Advancing the Cause of Christ Through Biblical Family Life

[0:00] Tim, it's all yours. All right. Well, good morning, and it is a tremendous blessing for, here we go, George Whitfield didn't need one of these. But it's been a tremendous blessing for us being here as far as out-of-towners, and thank you to the elders and all the saints here at Grace Bible Church Springfield for hosting the first ever Grace Family Conference outside of South Dakota that they've been doing for 20 years out west and everything.

[0:32] And so there's a lot of us guys that are full-time in ministry. We've been, and even just men in general this weekend, we've been discussing a whole lot of strategic ministry initiatives and things that the Lord's doing.

[0:45] And so, yeah, and I, in fact, yesterday, you know, Things to Come Mission, we sponsored supper, and so part of the things I was sharing last night is that I'm actually going to be, we're going to be winding down with TCM next month and going to be shifting gears, moving forward, continuing doing what we have been doing with some changes and expansion and launching a new ministry that we call Grace Family Ministries, doing similar things we're doing this weekend, you know, just far and wide and a lot of other ideas we have on the docket and everything.

[1:19] So we cover your prayers for our family, and I encourage you to make sure to get a TCM promo pack on the way out and check out the ministry display tables that are, you know, in the entryway and everything.

[1:32] And so we certainly cover your prayers, not only for our family, but each of the ministries represented, you know, here in Dostoevsky. It's just the beauty of the body of Christ. I mean, we need each other, amen?

[1:43] Amen. And we pray that this song blesses your heart in a very special way. Amen. Turn your eyes to the hillside where justice and mercy embrace.

[2:39] Jesus, to you we lift our eyes.

[2:58] Jesus, our glory and our prize. We adore you, behold you, our Savior ever true.

[3:11] Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to you. Turn your eyes to the morning And see Christ the lion awake.

[3:28] What a glorious dawn fear of death is gone For we carry his life in our veins.

[3:42] Jesus, to you we lift our eyes. Jesus, our glory and our prize.

[3:53] Jesus, our glory and our prize. We adore you, behold you, our Savior ever true. Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to you.

[4:06] Turn your eyes to the heavens Our King will return for his own.

[4:16] Every knee will bow, every tongue will shout All glory to Jesus, our prize.

[4:28] Jesus, to you we lift our eyes. Jesus, our glory and our prize.

[4:40] We adore you, behold you, our Savior ever true. Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to you.

[5:16] Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to you. Amen. Thirdra Stronger Bow High fives.

[5:33] Amen. Praise the Lord. One of the men said this weekend, I think it was Paul Turner, he said that one of the things that he is going to miss most that when his kids are all out of the house is singing together with his family and I don't think he was necessarily talking about publicly but doing so privately at home and I mean that's, who does that?

[6:01] Well, those types of grassroots counter-cultural initiatives is what is one of the many things that's desperately needed in the modern church and therefore our country.

[6:13] So brother, you know, I tend to go this, I mean, so how are we doing? I have one of those helmet apparatuses or whatever and these types of things.

[6:25] I got you. Anyway, just, you know, just... I forgot. Just thought of, for some reason when I said that, I thought of crash test dummies. You familiar with those? Yeah.

[6:37] And so the current events news deal that we do with our kids during, you know, the breakfast hour, there's this outfit, I think it's in Germany or Sweden, they actually are just coming out with the first ever female crash test dummies because they're talking about all like, just, you know, how physiologically we're different.

[6:59] I said, my, my, my. That'll preach. But anyway, let's go ahead and open our Bibles to Genesis chapter 1. As you see, the conference program this weekend, the theme is Advancing the Cause of Christ, Beginning Right at Home, understanding how biblical family life is central to God's glory.

[7:21] And so Pastor Rambeck, he led us off Friday night with looking at generational impact. And then Paul Turner, the Family Foundation, Amidst Cultural Rebellion. And Joel Fink, you know, he got a kick out of this when, you know, after Nathan and I are putting our heads together and coordinating ideas for this weekend.

[7:38] And as far as I said, yeah, Joel Fink, what I wish I knew when my kids were young. And, you know, the Job passage basically talks about listen to the old guys. And so, yeah, that was, and he had us in ribbons Saturday morning.

[7:53] And last night, I pray that the panel discussion was as much fun for you, those of you that were here, as it was for us. We could have gone another hour.

[8:04] And so, now, were you guys able to record that last night, Nathan? We were. We missed, because we went over the CD length, but we missed the last little bit, but we got the whole thing in the panel. What's a CD?

[8:18] Oh, man. Yeah. So, and we had him sing, and then Bernardo this morning, mentoring grandchildren and young families, right in their wheelhouse and everything.

[8:28] And so, this morning, as we rounded out, advancing the cause of Christ through biblical family life. And honestly, as my family and I, as we wrap our ministry up with Things to Come Mission, this next month, and TCM will continue receiving donations for us through January 31st.

