Sermon Tone Analysis

Parent-Child Dedication

INTRODUCTION: A parent/child dedication is a special time in the life of a church.

The opportunity to welcome children into the church community, for parents to make a public commitment to raise their children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord and for us as a faith family to assure these parents that they are not alone, but we stand with them and will seek to partner with them to point their children to Jesus.

This is a beautiful picture of the Gospel.

TRANSITION: God chose to fulfill the promise (of the Rescuer) He made in

Genesis 3

through the most vulnerable of creatures, a baby.

Children were special to Jesus.

Jesus did not turn the children away when the disciples felt that kids “just got in the way.”

Unfortunately, this is in many ways how adults (even Christians) view children.

They’re either “in the way” or they’re “worshipped” spoiled and given only the best of the best.

This leads to a child who will grow up believing they deserve more than the world is willing to give them.

We want to lead them to find their highest joy in Jesus.

CHILDREN ARE SYMBOLIC: Throughout the Scripture children are symbolic.

Seeing children helps us understand how God sees us…

TRANSITION: At this time, I’d like the Luke and Grace Smith family to come up to the front:

The Smith’s have four children and this morning they are committing their lives to raising their children for Christ and we in a moment will commit to partnering with them.

Iris Indiana Luise Smith 7/20/2016

When I think of the name Iris (which means Rainbow) I cannot help but think of the great covenant God made with Noah after the flood.

The rainbow is the reminder of God’s steadfast love and mercy.

I pray that you, Iris, will always be reminded of God’s mercy and that you would be used of God to share his mercy and kindness to others.

Evelyn Emma Marie Smith 11/7/2014

The name Evelyn means life.

We are first grateful to God, who is the source of life.

And although as humans we cannot physically give life, we can do things for others that is life-giving.

I pray Evelyn that you will be a Spirit-filled woman that loves others in deed and in truth.

Lois Christine Elizabeth Smith 2/22/2013

Behind the name Lois in the Greek is the meaning, “more desirable or better.”

Desire is a major biblical theme.

And the spiritual battle that rages all around us is really a war for our desires.

Lois, my prayer for you is that you would seek the Lord early and know that He is better than any earthly desire.

And I pray the Father would give you His desires.

Partnering:

If you are willing to partner with the Smith family, would you lift your hand out and join me in commissioning this family and partnering with this family?

Luke and Grace, Scripture is full of the language of training, instructing, teaching, loving, and disciplining your children.

Do you commit today to continuing to bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the LORD?

Church community, the Bible also instructs us to play a role in the discipleship of every person whether they are young or old.

Do you commit today to partnering with Luke and Grace Smith, to pray for them, to encourage them, to help provide for them (if need be), and to speak up when you see legitimate biblical err in their lives?

Matt and Chena Pittmann

Matt and Chena Pittmann have one baby girl, so they’re just getting started in the parenting game.

And they have some friends and family here this morning.

Most of Chena’s family lives over 9,000 miles away in Rwanda.

I can only imagine it can be a lonely thing for a woman to not have her mother with her when she is raising a child.

So the support from family, friends, and church community are vital.

Shami Gabriella Pittmann 1/11/2018

The meaning behind Shami’s name is “She is like a branch, a part of me.”

This picture mirrors an image we get from the teaching of Jesus to his disciples:

My prayer for you Shami is that you would grow to know Jesus; that you would love Jesus.

He will never fail you.

Abide and stay close to Him, for without him you can do nothing.

Matt and Chena, Scripture is full of the language of training, instructing, teaching, loving, and disciplining your children.

Do you commit today to continuing to bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the LORD?

Church community, the Bible also instructs us to play a role in the discipleship of every person whether they are young or old.

Do you commit today to partnering with Matt and Chena Pittmann, to pray for them, to encourage them, to help provide for them (if need be), and to speak up when you see legitimate biblical err in their lives?

Introduction:

After thirteen years and four kids about two years apart, I’ve concluded it’s raising kids.

So hats off to all parents who have raised children into adulthood.

Hats off to all the moms in the room today.

You are incredible.

How you’re able to walk the tightrope of life with kids hanging all over you, is truly a beautiful picture of sacrificial love.

(Clap for moms)

And for every woman who is struggling to put a smile on your face today because, for whatever reason, you’ve not been able to bear children whether because of bareness or singleness, you must be reminded that those circumstances do not define who you are.

You are fearfully and wonderfully made; you are daughters of the King; the bride of Christ that is who you are… And there are literally thousands of children in the world who want nothing more than the love of a mother, but they’re without one.

Before Eve ever had children, she was called… “The mother of all living.”

My prayer is that whoever you are this morning and whatever stage of life you’re in, you would know the Father’s love and care for you as he expressed it to us through the life of Jesus.

Tension:

The passage of Scripture we’re looking at this morning is not a specific parenting passage.

In fact as pastor and author Paul Tripp says, “If you take all the passages in the Bible on parenting, you will not fully understand how to raise your children.”

I think the point he’s making goes against much of what is taught in the church today, that the Bible is some sort of instruction manual on everything in life.

In other words, the way we think about the Bible is that when we run in to a parenting issue and want to know what God thinks about it, we flip to the concordance (Google search) and say,

“What does the Bible say about texting?”

“What does the Bible say about sleepovers.”

And what you’ll find is God has absolutely ZERO to say to parents about “what age children should have a smart phone.”

“Should I homeschool, christian school, public school?”

So what do we do?

Well we still google it (and this is going to sound harsh) but that’s probably the worst way to develop your theology.

That and facebook.

Please don’t get your theology from facebook.

This section of Scripture that we’re going to look at today is one of those sections that will absolutely change your life, and how you think about parenting, marriage, work, society, your finances, decisions and even the church.

Scripture:

Before we dive in, we should pause to ask, “Why does Jesus say, ‘therefore’?”

Well, he wants his listeners to connect what he has previously said with what he’s about to say.

What did he say?

19-24 teach us that the disciple of Jesus (aka Christians) are to order their priorities (that is their affections, attention, and allegiance) with Jesus and His Kingdom.

This goes completely in the opposite direction from our culture doesn’t it?

I don’t know where the phrase “You Do You” originated, but it’s increasingly popular.

Interestingly enough, the church bought in to this idea a long time ago.

With phrases like:

You’ve got to do what you think is best for your family

You should do whatever you think God’s will for your life is

You do your relationship with God your way, I’ll do it mine

We talk about God’s “plan for your life” and “God’s will” almost as if it’s some sort of mysterious puzzle that we have to search for clues to find out what God wants us to do.

Jesus is teaching his disciples very clearly that even our priorities, even what motivates us, even our goals, are shaped by the fact that Jesus is King.

SO — Therefore, because “our affections, our attention, and our allegiance is to be aligned with Jesus and His Kingdom” his point today in today’s passage is:

We have no need to be anxious about life.

Instead, we are free to trust the Father fully and pursue His Kingdom wholly.

According to the “Anxiety and Depression Association of America” 44 million children and adults suffer from anxiety disorders.

Anxiety is a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome.

A certain amount of anxiety is (however) a normal part of the human experience.

Think about Jesus, there are a couple of times we see the humanness of Jesus: