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The Highest Form of Parenting

Train up a child in the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart from it.

What is the highest form of parenting? What is great parenting? Is it training a child to do well in school? Or …have a high paying career? Is it training a child to have successful careers and marraiges and large families? Is it training a child to attend church and not live a sinful life? To be generous?, to be disciplined?

All of these are noble things to teach a child but there is something higher that these all fit into, if we really understand Jesus Christ. Training up a child in the way mentioned in the above Proverbs reference was referring to the superlative way. Then Jesus Christ said ‘I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the father except by me.’ Jesus changed all things,

Now, Jesus Christ is the way that all children are to be trained in.

Not the things mentioned in the first paragraph. Those things may or may not be a part of the way of Jesus Christ, for a particular child.

The highest form of parenting is training a child in the way of following and always seeking first Jesus Christ. And seeking him with every fiber of the being, seeking him in living pure, seeking him in understanding him, seeking him in life’s every situation. The measure of success is a person who seeks first Jesus Christ in all things. It is not a measure of financial status. Or career success, or having widespread influence.

Jesus Christ is a Path

Jesus Christ is a path, He not only is a path, he is the path planned for humanity as created. He is a path down which to travel for life. Jesus Christ is much greater than we can possible imagine or express verbally or in writing.

Jesus is the foundation for the superlative human life, as planned for Adam and Eve before the beginning. Jesus is not merely a religious idea for getting into heaven, or an option for Sunday activities.

He is THE way our children should go, PERIOD, and if we are able we should train our children to go on along that way..

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The Only Means To The Only End

So The End Justifies The Means?

Jesus once claimed that he was THE Way, in the letter to the Colossian church Paul called Jesus the End. The end always justifies the means, when Jesus is both the end and the means.

Most Christians would agree but might confine this to him being the way to salvation. But I think him being the way means much more.

It is a common saying that “the end justifies the means.” This means that what you are trying to do justifies the way that you do it. In other words if you have to kill, or steal, or lie to accomplish what you are doing then so be it.

But Jesus himself is the ultimate end to all things, he is what we are all headed for. Whether we realize it or not He is also the real motive for all that we do.

Jesus once said “if you have seen me you have seen the father.” Back to the Father the universe goes. We departed him and have been trying to get back to him ever since.

Noble Ends That Fall Short

Applying this to Christian; the end that we are headed for is not “revival”. It is not ministry success or ministry fame, it is not “souls saved”. Which is often seen as the highest and most noble end and motive for whatever we do. In comparison to Jesus himself all these are but ulterior motives having varying amounts of self-interest.

Man apart from God tells himself “I’m going to be powerful and influential and successful, I won’t be accused of this or that, I will be a winner, not a loser.” But we are already a loser if we’ve left Jesus as our means himself and Jesus himself as the End game for those means. In other works, the end that Jesus has for us is not to be causing salvations. By the means of us fulfilling our specific and custom destiny.

Jesus Christ is our end, our ultimate motive. But he is also the means to that end (The Way).

Jesus really is the only way (means) to the only acceptable end.

To the extent that we have other motives (other ends) and use other means (other ways) to achieve those ends are the extents that we error and are off track.

More on The Way

What is your End? and what Ways are you pursuing that End?

 

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The Way
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Jesus Christ…The Way We Are To Live

Jesus Christ is both the way to heaven/ salvation AND he is also the way we should go.

The Way We Should Go

What does this mean exactly?

Its about how we live our life day to day.  Most devout Christians I know have a life-philosophy of look at externals make decisions live by discipline, hard work, devout activities and strive for sinless living.

An alternative way to live which I think is a much easier life philosophy is that the Christian lives by Jesus Christ himself daily. She seeks and pursues him with intensity and moment by moment, never relenting.

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me.” – Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is The Way

All the other ‘good’ or devout activities around him are not the way we should go. And if we look at them as such they inevitably bring guilt and condemnation.

Reading the bible is not the way, having constant and great devotions is not, not sinning is not. Preaching the right sort of messages is not, leading people to him is not. Missionary work is not, giving all we have is not, being a great parent is not. And attending church meetings is not THE way for us to live day to day.  Jesus Christ himself is.

All that we need to do now is to progressively know him, progressively increase in knowing him. We pursue him, we seek him and this other stuff comes naturally and easily and without burden. We pursue him from the relaxing place of rest every day.

Without Jesus himself giving these activities mentioned above light and life in our lives they become laws to us. Then these laws of life condemn us when we inevitably fall short. I heard someone say recently “I feel guilty for not having devotions lately“, this person continued on to insult himself and his own character. He is one of the most disciplined Christians that I know by the way.

Others may say “I feel guilty for skipping church, for my ineffective teaching, for people leaving my church, for not being a better _____,… fill in the blank.”

When Jesus taught seek first the kingdom of heaven and when he said “follow me” he was changing everything for us. To follow Jesus, to seek him first is now synonymous to being led of the Spirit, to living holy. It is synonymous with pleasing him and resting in him, it is exceedingly simple and void of guilt and burden.

What Way Are You Pursuing in Life?

another great article about Jesus The Way

The Way speaks directly in my upcoming book From His Side, check it out.

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