[8:46] But as we shift gears to Grace Family Ministries, honestly, the theme of this weekend is going to be pretty much very similar to what our tagline, or just as far as encapsulating the mission, vision, passion, heart, and purpose of Grace Family Ministries, is advancing the cause of Christ, the light of the gospel, to the ends of the earth, beginning right at home on the grassroots level.

[9:09] And of course, the health and vitality of churches is reflected of the home, and therefore, the state of our country, not only ours, but the nations of the world.

[9:21] But anyway, as you open your Bibles to Genesis chapter 1, I'll share this with you. I'd like to invite you to take a, albeit brief, journey back in time to the ancient Roman Empire.

[9:40] Because advancing the cause of Christ, it does indeed begin right at home with biblical marriage and family life. And watch this. Robert Wogenmuth, in his book, The Most Important Place on Earth, What a Christian Home Looks Like and How to Build One, and he shares how he and his almost 8-year-old granddaughter viewed a massive piece of art in a Charlotte, North Carolina museum.

[10:02] It was Jean-Leon Jerome's 1863 piece called Early Christian Martyrs in the Colosseum at Rome. Personally, I first came across this classic piece of art in an almost 100-year-old copy of Fox's Book of Martyrs that I was combing through the books there in the lodge at Northern Grace Youth Camp in Wisconsin.

[10:25] And it's a striking image. In fact, I have a canvas portrait of this hanging in my office at Things to Come Mission.

[10:37] And in the picture, you see the Roman Colosseum that stands packed with bloodthirsty mob of people.

[10:50] And beyond the Colosseum, you see the pagan temples on the hill. And you even see, I believe it's a statue of Julius Caesar pointing to heaven. And of course, you know, he thought he was the big deal.

[11:04] But he's not. Jesus Christ is preeminent as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And those people who refused to bow the knee to Caesar, well, they were given the royal treatment as it were, because on the perimeter of the Colosseum in this piece of art, you see crucifixes with the charred remains of Christians who gave their lives for the cause of Christ.

[11:39] And you even see some that are still ablaze. And you even see a man cloaked in red garb with a long tiki torch, as it were, lighting him up.

[11:55] And in the foreground, you see a huddled mass of Christians bowing in prayer.

[12:08] And then in their midst is a sage, wise old patriarch lifting his hands and his eyes to heaven in prayer and praise to God and crying out for his mercy indeed.

[12:22] And perhaps even praying for the salvation of their persecutors. But perhaps one of the most striking parts of this piece of art is right in the very front, the bottom left of this piece of art, you see a massive male lion followed by a Bengal tiger emerging from a subterranean lair, announcing their presence to all the spectators.

[12:52] And you know what's going to happen. Robert Wogemuth, you know, he says, he explains the situation, what was going on in the ancient Roman Empire.

[13:06] And I'm sure you're very familiar with the stories. And once again, yeah, I paid my oldest son like 20 bucks to read through that 100-year-old copy of Fox's Book of Martyrs.

[13:17] He was like 10 years old at the time. He slogged through it, but he did it. And Wolgamuth, he says, he said, can you imagine what it would be like sitting in your home explaining to your children what it would perhaps cost them to be a Christian in that neighbor, that kind of neighborhood.

[13:46] And he says the answer takes different to a whole new level, doesn't it? He says, but the message has some similarities to your family and mine today.

[13:58] He says, culture-friendly can't be on our family's top priority list. That builds nothing in our homes and takes us nowhere. Different should be on that list. And just as I said, advancing the cause of Christ to the ends of the earth begins right at home, literally on the grassroots level.

[14:14] It's similar to what Rod Dreher in his book, Live Not By Lies. He says that Christian parents must be intentionally counter-cultural in their approach to family dynamics.

[14:26] And so we must do so, therefore, with dead serious missional urgency through the irreplaceable nature of, one, manhood, two, marriage, three, fatherhood, and finally a multiplied legacy to the praise of God's glory in Christ Jesus throughout eternity.

[14:44] And perhaps you may be scratching your head and it's like, wait a second, like, you know, I thought you were with things to commission. Aren't you supposed to be recruiting missionaries and, you know, in these types of things?

[14:57] And, well, listen, yeah, I mean, that's a valid question to ask and I'm glad that you are perhaps asking yourself that question because it has everything to do with it, dear ones.

[15:08] Where will the next generation of pastors and missionaries come from? It's not the responsibility of ministry training schools to raise up those lifetime servants of the Lord.

[15:21] Yes, they're actively engaged and coming alongside the church and training them and everything, but ministry training, dear ones, begins well ahead of time right at home with dad and mom as they live on mission in Christ, anchored in the local church.

[15:36] And watch this, as families like ours and the Turner's and many of you, as far as you get out of your neck of the woods and you're able to go places and visit other churches and these types of things, and listen, demographics are grim.

[15:59] And radical changes must be made by churches and families moving forward as what I describe as co-champions of the next generation. The strength of our gospel outreach over there in the regions beyond on the mission field depends on the health and vitality of American grace churches and therefore, dear ones, if we care, if you and I care about the nations of the world, then you must care about the state of our country.

[16:26] You must care about the state of our churches and therefore, you must care about the state of our homes, dear ones. You follow me on this? Amen? Now watch this.

[16:37] In Genesis chapter 1, as we break the bread of life this morning, always remember and never forget that the historical narratives of the Word of God did not transpire in a galaxy far away.

[16:56] Long, long ago. Because what does the first verse of the Bible say? Does it say, once upon a time? No, it doesn't. Listen, that's important for us to remember because of the paradigm of secularization.

[17:08] And listen, it's so very easy for us to relegate the historical narratives of Holy Scripture to basically, hey, that's, quote, Bible stories.

[17:20] Yes, we enjoy, you know, different pop culture things and everything. Yes, discernment is needed and everything and the right of redemptive themes. But listen, those aren't real. This is real, dear ones. And as we come to Genesis chapter 1 here, zero in in verses 26 and 27, is that it's important for us to understand that we don't need to have a PhD in ancient Near Eastern history and schooled in the likes of the literary genre of mytho-history, that type of stuff.

[17:54] I mean, there's people that call themselves evangelical scholars that, you know, they say these types of things. But listen, do you recall what William Tyndale did when he said when he was translating the Word of God into English?

[18:09] He said that when he has done the plowboy, think the blue-collar mechanic, truck driver, all right? He is going to understand more of Scripture than the religious aristocracy of his day, all right?

[18:25] And so when we have the Word of God in our hands, we can be confident by the grace of God and the spiritual illumination of God's Spirit that we can understand that God says what he means and he meant what he said, all right?

[18:39] And so in Genesis chapter 1, in contrast to evolutionary naturalism and everything, God spoke galaxies into existence from nothing and he created mankind in his image for his glory.

[18:51] Watch this. In Genesis chapter 1, in verse 26, the Word of God says this, by divine inspiration of God, the Holy Spirit said, then God said, let us make man in our image according to our likeness.

[19:03] Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created, verse 27, God created man in his own image and the image of God he created him, male and female, he created them.

[19:21] And so advancing the cause of Christ begins with the irreplaceable nature of manhood. And yes, we do know what a man is and we do know what a woman is.

[19:35] And listen, this weekend has been a beautiful complimentary testimony and witness as far as, and we've had a great time. But let's remember that we got work to do moving forward, dear ones.

[19:49] Because our families don't merely exist for ourselves. God has called every one of us to be the salt and light and moral back pressure of the banner of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Christian worldview in general, and the gospel in particular.

[20:06] In a culture, in a world that is hell-bent on rebellion rebellion against almighty God. They have their feet firmly planted in thin air, dear ones.

[20:20] And so, what's encouraging is that God is on the move. That, for example, there is a U.S. senator from Missouri that has a book in Barnes & Noble.

[20:32] It's called Manhood. And the subtitle is called The Masculine Virtues That America Needs. And I bring this up because it's chock full of scripture, dear ones.

[20:42] And so, God has his people there as well as in your neck of the woods. And he calls every one of us to make a difference. And so, as far as the irreplaceable nature of manhood is concerned, look over here.

[20:56] As far as when God created mankind, male and female, look across the page in chapter 2 in verse 7. That on the sixth day of creation.

[21:07] And the Lord, he made, Genesis 2 in verse 7, and the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living being.

[21:21] And look across the page in verse 15. He says, then the Lord God took the man, Adam, and put him in the garden to tend and keep it. God branded mankind in his image as male and female and we see the rest of the, you know, chapter 2 played out as far as the expanded details and everything as far as how the Lord instituted marriage and family life and everything.

[21:42] But he gave Adam a job to do. He gave him work. And a part of that is to be fruitful and multiply and take dominion of creation.

[21:54] There is no one like mankind that that can fill this world with worship and therefore worshipers of the true and living God.

[22:11] Yes, you know, the animal kingdom, the created world bears witness, the heavens declare the glory of God, hallelujah, and we praise that but because we're created in God's image, there is no one like mankind that can do so like God has designed us to do so.

[22:28] And so, first off, the irreplaceable nature of manhood, like I said, begins with this. And look at in chapter 3 in verse 6. So when the woman saw, as far as Satan is deceiving Eve, but Adam willfully rebelled against the creator.

[22:44] So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, 3, 6, that it was pleasant to the eyes and a tree desirable to make woman wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her and he ate.

[22:57] And listen, why didn't he protect his family? Why didn't he defend the integrity of God's character and the authenticity of his word?

[23:09] Well, dear ones, this, biblical manhood rejects passivity. I submit to you one of the biggest problems that we're facing today as well as historically is when men do not play the man, man up, quit you like men and do what God has called us to do.

[23:32] You know, as far as in leadership, providing, protecting, in work, in church, in the community and everything. But listen, what was it that one guy said?

[23:43] All it takes for evil men or for evil to triumph is for good men to say and do nothing. So biblical manhood rejects passivity, being passive, dear ones.

