One of God's purposes of marriage is to reproduce a godly heritage in your children. As Christians, if we have children, we are to mold them to live for Him.
Note: This is part 2 of a 3 part series. Click to read part 1 and part 3.
Here's a riddle for you:
They can be the source of life's greatest joys and greatest sorrows.
They represent our hopes for tomorrow and often are our greatest struggle today.
We pray to be blessed with them and 13 years later wonder what we were thinking!
What are they?
You guessed it -- children.
Our Need to Reproduce
God has placed in the heart of most married couples a desire to have children. This is related to His second purpose for marriage:
God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it." (Genesis 1:28a)
Married couples are to reproduce. Specifically, we are to reproduce children in His "likeness."
In the New Testament we are commanded to, "go and make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19a).
Our responsibility as parents is to raise children who are Christ's disciples. In order to teach our children to be disciples, we must first be good role models.
If we are divisive or competitive with our mate we can not reflect God's image. Our children will respond and learn as we exchange such behavior with quiet, constructive modeling.
All married couples are called to reproduce. This can include biological children, adoption, fostering, and spiritually mentoring others.
Opportunities abound to have a significant impact in the lives of our children or others by helping them to become disciples of Christ.
Our Response
Recalling that the first purpose for marriage is to reflect God's image and the second is to reproduce Christian disciples, read Genesis 1:26-28 and answer the following:
1. Is creating a spiritual disciple of Christ, your top priority for your child? If not, what changes do you need to make?
2. Does your marriage reflect God's image and serve as a good model for your children? If not, what do you need to prayerfully consider changing?
How are you reproducing a godly heritage, whether in your own children or investing in other children?
