The Father's Menu

The Father's Menu

Apostle Dr. Richard Udoh

Sunday, May 13, 2018

DON’T BE A STUMBLING BLOCK 1

Luke 17:1-2 Jesus said to His disciples, "…Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin” (NIV). The term “little ones” refers not only to young children but also to everyone that is young in the faith, weak in a given area, etc.

There are several ways by which one person can cause another to sin. For instance, deliberately trying someone’s patience, especially when you know that he/she has a problem with anger. However, we want to discuss here one of the ways by which many biological and spiritual parents constitute themselves into stumbling blocks in the path of their children’s spiritual development and maturity – failing to practice their own teaching. For instance, as a parent you prove to your children from the scriptures that lying is a sin, but then you send the same children to lie on your behalf and find a way to convince them that they have done nothing wrong. Or they catch you in a lie and you have a “good explanation” like saying, ‘we need to apply wisdom’. When your children see you engage in gossip, which you have told them is sinful, you find another name for it to justify yourself. You teach your children to dwell peaceably with everyone but then they see that you never seem to get along with someone in the family or church. You teach them that Christians should be prayerful but you don’t show them a good example by being prayerful yourself. You teach them moderation from the scriptures but then you oversleep, eat too much, talk too much, and spend too much time watching television programs. You teach them to be patient with everyone but they see your angry reaction to even the slightest provocation…

Prayer: Let fire destroy any form of destiny contaminations in my life

Further Reading: Luke 17:1-5

Read through the Bible: I Chronicles 28 & Matthew 2