Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Opposition

I wonder... would life's interruptions count as opposition? I honestly don't believe my connection with God has been interrupted - I've been learning some things during this break from posting. In the interest of consistency, I'll pick up where we left off reading through Philippians with parenting in mind.

Philippians 3:3-6

Paul defines the opposition as those who put confidence in outward religious practices. He contrasts this attitude with those who worship God, those who place their identity and significance in Christ. He compares physical circumcision, or an outward sign of being set apart for God, with spiritual circumcision. We are set apart by Who and how we worship, as we focus on Christ and give Him the glory.

Circumcision in the Old Testament times reminded the people of God's promises to them, including the hope of the Messiah who would bring complete forgiveness from sins. Further, they were a people set apart for God's purposes, to share the good news about God's promise with other nations. Spiritually, circumcision referred to cutting away the old sinful nature. As followers of Christ, we take part in this spiritual circumcision. We cut rebellion out of our hearts, confess our sins, and turn back to God in sincere repentance.

As we teach our children, we make mistakes. We cut away our efforts to parent in our strength alone. We turn to God for HIs help to have the wisdom and patience to meet our children's needs. We look to Him for the right words to say to our children in specific situations. On our own we cannot do this; our confidence is solely in Christ.

1 comment:

Scamper said...

Very nice! I enjoy reading these :)