Home Training

“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” Proverbs 22:6.

“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD and you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your heart and you shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise, bind them as a sign upon your hand and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates” Deuteronomy 4:6-9.

“Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother (this is the first commandment with a promise, that it may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth. Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of God” Ephesians 6:1-4.

“How from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” 2 Timothy 3:15.

Being trained in the home is just as real as a doorknob. Home training is the first place where a child becomes familiar with the terms “yes” and “no” Where the child learns that there are rewards for obedience and punishment for rebellion (Colossians 3:25). Parents are to be solid examples of how to live and make the world a better place, and to install these values in their children. After all, our offspring is the product that parents will be sending out into the world; and the product better be good (Judges 2:10).

Children need to be taught about the existence of God and that He is to be worshipped on a weekly basis. Which means the parents must set aside the first day of the week for that to be done. There is no room for excuses. Man has six days to work and do what he pleases. God only asks for one day of our time (Acts 20:7).

Respect to elders, teachers, and all other people is a value that the parents must enforce and make sure the child understands. When a child respects others and treats them as he would want to be treated, there will be no reports of disrespect of teachers, classmates, or anyone else coming back to the parents (Titus 1:6).

The expectation of punishment is to be rooted into the mind of a son or daughter, so that they will tremble at the consequences when tempted to do wrong (1 Samuel 31:4). No person should learn this on the outside, the great principle of standing up for what is right and rejecting what is wrong should be taught in the home, before the young person steps a foot out the door.

A young person must be instructed inside the home about bad youngsters that they will encounter in school and others places, and why they must reject what these hoodlums will try to influence them to do. They must be instructed that there is nothing wrong about not following the crowd, and that in life one may have to stand alone at times (1 Timothy 5:22; Proverbs 1:8-19; chapters 2-6).

Values such as honesty, hard work, friendly manners, responsibility for self and others, respect for women and children with all purity, respect for oneself with all purity, and believing that sex belong in marriage must be instilled into the minds of sons and daughters. Parents need to create home classes on purity issues at the age when the opposite sex is an interest in sons and daughters so they can make good choices on dating and marriage (Hebrews 13:4-5; Titus 2:1-15; Romans 12:9-21).

So you see, home training means exactly what the word said. It is putting a son or daughter though values training in the home, so that the person can be sent out into the world and not cause a problem for the school teacher, or a problem for the police, by committing a crime.
Parents must work with their children to make sure they are of the best character. And when they come out to go to the school and finally go into the world. The world will be receiving tomorrow’s future, which will be young men and women making the world a brighter place.

~James Baker​