[23:56] And so, wherever we are, like Jim Elliot said, be all there. Live to the hilt every situation you know to be the will of God.

[24:07] And so, but look at this. Biblical manhood rejects, not only rejects passivity, but we saw there in 215 as far as to tend and to keep it, but also biblical manhood accepts responsibility.

[24:21] And it's just like, hey, it's not my fault. Yes, it is. We are in the driver's seat. And, yes, listen, I understand there's sometimes situations that prohibit a man from literally being in the driver's seat, but it's a big issue in our day when the dude is not in the driver's seat and he's just messing around on his phone and everything.

[24:45] Anyway, ask my wife about that. She'll talk with you about that. So, but also, look at this in chapter 3 and verse 7.

[25:00] Then the eyes of both of them were opened and they knew that they were naked and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day and Adam and Eve hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

[25:19] Listen, instead of acting courageously, the vice of cowardice took root in their hearts under Adam's leadership.

[25:34] So, biblical manhood therefore rejects passivity, accepts responsibility, but also acts courageously. And you know that famous New Testament theologian, John Wayne, he, you know, he got a lot of things right.

[25:49] And, you know, he said, courage, as he defines courage, is being scared out of your wits but saddling up anyway. Courage is not the absence of fear.

[26:01] Courage is understanding that hey, there is something that's more important than my comforts and things that I'm afraid of and I man up, play the part of the man and do what needs to be done.

[26:12] Entrusting my life unto almighty God. Knowing that he goes before me in his mighty hand outstretched arm, we can trust him with our lives, dear ones.

[26:23] And so, so far as, go ahead and turn over to Matthew 19. As you do so, just some of the very practical things, you know, as far as the irreplaceable nature of manhood and everything and building spiritual muscle and everything, and yes, it's a tremendous challenge.

[26:37] As I encourage men across the country, young and old and everything, and listen, we need men with, have developed spiritual muscle and you do so by cultivating spiritual disciplines.

[26:49] That means by communing with the Lord and word and prayer and, you know, in these types of things, being actively involved in your church community and reaching out with the gospel and going places and doing things and overcoming challenges and reading books and podcasts.

[27:05] I mean, just, listen, we need to learn and grow and being equipped with tools that we need, body, soul, and spirit to do what God has called us to do because of who He has called us to be in Christ Jesus.

[27:18] And so, look at this in Matthew 19. We've already referenced this generally, but let's zero in on Matthew 19 because advancing the cause of Christ, we do so through the irreplaceable nature of manhood, but also through marriage.

[27:32] And I submit to you, dear ones, is that a culture of manliness in the church lends itself toward upholding the beauty and nobility and glory of being a woman and a wife and a mother.

[27:46] And we'll get there shortly because look at this, and the Lord Jesus Christ in His earthly ministry to the nation of Israel, you know, we understand that from Romans 15, 8, and as far as what's going on here, as far as the fulfillment of the covenants of promise given to the patriarchs of old Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and everything, saying so, the Lord Jesus here, this is beautiful, in Matthew 19, He says this in verse 4, He says, and He answered and said to them, have you not read, in other words, like, have you been reading your Bibles?

[28:18] And listen, biblical illiteracy is a huge issue in the modern church. And if we are not deliberate in reading the entirety of Holy Scripture, I guarantee you, there will be perhaps massive chunks, sections of Scripture that you will seldom, if ever, read.

[28:43] And I'll tell you right now, the most foundational and significant tool that my family and I, that we have experienced, and by God's grace, He's bearing fruit to the praise of His glory and through our lives.

[29:00] And listen, we haven't arrived, we're all on the same journey, moving forward, you know, as far as growing in grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, pressing on the upward way. But what the tool is, really just reading through the entirety of the Bible.

[29:13] I mean, we love the one-year Bible, 365 daily readings, Old New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs. And listen, you make time for what's important for you. And so, we need to do so, because this world and a workaday world will, I guarantee it, will prohibit you from prioritizing biblical priorities.

[29:34] Guarantee it. Count on it. And so, He goes on, He says, have you not read that He who made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, for this reason, a man shall leave his father.

[29:44] And this is great, because He's quoting from Genesis 1 and 2. They're not contrary accounts, they're complementary accounts. And one of the greatest apologetic evidences of the authenticity of Holy Scripture is looking at how the Lord Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, how He approached and what His attitude was toward the Word of God.

[30:08] And He had complete confidence in Scripture. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken, He says, and shall be joined to His wife, and they too shall become one flesh.

[30:19] And so, the irreplaceable nature of marriage. And so, biblical marriage upholds God's nuclear design. And so, listen, this doesn't relegate the importance of the extended family to the periphery and just in unimportance or anything, but as far as what God began with, remember, the meaning of everything is directly tied to its origin.

[30:44] And so, we know what marriage is because God began with a family. He didn't begin with a community. He didn't begin with the government or the church.

