My dear readers,

What Kind of Child Are You?

Proverbs 15:20: “A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish man despiseth his mother.”

On Father’s Day or Mother's Day, gifts are usually given by the children as an expression of love to their parents who have faithfully and sacrificially loved and brought them up. Hence these two days have been set aside for children to show this love. To some, the more expensive the gifts, the greater the love! This is how some children, and sadly even parents, measure love. Then again there are some children who had a hard and difficult life and they do not care much for their parents. This is one of the phenomena of the last days.

2 Timothy 3:1-5: “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” [Emphasis added] Strained relationships and broken homes with divorce rates on the increase and many illegitimate children born out of wedlock are common worldwide. It will only get worse and will soon culminate in the rule of the Antichrist who is called a man of sin and perdition and who makes such sins common in the world his comfort zone.

This may be the way of the world but must not be the way of God’s people. The behaviour of God’s people reflects who their God is. When they are holy they show the world that God is holy. Conversely, when they are sinful and carnal, God is seen as sinful and carnal! It is also true in every Christian home. What kind of children are you at home? This question is asked on the assumption that you profess to be a Christian.

What child makes a glad father? – If you want your parents to be happy, be wise. Parents can be happy in so many areas of their lives such as work promotion and increasing in service in church; but when children at home are not wise, it breaks their hearts. [This is assuming that the parents are godly in Christ Jesus where truth is paramount in their lives.] Wisdom is the right application of biblical knowledge. If a son (or daughter) knows the Word of God well and obeys it, the father will be most happy. The phrase “maketh a glad” is one word in Hebrew. It literally means “brightens.” The father can be sad in other areas of his life such as a failed business or being struck with a sickness; but when he comes home to a happy family where the children are wise in the things of God, it lifts his spirit! If the son marries a godly woman, father is made glad. If the son is diligent and faithful in his study of God's Word, he makes his father a glad father. If the son lives a holy life with the fear of God in his heart, his father is made glad! If the son prays without ceasing, father is made glad. If the son serves the LORD faithfully and humbles himself before God and man, father is made glad.

Dear parent, does your child make you glad with the above actions?

“Father” is chosen because he is the head of every Jewish or Christian home. Father is representative of the mother and everyone in the home. The hope and prayer of Christian parents is that their children will grow up to be sons and daughters after God’s own heart. This is what obeying the LORD means when they first become parents. Both father and mother will pray for wisdom to bring their child up in the fear and admonition of the LORD. They pray for strength to set godly examples at home so that their child will see Christ in them. They study God's Word so that their sincere desires do not become sins when they do not act according to God’s holy Word due to lack of study. They will ensure that their children are involved in the things and Word of God from a young age. To accomplish that, parents will make sure that they attend fellowship meetings and Bible Studies so that they have the moral strength to encourage their children to follow in their footsteps. It takes a life time of godly living. And with fear and trembling they pray and love and set holy examples for their children to follow.

When their children become godly and fear God, this gives parents the greatest joy. They know that they have obeyed their heavenly Father by returning His children whom He had entrusted to them when they first became parents. The only way to return the children to God is when the children become believers themselves. The joy they have in their hearts is that they love their children with Christ’s love and know that nothing can separate them as a family, not even death. The reason is that all of them have been saved by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. They will be together for eternity. That is why the wise son makes the father and the whole family glad!

What child despises his mother? – However, a foolish child despises his mother. This has nothing to do with the child’s intelligence quotient (IQ). He can be the most brilliant son (or daughter) on earth and will still be considered foolish. The foolishness is contrasted here with the word “wise” in the first line. This is highlighted by the use of antithetical parallelism. The child lives amongst God’s people in Israel where everything was ordained by God and whereby he is able to see Christ in almost everything he does. He has the temple of Solomon to show him the way of salvation in Christ. He has the priests and the Levites to teach him the Word of God throughout the 48 Levitical cities so that every corner of Israel is within a short distance to hear God‘s truth being taught. The feast days including the Day of Atonement were ordained by God to teach Israel her spiritual significance so that the children are immersed with the way of obedience and be holy. But the foolish child spurns all these and turns his back on the truth. He prefers to live in sin. He marries an unbeliever when he could have married a godly Christian girl. He despises his mother. He lives according to the lusts of the flesh, and the lusts of the eyes, breaking his mother’s heart. When his sin is revealed to him and he stubbornly refuses to turn from his sinful way because his pride stands in the way of true repentance, he despises his mother.

The 21^st century parallel would be children of Christian parents. They were exposed to Christ before they could learn or talk, and when they turn their back on Christ, they despise their mother. They were brought up in church and fellowshipped with God’s children, and when they decide to choose the ways and friends of the world knowing that friendship with the world makes him an enemy of God, they despise their mother. When they indulge in vices like smoking, drinking and gambling knowing that they are wrong but they do not care, they despise their mother. When they marry unbelievers or opt for courtship evangelism even though they know it is against the truth of God's Word, they despise their mother Every time they sin and refuse to repent and return to Christ, they despise their mother.

“Mother” is used here because mother's love is deeper and stronger than father’s love. Mother’s love began from conception. There is a special bond between the child and the mother as the child grows inside the mother's womb. Mother also stays home to look after and devote her entire life to care for the child while, in Israel’s context, the husband works in the fields, as Israel was an agrarian society. “Mother” is used here to represent everyone in the home including the father who loves the child. To despise is to show contempt to them and to all that they have done for him since his birth! Parents give their lives, especially mother who literally pours out her life’s blood, time and tears loving and caring for the son within a Christ-honouring environment. The son who turns his back on all these becomes a fool. He despises his mother! If he does not repent of his sin he will die in his sin and the separation between him and his mother will be forever. Mother will go to heaven. The son will end up in hell to be tormented forever. Mother’s heart is broken forever.

Some may foolishly blame bad parents for their waywardness. But the truth of Christ was still given to them when they were growing up. To behave foolishly just to spite one’s own parents is like the fool who cuts off his nose to spite his own face!

Food for thought – What type of child do you want to become?