Dear Children…Don’t Let Anyone Lead You Astray
“Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.”
Have you ever been deceived? It’s an awful realization, isn’t it? When you believe and trust in someone or something, only to realize that what you believed to be true, thought you understood and wholeheartedly supported is not what it seemed. It can throw you for a loop. And watching someone go through it can be equally as difficult…especially when that other person doesn’t recognize the deception.
Deception is a slippery slope that pulls people further and further from the Truth and into false hope, misdirected loyalty, and often, victimization. Deception leads to loss of resources, relationships, and hope. It’s a ploy of the enemy to convince people to believe a lie, isolate them from one another and keep them from following Christ.
But how do you recognize deception? How can you spot a ‘fake’? Those who are trained to spot fake money and art look for certain characteristics and inconsistencies. But in order to do so, they have to have intricate knowledge of the original before they are able to spot a fake. Our sons and daughters need to have strong knowledge of Scripture and a consistent, growing relationship with the Lord in order to protect themselves from deception. Inch-deep knowledge and casual practice of spiritual disciplines leave us vulnerable to being led astray by teachers whose teaching “sounds similar” but whose doctrine weaves in error and deception.
The enemy will try to convince us that what we’re following is “okay” or “not really as bad as we might think”, or even label it as “my truth” so others cannot tell us it’s wrong. If he can do that, then he is accomplishing his goal of deception and disruption. Lord have mercy! Our sons and daughters need to be on guard!!
1 John 3:7-8 says, “Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.”
So, how do we recognize and avoid deception? How do we remain faithful? We need to pray that our sons and daughters will:
Recognize God’s Truth:
Colossians 1:9-14 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
Be able to identify falsehood
Jude 1:17-19 But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.” These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.”
2 John 2:7, 9-11 “I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take them into your house or welcome them. Anyone who welcomes them shares in their wicked work.
Avoid evil:
Proverbs 16:17 “The highway of the upright avoids evil; those who guard their ways preserve their lives.”
I John 1:6 “If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.”
Fellowship with other believers who walk in the Truth:
Acts 2:42 “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”
1 John 1:7 “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”
Listen to the Holy Spirit Who lives in us- He will help us recognize those who walk with Christ in genuine fellowship vs. those who are ‘posers’.
1 John 4:6 “We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.”
Strive to maintain a testimony that gives evidence of Christ in us- our life should speak truth and give evidence of Christ to others
3 John 1:3 “ It gave me great joy when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it.”
Today, let’s pray these scriptures over our sons and daughters. But let’s also pray for the Body of Believers. Satan is strong, yes, but the God that lives in us is stronger and He holds the victory!! Let’s pray He will surround us with His mighty protection and keep us walking faithfully.
Pray without ceasing.
My Dear Children, Do Not Sin
1 John 2:1 “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father - Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.”
Imagine receiving a letter that begins with the words, “ My Dear Children”. One immediately senses that it’s going to say some important things. The greeting gets our attention; it identifies us as loved, important and connected to a family. The sentiment “Dear children” tells us we are precious to the writer… a parent-figure, and isn’t that what our sons and daughters are to us? Dear. Beloved. Cherished and important. Stop and consider, if we would write to our sons and daughters, what would we say?
The Apostle John wove that very phrase into his letters to the early church. He wrote often to the believers because had a burden to encourage them in their walk with the Lord. He understood, better than most, the cost of discipleship and the dangers of our life in this earthly realm, the kingdom of darkness. The book of 1 John is filled with encouragement, cautions, and reminders of how the believers should live and why. And many of those directives start with the phrase, ‘dear children’. John loved the believers as his spiritual children and wanted to ensure they knew the words he was speaking to them, via the Holy Spirit, were words of love and conviction.
Over the next few weeks, we’re going to look at these “dear children” directives and pray through them for our own beloved sons and daughters. What better way to encourage their walk with the Lord?!
1 John 2:1 “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father - Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.”
Oh what words of direction AND comfort!! Do not sin! Don’t do it! We need to pray that specifically and often for our sons and daughters because we all know, far too well, that the enemy wants nothing more than to cause us to sin. Sin leads us away from the Lord, it defeats us, it tries to define us (although that is not how our Savior sees us, we’re deceived into believing we are what we do and our value is in our efforts). We need to pray that God keeps our dear children from sin.
BUT we can’t stop there!! No! We need to pray that next portion of 1 John 2:1 because it’s vital for our dear children to understand, and us as well, that if we DO sin (and we will, we’re fallen people), we have an advocate who speaks to the Father on our behalf- Jesus Christ.
That word ‘advocate’ is the word ‘parakletos’ in Greek. It means "one who pleads another's cause before a judge, a pleader, counsel for defense, legal assistant; an advocate, and intercessor" (1) We have our very own legal counsel who comes to our defense and clearly states that the price for every sin, past, present and future, is paid for by His precious blood sacrifice and is eternally effective because of His resurrection from the dead. There is no sin that cannot be forgiven by Jesus and there is no failure for which He will not step up and advocate for us. He is our paraclete- our advocate and our counselor. He not only speaks to the Father on our behalf, but He speaks truth into us and reminds us of who we are and Whose we are. Sin does not define us.
John was so adamant that the church understood this that he said it again in 1 John 2:12, “I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of His name.” Yes, he encouraged them not to sin, but twice he reminded them that Christ paid the price for their sin and they had, and would always have, His forgiveness, not because of anything they might do, but because of His Name. Oh friends, it’s SO important that our sons and daughters understand not only God’s commands not to sin, but also God’s complete and perfect forgiveness when they do!! When the world wants to define them by what they’ve said and done and how they’ve messed up, God defines them as His child, loved, forgiven, redeemed and justified through Christ. Today, let’s pray these very words for our sons and daughters.
“Heavenly Father, (name) is my dear child, whom I love very much, but I know You love even more than I do. I pray that (name) would not sin. That’s blunt and straightforward, but it’s so needed, Lord. Keep them from sin. It destroys and rots the life You would have them live abundantly in You. Lord, please help (name) to remain in You- to abide and live a life that is consumed with You so that there is no room for sin to take hold. But I know that in this world, this life, none of us can fully avoid sin. We are a fallen humanity and the old self still lives in us. We still wrestle with it every day. So, as You keep them from sin, I pray, too, that You would remind (name) that You, Jesus, are their advocate and You are the One to whom they should run when they’ve mis-stepped, or worse, fallen into steady consuming sin. Jesus, You will always advocate for (name) to the Father, making a way for forgiveness and restoration. Lord, keep (name) running to You always, clinging to You for counsel and defense. Lord, keep them always, in Jesus’ name, amen,”
Why not text 1 John 2:1 to your son or daughter today? “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father - Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.” Encourage them with scripture and pray without ceasing.
G3875 - paraklētos - Strong's Greek Lexicon (niv). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g3875/niv/mgnt/0-1/
Expectations: Be Real
“May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us— yes, establish the work of our hands.” Psalm 90:17
How often do we read Scripture and pray that our son or daughter would emulate someone whose walk with God jumps out from the pages and impacts us deeply. We may dream and pray that our son shows the wisdom and integrity of Joseph or our daughter the faith and determination of Ruth. Perhaps we pray that God would raise up a Joshua in our family or that our daughters would be bold and brave like Esther.
It’s important that we learn from those God used throughout scripture to serve as examples to us. And we DO need to pray that our sons and daughters will grow in the wisdom and knowledge of Christ and that their lives would display the character and faith that evidences that growth. But, friends, we need to be mindful of the process.
“We want to see the faith of Joshua!”. That’s great…but do you realize that before Joshua was a ‘great man of God’…
Joshua witnessed God bring the plagues on Egypt…He saw God work miraculously.
He was with the Israelites when God parted the Red Sea; He experienced God’s supernatural intervention.
Joshua saw God bring water from the Rock and manna from heaven
He followed the Cloud by day and the Pillar of Fire by night- seeing God’s presence manifest before him.
He witnessed Moses raising the serpent in the wilderness.
He was there when Moses returned from the mountain and raised the tablets God gave him, introducing the 10 commandments.
Joshua was one of the 12 spies…and when he bravely entered the Promised Land to spy for Moses, he was approximately 40 years old (Joshua 14:7)
And, when Joshua stepped into leadership of Israel after Moses died, many scholars believe he was nearly 85 years old!
