THE HOME
Perhaps the greatest tragedy for the welfare and good of this
nation is the fact that marriage has been downgraded and the need for a
stable family virtually ridiculed. The well established principle of
a family being a man (father) and woman (mother) being joined in holy matrimony
and bring up children together has been cavalierly dismissed as
old-fashioned. We see so clearly the consequences.
We constantly read
and hear reports of young people between the ages of 7 and teenage
years terrifying whole neighbourhoods. They abuse, assault,
vandalise and rob at will, and if anyone should remonstrate with them that
person runs the risk of stabbing or serious injury. On several occasions men
with families have been killed whilst defending their
property. Whole gangs roam the streets seeking confrontation with
other gangs and their members, which have cost the lives of substantial number
of young men, sometimes innocent victims.
On so many occasions,
broken homes have been a cause of such behaviour, with a mother unable to
control or showing an utterly irresponsible line. One 12 years old
boy terrified an estate and his mother said he was ‘her little Satan, but
wasn’t really evil’. An unwitting contradiction in terms, but added he just
needs understanding. He certainly needs something, but more severe
than understanding. Yet again an absent father.
In the Old
Testament, Joshua a great leader of the Jewish people, addressed the nation and
said, ‘as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord’
‘A nation is only as
strong as its homes’, said Abraham Lincoln, and today our homes are reflecting
the state of the our nation, which is in the deteriorating state of moral and
social decay, which should make us fear for the future of our children and
grandchildren.
The first
home was instituted by God before Church, schools, or government. God made man,
and then woman to be his wife, to live together and have children. It was meant
to be where father, mother and children lived as a family. It was a place where
children first heard about God as parents told them about Jesus
The home now doesn’t
mean as much today as it used to do, and to so many people the idea of two
people being married as the ideal is old fashioned and rather
stupid. . Marriage was built on the foundations of the
Bible. It has been said that in 100 years from now, marriage will
have ceased to exist, and if some poitcians had their way it would be in a lot
less time.
There are indeed
powerful forces within the government and liberal establishment who are
determined to destroy the traditional and biblical image of the home, marriage,
and family. One senior politician is waging a one woman war against
it, and is quoted as having said categorically that there is no such thing as
the ideal family. The same silly woman who campaigns vigorously for
equality, stating that there should be a woman wherever a man has a
place. Is it not ironic that the same woman who
stated two men cannot be trusted to run anything and need a woman, yet she
considers two men are capable of bringing up children through adoption.
God has laid down
clearly what He expects, and we ignore to our peril. Homes are the foundation
and bedrock of society, and they are being destroyed. If evil forces
win the battle for the home there is nothing left worth fighting for. We
have to restore the home as the basic unit of society.
An indication of how
our judiciary thinks and views the Christian faith was displayed in the High
Court when it was said, ‘marriage is not generally regarded as a sacrament and
divorce is a statistical commonplace’.
The Bible
teaches that marriage is holy and sacred in the sight of God. I'm afraid that
some enter into it like it's all a big joke. Others go into marriage for luck
and they break up and there's trouble and there's disappointment. That
is wrong. Marriage should be preceded by the most careful thought.
One of the
nations’ favourite television programmes has been featuring two people, who are
neighbours, conniving at having an affair as a major story
line People are so captivated by television stories they think they
have to emulate them in real life. I dread seeing weddings or
funerals on television as I know some of the ridiculous actions will be asked
for in the following weeks.
You can’t have
a relationship with God and be in an adulterous relationship. In the Old
Testament it was considered so serious it was a capital offence punishable by
death. God wanted to show the world how serious was the marriage vow
We have so much
unhappiness and trouble in the home today because we've got away from God's
laws, rules, and regulations governing marriage, When God performed the first
marriage, He laid down the rules, and He said if you want to have a happy home,
obey these rules. If you want to have trouble, disobey them.
Having children means
more than conceiving and bearing them. Raising children is a vitally
responsible and important task. It is more than being a novelty for
some celebrity or as a passport to the top of the housing list for a young woman. A
whole future life is in the hands of parents, yet we hear of multiple children
of a woman from multiple fathers who have no interest in the poor children.
It is reckoned that
in the majority of homes no biblical knowledge or teaching is being given to
children, probably as much due to the fact the parents have none.
Each generation
claims things are worse than in their time, but I can never recall a time when
children were allowed to terrorise whole neighbourhoods and cause such fear
vandalising, abusing and stealing knowing they are virtually immune from any
punishment. They are fully aware of the law which protects them, and
little help is offered in most cases by police. It is hard to
comprehend how the police allow such behaviour to develop, they certainly
wouldn’t when it was known as ‘the Police Force’ rather than what is now little
more than a social service. Society must decide what sort of a
future we want as far as children are concerned.
The Bible says listen
to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s
teaching. We can learn so much from Jewish
parenthood. Father’s teaching to his children of the Ten
Commandments, one for each of the ten fingers, and the history of the Jewish people
from the Old Testament, and the mother controlling behaviour. I have
never known nor heard of a Jewish child being involved in violent disorder or
crime. When I have sought an answer, I have been told it is because
of the Jewish Mama in the home.
Mothers can indeed
have a great effect on children. I was often required to be away
from the home for long hours, and it is a great tribute to my wife that two of
my sons became ordained, and have proved to be very wonderful and successful
Ministers.
Far too many children
are left to their own devices. How can teenagers roam the streets
drunk and threatening people, stabbing other teenagers, and forming life
threatening other gangs, without the parents knowing of it? So why
don’t they do something about it. Yet again, in the days of an
interested and efficient Police Force, action would have been taken under the
Children’s Act for failing to control their children.
Some feminist
thinkers have said that motherhood will have to go in a new social order and
find a new way of raising children. You may have seen women being
asked on television what their occupation was, and sometimes you hear the
reply, ‘just a housewife’ No apology is needed. A
housewife and mother is as great a calling as any in the world. Like
God they are a very present help in times of trouble. My sons have
all held their mother in the highest esteem and my son who died called Mum as
his last word.
Christian standards
have gone from many homes. Everywhere people search for happiness from the
wrong things and wrong places. Many criminals have come from homes
where there has been no peace, no discipline nor Christian values or teaching.
The biggest cause of young criminals is due to marital breakdown and separation
Children take up home
values. When a father dodges working, a son will invariably
copy. God ordered us to work and there would be less poverty if more
people were working.
It is a matter of
great regret that government is forcing councils, some of which don’t need that
much encouragement, to foster and send for adoption children to two people of
the same sex. A child needs a father and a mother, both of whom are
essential to a child’s moral and social development and welfare. It
is therefore irresponsible to make such enactment and reveals contempt for
God’s decree.
The Bible says we
have to have discipline in the home. It is a sign of the times that discipline
has become non existent in many homes, schools, and society in general and has
become a word considered vulgar. Children have a natural bias to do wrong; you
never have to teach a child to say no.
If Britain is
to defend its values successfully, it must rediscover the Christian faith in
which those values are ultimately rooted. Marriage and the home are
firmly part of those roots. When the founding principles are eroded, and the
morality and biblical fundamentals are taken away, there is no foundation for
society, which is a dangerous thing and we are seeing some of the consequences
developing
.