Title: Precious and Most Precious Legacy
Contents
Precious and Most Precious Legacy
Deuteronomy 6:4-9
We have been keeping May as the family month, and now our families will become beautiful families in God's eyes, and after me, our children's families will stand as beautiful families in God's eyes, and I pray that they will continue to be good families for our children and generations to come. .
There is a famous family comparison story in American society, which compares the family of Rev. Jonathan Edwards and the family of his friend, the businessman Max Multz.
These two went to the same Sunday school when they were young and lived a religious life.
Data on the descendants of these two people have been released.
By comparison, Multz's descendants numbered 1,290, of which 309 died in infancy, 310 became professional beggars, 440 became seriously ill and crippled, 70 were murderers, and 50 prostitutes. that there were only names.
Dear all! I hope that your family will be like that of Jonathan Edwards.
We must dream of this, pray for it, and work hard.
How can we build a family of faith? Let's find that way through today's text.
leave a legacy
Today's text, Deuteronomy, is the sermon that Moses left to the children of Israel.
Moses was called by God from the east side of the Jordan and his life ended.
Now, with Joshua in front of him, he will bring the Israelites into the land of Canaan.
However, as they bring them into the land of Canaan, one concern overshadows them.
I am not sure that the descendants of the Israelites will be able to stand firm in the faith and live as God's people from generation to generation in the land of Canaan.
That is why they are teaching the secret to living as God's people as people of faith in the land of Canaan.
In a nutshell, verse 7 says, “Teach your children diligently!”
In other words, to pass on the faith. In other words, leave your faith as a legacy.
In 1984, on the 100th anniversary of Christian missions, Christians started a new movement and threw a fresh wave in our society. This is a “movement not to leave a legacy”.
This movement promises to leave only 1/3 of the property to descendants, give 1/3 to close people in need, and use the remaining 1/3 for unspecified people such as social welfare facilities.
It is said that about 1,000 members are currently enrolled, mainly Christian unemployed.
Those involved in the movement say they are following three codes of practice.
One always writes a will and keeps it at home or in a pocket.
The two continue to teach and set an example so that their descendants can use their inheritance for good.
The three recommend this movement to those close to it so that it spreads silently.
That's right. We must stop leaving everything we own as an inheritance to our children.
Leaving wealth to the unprepared would be too much of a burden and sometimes poison to them.
However, it is said that there is something that must be left positively other than the legacy of property.
There is one truly most precious heritage that we must pass on to us.
We have a legacy that we must pass on to our descendants.
1. The Word.
If you look at today's text, Moses' command to the Israelites entering the land of Canaan is recorded. 6-7, “These words that I am commanding you today will be kept in your heart, and you will teach them diligently to your children, and you will preach these words when you sit at home, when you walk on the road, when you lie down and when you get up… ” he said.
There will be much to say and much to give to the descendants who are now on a difficult journey.
But it is conveying the one most precious thing. That is the Word.
In Psalm 119:106, it is recorded as to why the Word must be passed on as an inheritance. “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path”.
When I go on a dark road at night, I can't go unless I turn on a lamp and lift it up, but if I turn on the lamp, I can see the road in front of my feet.
That is, the Word is like a lamp in our lives.
So, we must pass on these words as a legacy.
No matter how much knowledge you have, no matter how much money you have, no matter how high you are, if you don't have the Word in your heart, you cannot go on the path that pleases God, so you have no choice but to wander the path of life. But those who have the Word, like a navigator with a compass, or a driver with a map or navigation, can go on the path that pleases God.
One of the most precious legacy we will pass on to our descendants is the Word.
2. Prayer.
I think Jacob is really good for many reasons, but the first is that he raised his children well. As you know, Jacob has twelve sons.
All 12 of them did not deviate from the path of faith and became people of great faith in succession to their fathers.
Strictly speaking, the people of Israel are the descendants of Jacob, and the twelve sons of Jacob and their descendants make up the twelve tribes of Israel, and none of the twelve sons are excluded from the people of Israel.
In the case of Abraham, Ishmael and other sons did not belong to this class, and in the case of Isaac, Esau did not belong to this class. Almost all other people of faith do.
But only Jacob, all his sons entered the class of faith.
Then how did Jacob raise his children so well? The answer can be found in Genesis 49.
This is the story of Jacob blessing his children for the last time before he dies.
Here, Jacob is blessing each of his twelve sons in detail, and he prayed a blessing for them.
God heard this blessing prayer and it was fulfilled. The children remembered their father's prayer. I lived according to that prayer. So all of them were able to complete the path of faith.
Prayers for children do not fall to the ground.
Children who grow up with prayer live in prayer.
So you can win on the path of faith.
This is a prayer for the children of the very famous General MacArthur.
Give me these children. Give me a child who is humble and meek in victory, who has the courage to look after herself when she is weak, the courage to not lose herself when she is afraid, who is not ashamed of honest defeat. Don't be stubborn when you have to think, and grant your child who knows that knowing himself is the foundation of knowledge. Please do not lead him to a flat and easygoing man, but teach him how to persevere and struggle in the face of hardship. Give me a child whose heart is pure and whose goal is high and noble, who knows how to control themselves before trying to conquer others, looking to the future and working hard at the same time. Allow these things to happen, and then let my children know about love for others and humor, and how to live life with dignity and enjoy life with others at the same time. Don't let yourself be too obsessed with yourself, and be humble so that you may know that true greatness lies in simplicity, that true wisdom lies in an open mind, and true strength lies in meekness, my dear friends! PRAYER FOR CHILDREN This is one of our most precious heritages.
3. Vision.
In 2 Timothy 2:1 and below, it is recorded like this. “Therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus… You shall suffer with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus... ”
This is part of Paul's counsel to his spiritual son Timothy.
Here Paul confirms that Timothy is a good soldier of Christ.
And it is telling us how to live as a soldier in the future.
The important thing is that Paul sees Timothy as a being, not an action. It is not looking at what you are good at and what you are not good at right now. They see him as a person who has been called by God and who will be used greatly by God in the future.
It is seeing the vision of God contained within that being.
That's why they confirm that vision and encourage and guide them to achieve it.
Many parents today see their children as exposed behavior.
They judge only the parts they don't like, and they are disappointed and upset, so they nag.
We pray for our children before they are born, and we forget the dreams we had for them. And we forget how happy we were on the day that child was born and how blessed our family was to be there.
What is even scarier is the fact that they do not know the dream of God who sent them to this earth.
It is the fact that we do not even remember that there is a wonderful vision of God to be fulfilled through that child.
So, growing up under such parents, many children do not know their existence or God's dreams and visions for them.
Why? Because they don't know about their existence. Because they don't know their vision.
Because nobody told me this.
We need to teach our children what they are. We need to inform them of their future vision that God will fulfill. This will give them great courage and hope.
This is also one of the precious legacy we must leave behind.
Dear all! Let's start Family Month and look after our families. In particular, think about the future of our family. And think about the precious legacy you really want to leave for your children.
Words, prayers, and visions…