IV.  Fashioning Our Posterity 6:1-7

A.  Little Ones (1-3)

1. Respond properly

2.  Revere respectfully

3. Realize benefits

B.  Leaders (4)

1. Ban provocation

2. Bring them up

3. Be real

C.  Laborers (5-7)

1. Follow instructions

2. Focus on the Lord

3. From the heart

III.  Focusing On Participation 5:17-33

A.  Duties of Spouses (17-21)

1. Accept (God’s Will)

2. Appreciate

3. Agree (submitting one to another)

B.  Duties of Wives (22-24, 33)

1. Submission

2. Subjection

3. Strengthen (33) – reverence

II.  Fulfilling The Present 5:8b-16

A.  Advancing (8b-10)  “Walk as children of light”

1. Patterning (to imitate) He is the LIGHT!  Pattern lives after Him.

2. Possessing – Fruit of the Spirit Gal. 5:22-23

3. Proving – not everything is acceptable before the Lord.

We advance by becoming the child of God we should be personally.  I work on me not my wife to make our home what it should be.

B.  Avoiding (11-15) – “unfruitful works of darkness”

1. Reprove – must teach children by example that sin is sin and it is wrong…. All the time.

2. Revive – Stop sleeping Christians!

3. Regard – When we awake, the promise is God will give us wisdom (ever notice that some folks understand the Bible?).  When you learn, obey.

C.  Acquiring (16) – God gives us 24 hours a day.  Not good to waste them.

1. Carefully – spouse sees how we spend our time, God sees.

2. Consistently  -

3. Courageously – Carefully, consistently and courageously living each day, regarding what God wants for my life, not living by what my friends or associates think.  Courage not the absense of fear, but the focusing of fear for the right reason.

This Place We Call Home
Eph. 5:1-6:7
Intro: As we begin this series on the Home/Family, the book of Ephesians will be our source or text for the messages. The introduction with help us get an idea of the book of Ephesians and it’s direction or teaching for us in the study. I would like to look at four main thoughts that will take the next couple of weeks to cover concerning the family. The points of the message will be this:
I. Facing the Past
II. Fulfilling the Present
III. Focusing on Participation
IV. Forming our Posterity (the future, our children, our family)
Ephesians: Six chapters, two divisions. First division – Doctrinal. Second division – Practical. First about the believers wealth in Christ, Second about the believer’s walk in Christ. Baxter gives us some thoughts concerning these two divisions that we can take note of:
I. Facing The Past 5:1-8a
A. Culture V. 3
B. Convictions V. 4
C. Conflicts V. 6-8a

As we jump into dealing with the present situation (needs of our homes now), we must move forward with this thought. I have to “BE” not “DO” to have the right marriage/family.

“The plan of salvation has in it all the wisdom of God; the purchase of salvation has in it the fullness of the Grace of God; the application of salvation is an exhibition of the exceeding Greatness of the Power of God; and all these three attributes in their greatness could not have conspired together for any but a great and marvelous purpose.”  Spurgeon

Welcome to the home of the blog of Pastor Paul Perkins, senior pastor at Grace Independent Baptist Church, Ocean Springs, MS.