Biblical Manhood - Raising Children Part 2

The last time I posed three questions about raising children in the training and admonition of the Lord. Last time I explained briefly why this is important to God. Today we want to look at what the training and admonition of the Lord means.

Specifically the verse says to “bring up” children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. What does it mean to “bring up”.

“Bring up” means “to nourish”. Think about plants. In order to nourish a plant we need to know the 1) Conditions for healthy growth; 2)Be familiar with that particular kind of plant; and 3) Provide what’s needed on a daily basis.

This responsibility with children is given by God to the Fathers. Fathers then delegate part of the responsibility to the mother. It is the father’s responsibility to know each child, what he/she needs and how he/she can best be nourished. He then prescribes the care that will be needed.

The Bible teaches us that the Word is nourishment. There is the milk of the Word and the meat of the Word. A father needs to know what each child needs from Scripture in order to meet the specific needs of the child at this particular stage of life. See Hebrews 5:12 and I Peter 2:2

Know your children, what they are thinking and where they are in their development. This takes insightful questions and thoughtful listening regularly. In order to be faithful men as dads we need to take this responsibility seriously. In order to do that we need to be men who know the Word, studying it and meditating on it so that we will be thoroughly equipped to spiritually nourish our children.