While watching the news or scrolling through your favorite social media apps, I’m sure you’ve discovered that the world isn’t quite the same place you’ve grown up in. Aside from the obvious technological advances, there have also been stark moral changes that have altered how morality is perceived. And as more people toss the biblical perspective out the window, how are Christian families expected to keep the faith without giving in to the crowd?
The Biblical Perspective on Morality Has Not Changed
Although the Bible has provided us with the Ten Commandments and the Leviticus Laws, we were still given one final law in the time of Jesus that summarized God’s perspective on morality – “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” This wasn’t the only time in the Bible that God urged us to care for another as we would ourselves. In several verses, men were told to cherish their wives as they would their own bodies or care for children as they would themselves.
Basically, God wanted us to treat each other well. After all, you don’t want to mistreat yourself. And that’s why, “Do unto others as they would have them do unto you,” is just another version of that love-your-neighbor verse.
And despite what some modern biblical scholars would have you believe, the bible’s perspective on morality has not changed. In fact, the only major change took place with the arrival of Jesus Christ and it is he who cemented the Ten Commandments and the Leviticus Laws by living the way God intended. Caring for his fellow man, being merciful and kind.
Whereas the Ten Commandments and the Leviticus Laws are the Jewish laws they are supposed to live by, Jesus showed us that the laws were merely guidelines and that we should be guided by love when dealing with one another. Just as God knows that we will fall into sin and He will still treat us as cherished children of God, we cannot let sin be the deciding factor on how we treat our fellow man.
Why The Modern Christian Family Needs To Be Inspired by Its Biblical Predecessors
Now families in the bible were not perfect, but we can learn from their mistakes and triumphs. Take the first family, envy and disobedience were the downfall of Cain and Abel and in the first family of Israel, the same problem occurred, with Joseph and his brothers. But when families worked together as Moses and his wife and mother’s family did, they accomplished great things and lived in harmony.
Focusing on building up the Christian family has led to many attacks against the modern family. The family has been redefined to not include blood relatives and the traditional family structure has been seen as the paradox of the new family structure. Though adopting new ways of family life is not a bad thing, we never drew the line at creating a family from sin.
Unwed motherhood should have never been an acceptable practice. It wasn’t in the bible so why is it a thing now? Allowing a man to walk away from his fatherly responsibilities should have been nipped in the bud long ago. The eradication of the extended family, which was the core of the village that raised the child, due to not protecting the child from family members should have been stopped as well.
While we are so focused on bashing new family structures, we seem to not pay attention to what caused the rise of these new structures in the first place. When women would rather raise their children on their own without a man or their family, that is very telling of what is happening in the world today. When people are seeking love outside the opposite sex, their family and even disregarding their own gender, you should be focused on asking why instead of blindly punishing people for seeking ‘happiness’ however they find it.
“Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me. ”
— Psalm 27:10
The Challenges of Leading Your Modern Family to God
Let’s be honest with ourselves, the utopian world that was created in the Garden of Eden is far from our grasp. And though this is disheartening to accept, especially when you think of future generations, that doesn’t mean we should not face the challenges ahead. We may want to blame the Tikiddy Tock and the gays for the mess of our society, but the truth is we were heading there a long time ago, but refused to learn from the mistakes of the past and make changes to better our future.
The Sinking Moral Slope
When there are gay priests that have more rights to protection than your children do, it’s hard not to question our modern views on morality. But if we look at history we can see there were periods where advanced societies fell into decay and what led to their demise. Though we saw the final fall, we forget what they dropped off on their rise to great heights; like caring for their fellow man, women, and children.
The Bible Bashing
When you don’t encourage the young ones to question you on what they’ve read in the bible, then they’ll be getting their answers from outside sources, that probably hate the world of God. Even some Christians have taken what they’ve read in the bible out of context because they don’t meditate on God’s word, but just treat the bible as a normal book. And because of this, many bash God and the bible without understanding its purpose or their own.
Toxic Christianity
Toxic Christians refuse to face the fact that they are harming Christianity. While they claim to be empowering Christian families what some end up doing is putting the Christian family up as a strict moral standard that’s hard for anyone to attain. Not to mention, they turn people off of Christianity as a whole.
As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord
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Though the main focus is on the LGBTQ community, their rise is only the result of an already decaying society. They aren’t the problem, we are. We accepted so many small sins within the church without correction or accountability that we are now paying the price. It’s hard to be the moral compass when yours doesn’t point north anymore.
Does Christianity Need a Modernized Makeover to Be Acceptable to the Next Generation
I wouldn’t say modernized, more like under new management. Men have been in charge of the Church for too long and refuse to return sovereign rights back to God. When morality decisions are being influenced by church doctrine rather than scripture and the Holy Spirit, it’s time to step down.
False prophets abound and we all know this but those who are not blessed with the spirit of discernment do not, and we need to be their guide and denounce these liars and deceivers. Christianity doesn’t need a makeover, the church does. We need to bring back focus on the bible and not church doctrine. And church leaders, need to hold themselves to a higher moral standard while tempering mercy with accountability.
Generation Z and Generation Alpha were born into the information age, so keeping secrets makes no sense when all your dirty history is there at the touch of their fingertips. And we need to stop treating aspiring Christians and young people as though they are uninformed and stupid. The route scripture that worked for past generations stopped working since the Milleneals. People are craving a deeper connection to God and it’s time we give it to them.
So it’s not a matter of modernizing Christianity, but more of taking it back to its roots when we all sought to be closer to God and not the pastor. Strip away the pretty facade of the modern churches and take it back to community prayer and supporting one another. Where sinners and children were encouraged to follow God by example instead of, “do as I say but not as I do”.
Is There Still Hope For Christian Families?
If you are currently living in a certain country, whether it be for religious reasons or societal pressures, you may face persecution for being a Christian. And if you are blessed enough all it takes is a move for your family to be able to pray in peace. But for those with deep roots in their community, you may be hard-pressed or financially strapped and can’t leave.
(Or maybe God has placed you in this situation for a reason)
Whatever the reason you feel that your family is being attacked, either from internal or external forces, the onus is still on you to stand firm in your faith. Don’t blame the wayward child for leading your kids astray, it’s your job to bless them with wisdom and discernment. Or curse society for not being supportive of Christian families, it’s your job to let your family lead by example.
Stop worrying about real or imaginary attacks on your family and start praying for them. Stop complaining bout the lack of good in society and go out and do some good yourself. Today a lot is expected of the Christian family, but yet some are out here doing the bare minimum!
It’s not that you have to raise your children to be religious fanatics, but you do have to instill some spiritual virtues to make them strong enough to stand firm in their faith in these trying times. While some believe having their kids spew verses all day makes them better Christians, the reality is the bible helps you understand the will of God and with that understanding, you will be better able to handle the trials and tribulations of life. Remember, God doesn’t demand perfection, He demands love and a willingness to serve your fellow man.
Seeking Redemption 