They'll Make Up Their Minds When They're Older

If you fail, father, to teach your son to fear God, the devil will teach him to hate God. If you fail to teach your son to guard his mind, the devil will gladly teach him to have an open mind. If you fail to teach your son to obey his parents, the devil will teach him to rebel and break his parent’s heart. If you fail to teach your son to select his companions, the devil will gladly choose them for him. If you fail to teach your son to control his body, the devil will teach him to give it over completely to lust. If you fail to teach your son to enjoy the marriage partner that God has given him, the devil will teach him to destroy the marriage. If you fail to teach your son to watch his words, the devil will fill his mouth with filth. If you fail to teach your son to pursue his work, the devil will make his laziness a tool of hell. If you fail to teach your son to manage his money, the devil will teach him to waste it on riotous living. And if you fail to teach your son to love his neighbor, the devil will gladly teach him to love only himself.~John MacArthur

I came across an article a while back that's been on my mind and today, Father's Day, with all the sermons and articles about fatherhood  brought it to mind again. A group of parents were talking about not wanting to brainwash their children about God, that they wanted their children to make decisions about spiritual matters when they were old enough and mature enough to arrive at their own conclusions, unencumbered by any biases and prejudices of previous generations. 

Of course that runs counter to scripture and I reject the folly of refusing to teach my child about Jesus out of some politically correct nonsense that they should be allowed to make these decisions on their own when they grow up. It is, after all, about my daughters immortal soul. But MacArtur's observations about the insanity of believing that a child grows up in a cultural and spiritual vacuum until the child is mature enough to balance the pros and cons of Jesus vis-a vis Buddha, Allah, Shiva, or any other deity really hit home. 

If we as parents abdicate our responsibility to raise our children in the Lord, society will be glad to fill that vacuum, with results we might be appalled at.

Happy Father's Day.