“And if it seem evil unto you to serve the the Lord, choose you this day whom you will serve.” Joshua 24:15
Dear Ones:
When Moses was sent by God to Egypt to deliver Israel from slavery, to bring them into the land of promise, He did so with regard to the family unit. Yes, deliverance depended upon the individual’s response to the revelation of God. But God also delivered whole families. Nowhere is this seen in such a dramatic way as when God spoke to Israel concerning the Passover Lamb. God told Israel through Moses that He was going to strike the first born of both man and beast in Egypt, because of the obstinate rebelliousness of Pharaoh. He instructed Israel, per family, (even neighbors whose household was too little), to take the blood of a lamb without blemish, and put it on the two side posts of the house, and on the upper door post of the houses. The promise was this: “And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where you are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.” (Exodus 12:13) What is the first responsibility of believing parents? It is to claim by faith the blood of Christ upon the home. What does this mean? It means that a position of faith is taken, with respect to the purpose and will of God concerning “me and my house.” It is not the desire and will of God that any person should perish. It is just as true, that under the umbrella of the faith of the parents, that the children are particular benefactors of the saving grace of God. How so? It is true that “…all have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” and that Christ tasted death for all men. Therefore, all men need to be saved. However, it is by the act of believing parents, who have taken the position of faith in the faithfulness of the covenant God, that the blessings of that covenant are particularly revealed to the children. They become benefactors of the revelation of God that the parents have received. Because of the greatness of the blessing and purpose of God, and the realization of that blessing by virtue of the faith of the parents, the children will KNOW the revelation of God to their own hearts and minds. It was by the act of obedience of the Israelite parents, specifically the father, in applying the blood of the lamb to the door posts of the house, that the whole family was spared. And so, it is as parents by faith, apply the blood of the Lamb of God, to the doorposts, and the lintel, of their home, that the destroyer is held at bay. It is in standing, believing, obeying, choosing to serve the Lord, with the attitude of “my house” being included, that the blessing associated with the faith that God gives, will be realized to the fullest possible extent.
There were at least two instances in the Acts of the Apostles, where whole households were converted, coming to know Christ. The first had to do with Peter, and the household of Cornelius the gentile. In answer to the visitation of an angel of the Lord, and his instruction for Cornelius to call Peter, and hear the words which the Lord had given him for Cornelius’ household, all of Cornelius’s household were together to hear Peter’s words when he came. The specific word to Cornelius from the angel was this: “Peter, …shall tell thee words whereby you and all of your house will be saved.” (Acts 11:14)
Paul was sent by the Lord to Philippi. There, after being delivered miraculously from prison, Paul was brought before the jailer, who was seeking the Lord. Paul would tell the jailer: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved, and your house.” (Acts 16:33) The result was that all who heard the gospel, who were in the jailer’s house, believed and were baptized. Salvation, deliverance, had come to the family.
Dear Father, give us grace to see and to know, that it is your will that not only certain individuals should be saved, but that whole families should be. And open our eyes to see the enormous blessing and effect of believing parents, who can claim the “sanctifying” blessing of God upon the children, so that they too, will choose to serve the Lord. We thank and praise Thee, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad