Establishing Boundaries With Kids
Why kids need Boundaries:
Kids are not born with boundaries.
a. They're Born sinners, and are not perfect:
Romans 3:10, “10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:"
Children are not perfect and must not be expected to live right on their own.
b. They live in the flesh:
Galatians 5:16, “16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh."
They'll naturally live in the flesh because they're not perfect.
c. They're a Blank Canvas:
Proverbs 4:1, “4:1 Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding."
Every artist begins with a blank canvas, but must ADD to the canvas to create the painting.
Parents: Not just a responsibility, but an opportunity:
Children are a gift:
Psalm 127: 3-5, “3Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.
4As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.
5Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.”
Children are a gift from God and a man who has an abundance of children who walk with the Lord will be a happy man. Some people misunderstand that verse and think that it means that any man who has a lot of children will be happy. That's just not so. The verse is talking about a man who has his quiver full of arrows as in the hand of a mighty man. A man who is skilled and knows how to aim his arrows for the right target will be the happy man. He will be a man who is not ashamed.
Parents need to:
Train them:
Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
We cannot expect our children to live right unless we first train them. A brand new puppy when left to himself in the home will NOT automatically find the doggie door to go do his duty outside. That puppy will relieve himself right on your floor, UNLESS you train him. You wouldn't expect your child to be born and know how to get up on the commode all on his own, so don't expect that he'll know how to avoid sin or use manners.
Teach them:
Deuteronomy 11:19, “And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”
Take time to teach when the child is NOT already in trouble. Have moments of teaching time. We don't wait for a failing grade in order to teach them their academics. They're taught ahead of time before being given the lesson at hand.
Discipline them:
2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:”
Once the child has been taught and trained, and then insists on violating your rules, THEN proper Biblical discipline must be administered.
Proverbs 13:24, " He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes. "
By Definition" Chasten; "1.to inflict suffering upon for purposes of moral improvement; chastise."
We will look further into chastening in love in the future, for now understand that God has commanded us to raise our children for Him. Children are from God, they are on loan to us from our Heavenly Father. May we be found faithful in raising these gifts God has given to us.