[30:54] And so, it's the biblical principle known as subsidiarity. In other words, the most efficient and foundational and effective entity toward human flourishing in civilization is the lowest common denominator, the most basic unit.

[31:10] That's dad, basically man, woman, husband, wife, dad, mom, kids. It's called the nuclear family. And it is not a western cultural construct, dear ones.

[31:24] It's rooted in the biblical world view. And if we want to get it right over there, advancing the light of the gospel to the ends of the earth, we must absolutely get it right on the grassroots level.

[31:38] Does that make sense? And so, biblical marriage upholds God's nuclear design. And of course, we see the mass delusion in the culture and the moral insanity of a Romans 1 world will continue wreaking havoc upon generations of young people.

[32:00] And the collateral damage is increasingly manifold and it will present increasingly tremendous opportunity for the church to come alongside with the healing balm of grace and truth in Jesus Christ to people that have no idea what it means to be human in the midst of this, you know, the moral insanity.

[32:31] I mean, you know it. I mean, it's just, what does it mean to be human? We understand that even scientifically as far as genetics and everything. Ask any high school student that's taking biology.

[32:42] It's not that complicated. And, yeah. But also, look at this. Turn over to, back over to Genesis 2.18.

[32:55] Let me show you this. Now, in the midst of the garden, this is glorious. Genesis 2.18. I was, I was referencing this verse many times when I was traveling to the Philippines for two weeks in May.

[33:11] Just, I was on the island of Mindanao with a group of our Filipino leaders there and just fascinating and everything. And it was like, hey, it's like, it's important when you're doing things like that.

[33:27] I've shared this with some of you guys already this weekend. When a, a whole bunch of women want to take their picture with you and then some of the, you know, the, some individual ladies with like a selfie with you and it's like, you know, it's like, yeah, it's like, it's very easy for things like that to go to your head and it's like, yeah, you know, you know, like a celebrity rock star type of status, you know, if you will, and word was getting out in social media and everybody wanted a piece of the action and just like, come here, come here and everything and it was just, so it's so very easy to think, it's like, yeah, yeah, yeah, let me adjust the hat size here a little bit.

[34:05] You know, get a big head and thinking that, yeah, I am the big deal. So I was actively taking, you know, hey, showing people, you know, picture of my, you know, my, you know, my family, my wife and everything, talking to my wife and it's like, hey, it's not good for a man to be alone.

[34:21] I would emphasize, I'm looking forward to being home, praise God, because look at what it says right here. Verse 18, and the Lord God said, it is not good that a man should be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to him.

[34:35] And listen, the world says, oh, that's misogynistic, patriarchal, sexist, toxic masculinity. You've heard the whole gamut, I'm sure. But, through all, through all that cacophony and confusion, the mouth of the Lord has spoken, period, dear ones.

[34:55] So, biblical marriage upholds God's nuclear design, but also upholds gender roles. We know about gender roles.

[35:07] And, and of course, the world is in rebellion, shaking their fists in defiance in the face of Almighty God. They suppress, and listen, I would encourage you, anytime you see a rainbow flag or these types of things, recite Romans 1, 18, for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress or hold down the truth and unrighteousness, dear ones.

[35:31] And pray for the salvation of the perverse, dear ones. And pray that God would protect Christian families from the fiery darts of the wicked one.

[35:42] But, look at this in Psalm 128. As you're turning over to Psalm 128, it's beautiful when you see nuggets like this in Scripture because, you know, perhaps we're more familiar with the Shepherd Psalm 23 where it talks about how the Lord is our good shepherd and He prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

[36:09] And it was Spurgeon who said that, yeah, there's no hurry. There's no rush. The enemy's at the door. But, seated at God's table, there's peace and tranquility.

[36:26] Some of the most significant events in our lives transpire around the table. In fact, it was Chuck Swindoll who said, this is where, around your family table, this is where the world makes up its mind and where we change the world.

[36:47] Look at Psalm 128, speaking of the godly man who walks in awe and reverence of Almighty God. In verse 3, it says, your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house, your children like olive plants all around your what?

[37:01] Your table. A friend of mine said, yeah, he's got, you know, just, you know, a partial of kids and everything. He said, I want, I would like a Viking table in my house.

[37:12] You know, big old, maybe Amish made type of thing. You get the picture. It says, behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord. And I share this with you because biblical marriage upholds the beauty, the glory of motherhood.

[37:28] You can count on it. You can do the research. Woke neo-Marxism, you know, just Marxism in general. We were playing Bible smugglers last night around the property and everything and just, yeah, so we were having a great time.

[37:40] And in fact, even on the way to church this morning, brother, you know, Shiloh was, she was still playing the commie part and, you know, just okay. And one of my sons was basically sharing biblical apologetics.

[37:52] We were having a great time. It's been a tremendous weekend. But right from the horse's mouth, you do the research, I'm sure you're very familiar. I mean, even Dr. Erwin Lutzer, some of his writings, Pastor Emeritus, longtime pastor there at Moody Church in Chicago.

