1.Values and Principles

We often try to box the expected behaviour of our fellow men into a couple of Do’s and Don’ts and also attempt to raise our children accordingly. We train them with phrases like ‘This is how our Family behaves’. I actually gave each of my Children an A4 sheet filled with our Values and Principles. I remember how a friend of mine was horrified about the fact that his son did something at school and he said to him ‘As long as you are under my roof, you are not allowed to do that!’ In turn, I asked him: ‘So, is the phrase “as long as you are under my roof”, in the Bible?’
So, this is the background of the next couple of blogs; to find out if my Values and Principles are coming from the Bible or have I simply gathered them over time? Do we raise our children like we were raised and is that the right way?

Looking at the Bible, I have often wondered why wasn’t it written in a more ‘Logical Way’ like a Text Book with Sections for each individual situation? Surely it would have been a lot simpler to find your way? I think the answer is in the fact that our God is a Living God and He wants us to know Him and build a relationship with Him. We should know His character, His nature, His heart and then we’ll act in a way that is pleasing to Him. If it was about following rules, He would have made us robots without free will. He wants us to choose Him!

To be honest, although we all say we want Children who just do what we tell them to do, don’t we find it much more rewarding to see them discover the best way? We like to see them research different options, we like it when they reason with other people and themselves and mostly when they consult us. Today I really  like it when I hear my children say “…and then I wondered what Dad would have done”? So, wasn’t that the basic plan for everything? A tree brings forth after its own kind (seed), an animal brings forth after its own kind (seed)? So, if the whole creation works like this, why would our Father have a different plan when He said he created us in His image? Gen 1:27

So, His basic desire for us is in these words from Jesus:
Mat 22:37  Jesus said to him, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’
Mat 22:38  This is the first and great commandment.
Mat 22:39  And the second is like it: ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’
Mat 22:40  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

Can we now use this concept to extract a couple of good Values and Principles while searching for them in the rest of the Bible?