,

22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.

While we have a loss of commitment from men, there is also a loss of commitment from women.  Look at those verses closely though.  It promises that Christ is the Savior of the body.  If men uphold their promise to love their wife as Christ loves the church, then it would fall into place that a wife would submit to the husband.

However, I believe the biggest challenge for us as believers and the biggest way we are called to serve family is found in Proverbs 22:6,

Train up a child in the way he should go,

And when he is old he will not depart from it.

This is the greatest way that we can serve in a family.  I don’t want to expound on this too much for this devotion because I really don’t think it is needed.  Consider it,  if we upheld this verse, wouldn’t everything else I previously mentioned just fall into place?