[38:07] Laying out just like, hey, the Marxist agenda is all about destroying what it means to be a woman. And it's, biblical marriage and family life is right in the crosshairs.

[38:19] It's basically, Rosie the Riveter, we can do it. You know all about that. And so, but in contrast, the word of God upholds the glory and the nobility of being a wife and a mother in contrast to radical feminism and these things.

[38:36] Let me show you this over in 1 Thessalonians chapter 2. 1 Thessalonians chapter 2, advancing the cause of Christ through the irreplaceable nature of manhood, marriage, but also this, at the heart and soul of God's design for the family is the irreplaceable nature of fatherhood.

[39:05] In 1 Thessalonians 2, verse 11-2, we have a nugget here that speaks to the heart and soul of fatherhood. And listen, what's fascinating is that you look at social science research and just as far as demographic, you know, issues and fertility and everything, many countries of the world, if you just want to look at it pragmatically, you know, as far as in that way, many countries of the world, whether it's Japan or in Eastern Europe, they're facing huge, massive issues.

[39:34] Basically, they're growing old before they get rich, grow rich. And, like China, you know, hey, they think they can do this. Basically, hey, have more babies.

[39:47] We have a crisis on our hands. And, and that's where it gets into being countercultural. And yes, just like one of the men was saying last night, just, don't just merely, you know, pop them out, but hey, be grateful to God and deliberately, yes, take care of your wife, but deliberately and intentionally transmit the truth of God and disciple generations in the pathway of the righteousness, dear ones.

[40:12] Because not all homeschool families have a passion for parent-led, home-based family discipleship, dear ones. And yes, there are pathologies even in the midst of the, you know, wholesome communities and everything.

[40:27] And Jesus Christ is the heart and soul and foundation. And unless he is preeminent and forefront of our hearts and our minds as men, we got issues, we got problems.

[40:41] Look at 1 Thessalonians 2, 11 and 12, here the word of God says, as you know how we exhorted. Apostle Paul recounting his testimony of life and ministry, bearing witness to, as far as their ministry there in the church in Thessalonica, there.

[40:55] He says, as you know in verse 11, how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you as a father does his own children. Why? Look at this in verse 12. In other words, that there is a transcendent cause of life that we invest the time, talent, and treasure thereof into eternity.

[41:13] And it's not about us. We are not the center of the universe. But we say, but pastor, that's my favorite subject though. Me, myself, and I.

[41:23] Because I'm the big deal. Like Paul David Tripp, you know, talks about in his writings, you know, his book, All, Why It Matters for Everything We Think, Say, and Do. And he says, you know, I wrote this book for me because I need it.

[41:36] And he says, I wrote this book for you because your heart is just like mine. You know, the darkness and depravity of man's heart, you know, we want to be at the throne of the universe, but we're not unless we forget.

[41:50] Let's be reminded any given Sunday who's in charge. Because look at verse 12, that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.

[42:04] So the irreplaceable nature of fatherhood is rooted in this, that biblical fatherhood invests wisdom. Because you see there, as far as how we exhorted, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

[42:16] It is the beginning of knowledge. And knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. That's where the biblical Christian worldview begins, dear ones. And yes, we are concerned, as far as in grace-dispositional circles, we are concerned about, okay, the perpetuity, okay, of a comprehensive, thorough understanding of the Word of God rightly divided to the next generation.

[42:38] But, dear ones, we are dealing with even more foundational issues than that. I understand the pre-trib rapture, all these types of things, and, you know, the contrasting prophecy and mystery in Israel and the body of Christ, law and grace and everything.

[42:50] But listen, we're dealing with even more foundational issues than that, dear ones, even in grace churches. And so, as far as we deliberately invest wisdom, but also vision, to have a can-do, glass half-full rather than half-empty understanding of what the Lord has called us to do, exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.

[43:13] Because one of the things we've been emphasizing this weekend, Christ may return today, dead serious gospel urgency, but He may not return for a thousand years. And so, Lord, give us wisdom and vision to see beyond our years to understand what we ought to do by Your grace in our lifetime that will set up future generations to stand strong in the Lord and the power of His might in their generation.

[43:41] and so, but also this, you remember in the book of Nehemiah where the Jews are returning from exile from Babylon and Nehemiah, as God's man, he was the cupbearer to a pagan king in that day and he got wind of the state of the holy city of Jerusalem and he was distraught and consistently, you see these nuggets in the book of Nehemiah and he prayed and he prayed and he was just beautiful testimony of Nehemiah and it came to a point where he pitched the whole idea to the king and in God's mighty hand and just His ways beyond our ways, the king basically financed the project and everything and basically, any time that you step out in faith and you're going to do something awesome, as far as this

[44:44] William Carey said, you know, basically the father of modern mission, he says, expect great things from God, attempt great things for God. Any time that you step out in faith, you can expect opposition.