(http://www.biblecharts.org/thebible/interestingfactsaboutjoshua.pdf)
Joshua had an extraordinary example to follow in Moses. He witnessed miraculous things and endured hardship beyond what we will likely ever face. He was prepared by God over decades to step into a role of leadership only after nearly a century of listening, learning and obeying God.
Yes, we can pray that our sons will have the faith and boldness of Joshua, but we need to be realistic that it may take a lifetime and a “Moses” in their life before God brings them to that level of bold leadership. Let’s pray for God to work, but realize it may not happen quickly.
And then there is Ruth. Oh how we love her story! We take such joy in hearing her say in Ruth 1:16-17, ““Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.”” Yet, do we really take account of all Ruth experienced that built her faith?
Her husband died.
Her brother-in-law and father-in-law both died as well.
She had no children.
She was without means to support herself. She was likely a perceived burden to her family as a young, childless widow with few prospects and a long life ahead.
Ruth faced a long journey with a mother-in-law who was struggling with her own will to live.
She chose to leave her country, her customs, her language and her family- all to follow Naomi, her mother-in-law, back to Israel, where she would be viewed as an unwelcome stranger and alien.
She was from Moab. She was one of ‘those’ whom God warned Israel against.
But wait, that’s not all…
Ruth and Naomi moved into a house that was ‘lifeless’ and neither had prospects of work or a way to get what they needed to survive…and they were women.
Ruth knew no one, she didn’t know “the neighborhood”, yet she went out each day, stepping out of her comfort zone to ‘glean’ in the fields of a stranger and faced being ostracized and mistreated by the locals who were also gleaning.
Ruth was totally dependent on a God she barely knew, yet she was willing to trust Him.
Ruth’s situation was not just hard, it was excruciating. Now, put your daughter in those sandals… Yikes! That’s hard to imagine, isn’t it? We would be swooping in to help, rescue, comfort and mediate each of those hardships, wouldn’t we? Yet, that would have interfered with God’s plan.
Ruth’s story is extraordinary and she is such an example of grace, faith, and beauty. Friends, we need to realize, those qualities were groomed in her by God at a great price. Those four chapters in the book of Ruth reveal years of endurance, learning, leaning and obedience.
We have a tendency to hit the ‘highlights’ when we read about these pillars of the faith… we see the 10,000 foot view. If we hold our sons and daughters up against these examples, expecting to see rich, abundant fruit, quickly, we create unrealistic expectations. Be like Ruth! Be like Joshua!” But we sometimes lose sight of the hardships and the years of struggle, pain and opposition that those ‘greats’ had to endure to become the leaders and examples they are to us. We need to temper our expectations and, instead of pressuring our sons and daughters, we need to pray for them.
Then there’s the danger of casually overlooking the mentors God placed in the lives of these ‘greats’ to help grow them and prepare them.
Joshua had Moses… a lifetime of Moses… and it wasn’t until Joshua was at least 85 years old and Moses died that Joshua began to lead Israel. That’s a long time. It’s very possible that Joshua’s parents didn’t see him become “Joshua” at all.
Ruth had Naomi. A broken, bitter woman who we might dismiss as not having a strong enough faith to impact the next generation- yet she did. And she was an ancestor of Jesus- that’s how He used her…and He continues to use her story and her example. Would we have encouraged our Ruth to stick closer to home and find a more pleasant and positive mentor?
Friends, let’s pray that God does grow our sons and daughters into strong men and women of faith, willing to be bold, to be used by Him and to obey in whatever way He asks. But let’s pray for our parent-hearts, too, so that we don’t place ungodly expectations on our sons and daughters to become something or someone before their God-approved time and in ways that circumvent His plan. Our sons and daughters may have to face famine, hardship, loss, pain, danger, and enemies. But God will use each of those things to teach them, stretch them and prepare them for what He is calling them to do. We may not have to wait until they’re 85 to see the fruit of bold faith, but, yes, we will wait, we must wait, and while we wait, we need to pray and allow God to work as He wills, not as we ‘expect’.
Today, let’s pray Psalm 90:17 and pray with conviction “May the favor of the Lord our God rest on (our sons and daughters); establish the work of our hands for us— yes, establish the work of our hands.”
What God establishes is not easily torn down. Isn’t that the hope and prayer we should embrace? Today, let’s pray with Godly expectation, not our own, and wait with realistic understanding that God works in His time to bring to fruition that which He planned long before we were ever born.
Pray without ceasing, friends.
Action. Affection. Direction.
Micah 6:8 “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”
Micah 6:8 is an oft-quoted verse that is so familiar. It’s on plaques and bumper stickers. It’s emblazoned on t-shirts and mugs. It’s a staple of ‘Christianese’.. And often we look at it, mouth the words and in our hearts say ‘Yes! Yes!’, but it’s likely we miss the real depth of the message. Oh, friends, it’s so much more.
God used the prophet Micah to warn the nation of Israel of pending judgment. But what was Israel doing that was deserving of judgment? Well, they strayed from God, followed false gods and were using their power to oppress others. They didn’t want to listen to God’s word and when Micha prophesied, they told him to stop. Their deeds were evil and their hearts were hard (see Micah ch. 2) Couldn’t that be a commentary on our world today?
But when faced with pending judgment, the Israelites were quick and ready to make sacrifices to show their repentance. But, that’s not what God wanted from them. As Micah’s predecessor, Samuel, told the Israelites earlier, “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.” (1 Samuel 15:22) God made it clear, through Micah, what He wanted Israel to do…and it didn’t involve sacrifice, rather, it involved submitting their hearts and lives. He said they must: 1. Do justly. 2. Love mercy. 3. Walk humbly. God addressed their actions, affections and direction.
This is big-picture thinking here. When we pray for our sons and daughters, we pray for safety, we ask God for wisdom, we pray for their relationships, we plead for protection from sin and temptation…and the list goes on. But, friends, that is all encompassed by these three things. Action. Affection. Direction.
Why is it that we struggle with these? “Do justly”. It shouldn’t be difficult, yet we hesitate, we don’t want to get involved, we don’t have time. But God loves justice and it’s a quality of His character. If we are to reflect God and bear His image, shouldn’t we be concerned for just treatment of all those who also bear Him image? (hint, that’s all of mankind, friends)
Then, we’re called to love mercy. LOVE mercy. Yet, we often mete out mercy based on who we think deserves it…and if we deem someone undeserving, we withhold mercy. But being merciful is another quality of God that we’re called to reflect. And we are ALL undeserving of His mercy, yet He gives us to us lavishly.
Here’s the thing…too often we fall into the lure of ‘head knowledge’ and we’re quick to show how much we know and perhaps we become ‘puffed up’ with our theological depth. We mistakenly think that knowledge is the ultimate mark of our spirituality and we lack mercy toward those who may not be as ‘learned’ as we. But our lives lack a reflection of the character of God. Oh, knowledge is good and important, but if we value knowledge above all, we are incomplete. There’s a name for that…it’s called being a Pharisee. Matthew 23:23 ““Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” You see, the Pharisees had a lot of knowledge, and they were quick to sacrifice….but they lacked an understanding and personal knowledge of the heart and character of God. In all of their knowledge, they didn’t reflect Jesus to others. And they lacked humility.
Finally, we’re called to walk humbly with our God. God calls us to secure our direction and ensure we’re moving with Him, not away from and not sitting idly by the way. Colossians 1:10-11 “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy;”
Action. Affection. Direction. It’s what we’re called to. It’s what we must be mindful of and intentional to pursue in the context of our faith in Christ.
Let’s pray today that the Lord works in each of these areas in our sons and daughters so they are moved to be imitators of God’s character and followers of His leading in their lives.
“Lord, I pray today that You would empower (name) to act justly today. May their desire for what is right rule every choice they make. Let them be a defender of the oppressed and a lifter of those who need encouragement and help. Keep them from compromise that would desensitize them to the voice of the Holy Spirit. And Father-God, help them to love mercy. May the affections of their heart and mind always be centered on how you poured your love out to us through Jesus’ death while we were still powerless and drenched in sin (Romans 5:6-8) That that love be what motivates them to be merciful to others and demonstrate Christ in them to all those they meet. Finally, Lord, I pray that they would always, always follow after You. May their direction never waver and their moral compass always be true to Your Word and running the race You’ve set before them. I pray that their actions, affection and direction would always reflect Jesus and be a testimony of your saving grace in their life. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Saturday Review
It’s Saturday - a great day to spend a little time going back through our prayer points for the week. As we ponder Jesus, the Light of the world, let’s pray that we love Him well and reflect Him effectively to others.
