Covenanter Witness Vol. 86 - Rparchives.org

And how are we going to respond?"We will walk in his paths; for out of Zion shall goforth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.And he shall judge among the nations, and shall beat theirswords into plowshares, and their spears intopruninghooks; nations shall notlift up sword againstnation, neither shall they learn war any more."corporate groups. This sin is uaually found in the desire ofpeople to rule according to their emotions or ideas ratherthan seeking the leading of the Holy Spirit through thestudy of His Holy Word. Following the confession isrepentance. This means a determined study of the Wordof God.What is our call today? I want the boys to comehome from Viet Nam, for fighting is a result of sin—butWe like to take that last verse that tells us of the end of bringing them home from Viet Nam will not solve thewar and omit the verse which tells us that we come to the problem. The call today by the church must be a call tohouse of God to be taught the Word of God.repentance, repentance from our sin of following theIn conclusion, in Psalm 34:14 we're called to depart humanist and a call to turn to God. If we are not going tofrom evil and do good, to seek peace and pursue it. We're make that call, we cannot stand anywhere else. We haveto believe that peace is the gift of God. We're called to to say nothing, or deny our commitment to the Word ofcarry this belief into activity and into obedient response, God. It's a call today for the repentance of our society.and we're called to believe that there is no peace to be We are not to say Christ will come and peace will return,found anywhere else. There is no peace in stubbornness, but we are called to seek that peace. We are not to say—in getting one's own way, in running from the situation, or Well, I hope problems blow over; God says we are to seekin compromise. There's only one way to peace and it the will of God or matters will get worse. They will go oncomes through a conviction of sin. Divisions, cliques, to chaos and destruction. Scripture makes no distinctionbitter struggles—whether it's in your family or business, or about where the fighting may be—whether it's the church,on a committee—are sign posts which point to sin. Where the business, the home, or the committee; if we don't seekthere is no peace, there is sin. This conviction must bring peace through the Word of God we are going to beconfession before God as an individual as well as in destroyed.Mothers Talk About Fathersby Lois Sibley"Well," said Helen firmly, "I will always maintainthat the husband is the moral, spiritual, and intellectualleader in the home. God made him that, beginning withthe very first family, and there is just no escaping hisresponsibility.""Maybe you're right," Ruth answered slowly. Shesipped her coffee and looked around the table to see howthe others were reacting. Some nodded in agreement,some looked quizzically at Helen, and some, she couldsee, were ready with a question. Jane got hers out first."Some men are home with their wives and children solittle these days. They spend so much time with theirwork; do you really think they have that much influence athome?""Yes, Jane, I do. I think the husband's attitude oneach of these levels, moral, spiritual, and intellectual, isgoing to set the tone and atmosphere of that home. Eventhough he may seldom be there, his attitude will bereflected in the way his family responds to his leadership."It was the weekly coffee hour-Bible study in the ElmStreet neighborhood. Seated around Ruth's dining roomtable, which was covered with coffee cups and Bibles ofvarious sizes and versions, were a group of young wivesand mothers who enjoyed each other's company. Andwho felt free to talk over some of the problems they allshared to see how the Bible could help."When the children are small," Helen continued,"they will adopt their father's attitudes without question.What is important to him will be important to them. Asthey grow, they will consider and accept or reject what hehas taught and been.""Remind me not to tell Harry how important he is,"Sue put in. They all smiled and chuckled a little at this, buteach was thinking of her own husband, and therelationships and attitudes in her own home."You know, Helen, we read in all the magazinesthese days about equal this and equal that. But you seemto be putting the husband first. Where do we wives comein?" This from Joyce, newly married and an avid reader ofmagazines on the home."Oh, I'm not trying to say wives and mothers aren'timportant, Joyce. Not at all. But I think the importance ofher work and the rewards, too, come in her ownknowledge that she is seconding, implementing, andteaching the principles that Dad, as leader, is laying downfor the family.""I hadn't thought of that," said Sue.Helen went on: "The children can easily tell ifMother is keeping them to the line Dad has made forthem; they can also tell if Mother and Dad are notworking together. Their purpose should be not just to livein harmony, but to be glorifying God and trying togetherto please Him in all that they are doing and teaching in thehome. Look back at our first family here in Genesis. Ithink you can find the responsibilities, the areas ofleadership, and who was to lead, who to be the helper,right here in the story of Adam and Eve. God made Adamfirst, gave him the responsibilities of leadership in theMAY 26, 1971