[44:58] That's exactly what Nehemiah experienced and it came to a point where they were able to, in the midst of rebuilding the wall, you know, the fortifications around Jerusalem came to a point where they rebuilt it in record time because each man took personal responsibility for erecting the wall in front of his own home and they had a tool in one hand, a weapon in one hand and there was opposition, come over here, let's talk and he says, no, I'm doing a great work and everything.

[45:23] It came to a point where as the leader of the whole initiative, he challenged and he beckoned to God's people on that day, he says, remember the Lord, great and awesome and he says, fight for your families, your wives, your children and so biblical fatherhood invests wisdom and instills vision but also infuses courage, dear ones because we are heirs to the past, we're ancestors to the future.

[45:52] It's been said that fatherhood is automatic and value free. In other words, every one of us, for good or for ill, we are passing on a legacy and by virtue of just being who we are, we are going to be passing, it's, father power is like a claw hammer as it were that tears out of your heart and slams it right into the heart of the next generation so our lives affect one another and it's only by the grace of God that our progeny can overcome our foibles, our weaknesses and listen, our children and I pray that boys and girls, I mean young men and young women, you have a front row seat to see all of your parents' issues and listen, one of the things that I almost mentioned last night, the panel discussion was somewhat of a confession.

[46:46] we've had a rough couple weeks and there was a time last week where we were really struggling with some stuff and it was one of those things where it's like, okay, our family worship time wasn't as robust as we'd love it to see but we were working through some stuff and it was a blessing to go back and as we were kissing our kids goodnight and everything, yeah, my older boys, maybe it's a little different, maybe I kiss them on the head or just, anyway, just that type of thing or the shoulder or sometimes, honestly, I said, hey, would you kiss me goodnight, tuck me in because he's still going and these types of things but I bring this up because one of the things that we need to be very deliberate on is, and listen, is asking forgiveness from our apologizing to our kids or asking their forgiveness and ensuring even young people like, hey, make sure that you are ministering and responding and grace yourselves because, listen, you have a front row seat to see in all your parents' issues and stuff, we're not perfect and one of the big challenges is to relinquishing bitterness and resentment and forgiving them and once again, being transparent with one another,

[48:10] I mean, that's the beauty of God's grace is he knits our hearts together in love and of course, daily and weekly rhythms as far as putting words into action, as far as the irreplaceable nature of manhood is, you know, things like the family table, of course, social science research bears witness to this, just, it makes a huge difference and of course, family worship and worshiping together as a family in the context of local churches, we're co-champions of the next generation as far as church and family being complimentary to one another as far as the church being deliberate to equip homes like we're doing this weekend in the home enriching the local church and intergenerational relationships and encouragement and hence Bernardo's session this morning but turn over to Psalm 78, Psalm 78, we're gonna end where we started, Nathan let us off here in Psalm 78 and once again, the urgency of missionally engaging culture and advancing the light of the gospel to the ends of the earth is such that yes, the imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ, yes, is a reality, he may come back today but he may not but regardless, if we knew when he was coming back it should not make a difference in how we live our lives as we aren't being faithful literally on the grassroots level but it's the tension between the already and the not yet as far as the short term but also the long term urgency, a reality, dear one, so look at Psalm 78, this is the first and the longest of the historical Psalms as we see, let's zero on in there on verse four, it says, we will not hide them, basically, you know, the truths of the Lord, we will not hide them from the generation, from their children, telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord and his strength and his wonderful works that he has done, verse six, that the generation to come might know them, the children who would be born that they may arise and declare them to their children that they may set their hope in God and not forget the works of God but keep his commandments because there was a generation in Israel's national history that there arose a generation who knew not the Lord nor the wonderful works which he had done,

[50:19] I mean, ten plagues in Egypt, hello? Red Sea crossing, anybody home? in the wilderness wanderings and God's sustaining them, it's like, how do they forget?

[50:34] Well, how do we forget? Increasingly, there's people in our country that have the faintest clue about biblical history along with church history as far as the likes of the Reformation or American history, what God has done in our nation's history and certainly, they're also ignorant of what the Lord has done in their own family history and we need to tell them because the irreplaceable nature of a multiplied legacy is such that biblical legacy champions the glory of children and listen, and that word gets into the countercultural radical intentionality that, hey, just like rejecting the American dream, you can't have it all.

[51:30] I shared last night, it was like, listen, if we waited until we had enough money as far as what the world says, like, oh yeah, it's time. It's like, we wouldn't have any kids but children are not an inconvenience, dear ones.

[51:45] They're at the heart and soul of God's plan to magnify His glory amongst the nations, dear ones. And biblical legacy champions godly character as we deliberately come alongside and walk alongside our children and shepherd their hearts in the pathways of righteousness.

[52:04] But also, biblical legacy champions generational faithfulness. Think of this. consider what will be the testimony that your children and grandchildren will share with their grandchildren about the legacy of your life.

