FAMILY CONFERENCE CANADA, 5-18 Aug. 2000

Given by bro. C.B. Beekhuizen, Holland

A Bible study for parents and their “new-millennium children”

Every new generation has their own spiritual war, with their idols and the spirits behind this idols. Special the new generation children has their “Baal’s and Astharots” for this modern time of technology. The “Lord’s and Love’s” in our time are the same as in the time of Israel and the first Christians and they will have a big influence among our younger ones (Judge 2:12,13).

A Bible study about this influences is very needy and we are willing to try in a couple of notes out of the Biblical history to give some counselling how to handle with this influences. We need grace and spiritual power from the Lord Jesus to overcome the special needs of this New Age problems.

A first look give us a impression of our needs from the book of Judges, chapter 1:21,21. We see the hero Kaleb, a strong believer who hold stand against the tall men of Enak. But in verse 21 we see what is the result when we are unobidient to the Lord and when we live together with ungodly men, the men of this world, who will reign in the land of God. God’s judgement will come soon when men are not willing to repent! (Judge 1:1-5)

We will begin with the prayer of our Lord in John 17 to see the reason why the Lord Jesus was come down on earth to help us in the fight with sin and the devil.

Vs. 1 We see, it goes all over the honour of the name of Jehovah and His Son Jesus Christ!

Vs. 2 He has all the power in heaven and on earth. The connection with Acts 13:47-49 makes it clear that all people on earth who believe in God, was before they believe in God’s thoughts and they all are saved by grace only. But only those who accepted Jesus as their personal Saviour and Lord! (John. 1:12,13)

Vs. 3 Eternal live is, through accepting Jesus as Lord and having the Holy Spirit indwelling, knowing God as Father (see 1 John 2:13 and Rom. 8:9-16).

Vs. 4 The work of our Lord is finished now. He took the sins of all believers on the cross and gave eternal live to them.

Vs. 5,6 The glory of our Lord will be seen in His saved people, who hold His word in a bad time (see Rev. 3:8)

Vs. 7 This people gave all the honour to the Lord Jesus and His Father alone, not to men or idols.

Vs. 8 They will believe that Jesus came from heaven, send trough His Father, out of love (John. 3:16).

Vs.9 Jesus prayed for all His people, not for people who don’t accept Him (1 John. 2:15). This is very important to know, because there is a difference between disciples who follow the Lord and His doctrine only in their minds and disciples who follow their Lord and Saviour by faith out of a pure heart only (2 Tim. 2:20-22). We see that the Lord had prayed for Peter, not for Judas! Therefore it is important to make the right discission before it is to late! (Heb. 3:15; 4:7; Prov. 23:26).

Vs.10 All what we see and what there will be in the unseen world is under the autority of Jesus and His Father. All men who are saved are His in a special way. They are servants to serve their Lord and other people to be an example for unbelievers around them.

Vs. 11 We as believers are still in this bad world and Satan is there to disturb our mind and work for the Lord. His power is broken on the cross, but still he has autority over all unsaved men and worldly Christians. Therefore we feel often their influence in our Christian life! Only when we accept and putt on the whole armour of God, we will be save (Eph. 6:11-18).

Vs. 12 During the time that Jesus walked with His disciples, He cared them in a special way. They had not yet received in that time the Holy Spirit, because the Lord’s work was not yet completed. Still they has during their testimony among the Israelites power in the Name of the Lord Jesus! Later only Judas was falling down and apart, because he was a hypocrite and not a real believer, only in name!

Vs. 13 In the real believer the Lord’s gladness will be in them. That is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22). This joy will be there when we are in difficulties and pain too (see Acts 16:25). In a special way this joy will be there when we call the Name of our Lord around His altar, in the New Testament the table of the Lord (Ezr. 3:2-11; 1 Cor. 11).

Vs. 14 The reacting of the unsaved world around us is most time against us, special when we say that only our Lord Jesus is the way, the truth and the live. (2 Tim. 3:12; 4:2,3; Heb. 10:32-39; 11:6; 1 Pet. 4:11; John 14:6).

Vs. 15 When people have not yet make their discission for the Lord Jesus, there will be no hope for them without the Lord. At the end the devil will come and he will take their souls to hell! This is the way for name-believers too, when they not repent themselves on time!

Vs. 16,17 When men repent themselves, he will be saved from the eternal judgment, what will come over this world. He will be saved from darkness tot the light of God (1 Pet. 2:9). Still we are in this world, but this world is no longer in us! You will be holy in the Lord Jesus and trough His Word (John. 13:10; 15:3. You are free (John. 8:31)!

Vs. 18,19 From that holy moment of repenting and born again, we are all missionaries, each in their own place, at school, work or in other countries. The Lord Jesus will care you in His way (Prov. 16).

Vs. 20 Then some people will listen to your testimony and they will feel the prayers of Jesus

Vs. 21 When the love of Christ is reign in us, then their will be a real and lovely union among believers. The Lord Jesus can give in that way His power and the world among us will see this (Acts 5:13; 19:20). They will see that the wisdom of our Lord is in us, to set men free of sin and fleshly reactions. They will see the union among real believers who are willing their Lord willingly and in obedience and as real disciples. (Acts 4:13; Rom. 12:1).

Vs. 22 In that case the same things will be happened as among the first Christians and in the case by Moses. His face was glanced by the grace and holiness of God! (see Stephanos in Acts 6:15).

Vs. 23,24 At the end of the time, when Jesus comes in His glory, then we will see all things clear such as they are (1 Cor. 13:9-12).

Vs. 25,26 Only them who has confessed the Lord Jesus as their personal Lord and Saviour and knowing the Father, will feel how much God the father loves them!

The danger of backsliding

Instead all this fine things, there is a real danger of backsliding among Christians, special in this end-time! When we fall back in the worldly things and begin to love the world like the Israelites, who looked back to Egypt and Lot’s wife, who looked back to Sodom, we will be without fruit! We lost the peace of God and we are under the judgement of the Lord Jesus! We can learn that from Heb. 10:26-31 and in Judges 2:14-15

In this case we will seen what to do as parents and as children, to care ourselves from this judgement over sin and unobidience to the Lord. We will make a special study about this subject in our chapter 7 of our study about family counselling

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