As Christians, particularly Christian men, we are responsible to lead our households with strength and resolve in the ways of Christ. Leading our families in devotions and family worship is one way to lead our families, raising our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, Jesus Christ (cf. Deuteronomy 6:7; Ephesians 6:4).
In my house, we do morning and evenings. In the morning after we eat breakfast together, we all have our quiet times. We read our Bibles seperately and journal what we see. In the evenings before bed, we talk about what we saw in our morning Bible reading, I share my insight from my own devotional time, we ask questions from the New City Catechism, we sing a couple worship songs together, and then we pray as a family. Family worship doesn’t have to look like this. It may look different for every household, but I want to invite you to join me in leading our families well. Every weekday on this blog, I want to provide a guide for fathers to lead their families in some form of family worship. If your household doesn’t have a father, I believe the responsibility falls to the mother. Design a routine that works for your family, but be intentional about leading in the only way that matters instead of getting too caught up with the affairs of this world. Every Christian man is the pastor of his home. I believe the most important thing we can do for our children is (1) lead them in the home and (2) be faithful to the church as a family. As the family goes, so goes the nation. Our job as pastors to our family matters.
Here are today’s insights if you would like to use them.
John 1:1-5
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.
5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
As I reflect on John’s introduction, I find it interesting to see that the light is not Christ Himself in this instance. Life is the light of men. The Word of God, who is God and is with God in the beginning, is the one in whom life is—from the beginning, not merely from the moment of the cross.
Darkness, then, is the absence of life. Most human religion and thought centers its message on death and prioritizes rewards that are materialistic in nature; having nothing to do with life. From the outset of John’s Gospel, the message is about life. Life is the focus. Life is the thing to have. Life is found only in God the Word—the Logos, Jesus Christ.
If our religion promises mansions, personal glory, lands, planets, or material possessions as a reward for obedience to a person or organization, I think we have been short changed. The priority in the Gospel is life. Life is found only in the person of Christ the Word. It’s time to stop settling for human religion, religiosity, and philosophies. I believe God wants to offer us life, and it seems this claim is the key thesis of John’s Gospel from the start.
Life came into the darkness, and darkness has not overcome it. Life wins. The gates of Hell will never prevail against God’s life agenda.
Today’s question from the New City Catechism:
Q- What is our only hope in life and in death?
A- That we are not our own but belong to God.
Romans 14:7-8 says,
7 For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself;
8 for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.
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