[52:28] What will be the impact? And listen, there's a whole host of avenues that we can do to, hey, especially nowadays as far as technology and everything to be able to just bequeath actually, you know, our voice or printed page down to future generations out so they can, you know, look back and emulate us but so that they can invest their lives emulating being conformed to the Savior.

[52:55] Not just like, wow, what a great man, what a great woman. No, what a great God they served. Amen? And watch this. Just as Robert Wolgamuth, he mentioned in The Most Important Place on Earth about the ancient Roman Empire, that painting that I shared with you.

[53:13] Similarly, Dr. Al Mohler wrote in his book The Gathering Storm, Secularism Culture in the Church, he said this, basically that intentional ministry training begins at home in three poignant ways.

[53:29] He said this, that Christian parents and grandparents for that matter must view church as the highest and utmost priority for their children for their family's weekly schedule. And listen, there are myriad distractions in our day.

[53:46] And I submit to you one of the most significant competitors toward gospel ministry and the local church taking precedent and priority in family life is youth sports in our day.

[54:03] Listen, I played baseball in college. It's a, literally, it's a different ball game nowadays. And so, we should never be surprised that when generations of young people, when they leave and they depart from something that they really never knew that well to begin with.

[54:22] And hence, the countercultural radical intentionality literally on the grassroots level anchored in the local church. And Mohler, he also says that Christian parents and grandparents need to be serious about the effects of technology, screen time, and social media.

[54:34] One of the things that we didn't talk about last night in the panel discussion is what age do you give your kids a phone? It's an issue. There's kids in our neighborhood. It's like jaw drop, conk, when they're talking with my boys and they're saying, you don't have a phone?

[54:53] What do you do? And I joked with my boys too that one of these kids asked them, he's like, hey, do you got a girlfriend? And I said, yeah, you should, basically said, I have seven of them.

[55:07] You know, just, you know, play with it and have fun and everything. But it's an issue. It's a huge issue. And of course, that deals with sexual integrity and a host of issues and everything. And listen, that's where it gets into dad, the family watchdog.

[55:20] It's for me in my house. We were at one church in Colorado and one of the old boys there, he was, he was, you know, giving me a hard time. He said, hey, what's the deal? Your kids don't have a phone.

[55:32] And I said, brother, I wouldn't give my son a phone even if you offer to pay for it. So, but anyway, of course, there comes a time, you know, that time will come and everything.

[55:43] And so, yeah, like I said, when they can pay for it particularly. But anyway, anyway, but also Christian parents must endeavor to fill their homes with the fragrance of the gospel. Is it real at home?

[55:55] You know, we can't give what we don't have. And that's one of the, one of the reasons why we've, we've emphasized what we've emphasized this weekend. And, you know, and even just, you know, various, putting other men, speaking to different issues right in their wheelhouse with freedom and flexibility and everything.

[56:09] We pray that you're encouraged and that we pray that you uphold one another and the rest of us that are gonna be heading home this afternoon upholding us in prayer and asking God that he would do something awesome for the, you know, I'm talking about reformation, revival, and revitalization in this epoch of history.

[56:32] Beginning right on the grassroots level. And perhaps, just perhaps, God will be pleased to use us in his awesome plan to magnify his glory in amazing ways beginning right here with you and I that our lives will echo throughout eternity to the praise of his glory at that day and every day after that and on and on.

[56:59] Lord, you are worthy of all praise. And Lord, we do pray for the salvation of souls. How we do pray, oh God, that you would give us as your people wisdom, vision, and courage to be deliberate and Lord, we pray that you would protect us from the fiery darts of the wicked one.

[57:15] And Lord, that we pray that you would protect our children and our grandchildren, Lord, that come what may, whether it's a Colosseum Roman situation in that day or being canceled in this day and come what may, Lord, we're grateful for the promise of your word that we are more than conquerors through him who loved us and nothing and no one can separate us from your love and your grace lavished upon us in Christ Jesus.

[57:44] Hallelujah. Amen. Amen. Amen. All right. Thank you, Tim. Yeah.

[57:59] All right, everybody. Well, that finishes up our service and really our conference weekend. We're going to have a meal now.

[58:10] I did have one idea. Is John Akin still here? No. Oh, no. There he is. Do you have the click? Do you have the camera? Do you think we could take a picture outside, like a group one?

[58:23] Okay. So here's my idea. We're going to take a group picture. All the attendees, whether you're here for one day or all three days, we'll take a group picture outside. Go past the fire pit and like with maybe the field as the backdrop.

[58:40] I don't know, John, does that sound like a good idea? All right. Should work. I'm going to go ahead and pray for the meal and so that that'll be taken care of but head out to head outside.

[58:51] We'll try to make it super fast. Just a few minutes and then we'll all go in and eat. Father, thank you so much for this weekend. Thank you for all the words that were spoken and the conversations that were had, the relationships that were formed, developed and and all the sharpening of iron against iron.

[59:12] What a tremendous weekend. Thank you for the food that we're about to enjoy. In Jesus' name, Amen.