As time grows short, we must be diligent to pray that our sons and daughters know and pursue the truth of Christ. Today, let’s pray that our sons and daughters have this precious relationship and an eager desire to learn and grow in their faith. Let’s pray they have a living hope that compels them to share Jesus with others gently and respectfully. Pray they are salt and light.
Pray that our sons and daughters would have a true, godly sorrow that would bring repentance in earnest. Pray that they would be eager to live in such a way as to strongly defend their beliefs. Pray that they would be indignant, alarmed at what they see this world doing and would have a longing and concern to see God’s justice done. Pray that they stand strong in their faith and would defend the gospel effectively.
Pray that our sons and daughters realize, without a doubt, that Jesus is the Light of the World and in Him they will find life, redemption, forgiveness and purpose. Pray that they will gain an eternal perspective because Jesus’ light dawns in their hearts and minds.
Pray that we, our sons and daughters and our brothers and sisters in Christ choose to shine God’s light with boldness and we take hold of every opportunity to share His light and life with others.
Pray that our sons and daughters would let God shine His light in their hearts, enabling them to see and understand the Truth of scripture, know the transforming power of the gospel and embrace the power to reflect Jesus to the darkened world around them.
Pray without ceasing.
For This Reason I Kneel
Why do we pray for our sons and daughters? It’s certainly not just because it’s the ‘right thing to do’. If we made a list, there likely would be some very admirable reasons, some heart-wrenching burdens and some deeply rooted desires that motivate us to bring our family before the Throne. But if we strip away our wishes, hopes and pleas, the essential foundation of our prayer is that our sons and daughters would know Jesus, understand His love and be compelled to live for Him with every ounce of their being.
Today, let’s pray the benediction from Ephesians 3:14-21 over our sons and daughters. No need for extra words… God’s Word is enough. He is always enough.
“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
Pray without ceasing.
IT’S ALL GOOD
Psalm 119:68 “You are good, and what you do is good; teach me your decrees.”
There were two basic questions we asked when our kids were young. The first was “Who are they with?” And the second was “What are they learning when they’re with that person?”
What most concerned us about the ‘who are they with’ question was who was influencing our sons and daughters. Were they a good influence. What did they value? Did they use good language and were they careful in how and where they spent their time? Then, we likely wondered about the families of those ‘others’. Were they ‘good’ people?
The second question was one that set our parental sense of responsibility in high gear. We had to ensure that our children learned well! We were all about finding the right school for them. We wanted a ‘good’ school, one that had a good reputation, good teachers, and produced good results. We were all about the ‘good’. Why? Because we wanted our sons and daughters to have the best we could provide and we knew that good was better than just ‘okay’. We had certain criteria and expectations. We didn’t want them learning from ‘just anyone’ and we wanted to ensure the education was solid, worth the investment and would prepare them well for life.
Even though our sons and daughters may be grown, those two concerns- who they are with and what they are learning- are probably still our concerns today.
So we pray. We pray boldly that our sons and daughters will choose to walk with God and learn from Him by spending time in His word.
God is GOOD. Strong’s Concordance defines good in so many beautiful ways: As a noun, the Hebrew word “tob” (1), “good” means: to be good, be pleasing, be joyful, be beneficial, be pleasant, be favorable, be happy, be right, be better or good for, to do good and act rightly.
As an adjective, “tob”(2) covers so many things! To be pleasant and agreeable to the senses, to be excellent, rich in value, appropriate or becoming, glad, understanding, kind and ethical.
Read those definitions again, and ponder them. They’re so rich!! They’re so beautiful. That is our God. And that is the content and character of what He desires us to learn and to become.
Wow! Wouldn’t it be amazing if our sons and daughters could describe their ‘friend list’ with those words!! How incredible would it be if they told us they were learning the goodness of Scripture and incorporating it into their life?!
There is no one better to spend time with or to learn from than God. There is no other who will build our character and teach us integrity. He is GOOD and what He does is GOOD.
Today, let’s pray that our sons and daughters crave the good that God gives and teaches!! And let’s pray that we do as well. He is good and what He does is good, let’s learn his decrees!
Pray without ceasing!
H2895 - ṭôḇ - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (niv). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h2895/niv/wlc/0-1/
H2896 - ṭôḇ - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (niv). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h2896/niv/wlc/0-1/