Introduction : In my childhood, there were many children in every house. The average number of children in each house was five to ten. When the mother called one of her children, she had to call a few names together. Why did they have many children? They needed many hands, because farming was their main job at that time. Even though they had many children, they lost many of them because the infant death rate was very high. Another reason why they had many children was because there was every possibility that one or two of those children would succeed and feed the whole family. They boasted about having many children. However, since our society has become industrialized, the family doesn´t require any more labor, many family members cannot live together in the small-family system, cannot afford high educational expenses, cannot take care of children due to husband and wife both working, and people have become individualistic with the high standard of education. So, people prefer not to have many children for their happiness and peace. Today, we would like to consider the little children through the eyes of the Lord.
1. Children are a heritage from the Lord, a reward from Him 1) The meaning of a heritage (Ps 127:3) (1) A heritage means a business to have an income for living - a private business, a minor enterprise, or a large enterprise¡¦ (Ps 28:8-9) (2) Children come with the blessing of God - God made us receive income through children (Ps 128:5-6) 2) Children are a reward from God (1) Everyone likes to receive a prize (2) Children are a prize from God - Become pride and joy (Ps 113:9, Pr 17:6)
2. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them 1) Wrong family planning - Have one child and nurture him/her well - We would be able to feed two billion people if only we would use our resources for war for a peaceful cause 2) The population policy of Korea is in a crisis (1) A shortage of labor (2) Problem of an old age pension (3) Foreign labor workers and a social problem 3) The person who has many children is a genuine patriot - "One child is no longer a boast. Let´s have many children for our country!" (Ps 127:4-5)
3. Jesus and the little children (Lk 18:16-17) 1) A curious child - Accepts the Lord easily 2) Serve the Lord with an innocent heart - Love the Lord with no greed or avarice (Jn 6:8-9) 3) When your faith grows, you will be more like a child (Lk 9:46-48)
4. Children and education 1) Have a dream and educate with fullness of love and patience (Heb 11:1, 1Ti 1:5, 6:11) 2) Teach them good and evil - Let them keep the laws and commandments (Pr 22:6, Pr 1:7) 3) The model of upright parents - Home training by parents is extremely important for children´s education (Isa 38:19, Jas 3:2)
Conclusion : Sometimes we forget about tomorrow because we live a busy life. A person with no dreams for tomorrow will surely perish. The future of our lives, of our family, and of our society and nation depend on children. There is no future for a person who doesn´t educate children well.
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