See that they read it all. You need not shrink from bringing any doctrine before them. You need not fancy that the leading doctrines of Christianity are things which children cannot understand. Children understand far more of the Bible than we are apt to suppose.

via Ryle on Training Children in the Knowledge of the Bible — Cal.vini.st.

The second best part of it was the cost – it will only be $34 after rebate. They’re $80, plus if you have one of those 20% off coupons that BB&B sends to everyone on the planet, your in-store cost is only $64. Then you get a $30 mail-in rebate form. Sweet!

The best part, though?

It sits on my desk at work and every time I look at it I am reminded how much I love my wife and kids, all day long. You can’t put a price tag on that. I recommend something like this for every husband and father out there.

Haddon

The name “Haddon” is in honor of the great Baptist preacher, Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892). To learn more about Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the best resource on the web is Phil Johnson’s Spurgeon Archive at spurgeon.org.

There, you can find (among other things):

• A very brief biography of Spurgeon (with links to a ton of other biographies)
• A slightly longer, but still concise, bio
• A whole huge archive of Spurgeon’s writings and sermons

If you want to read a good short book by Spurgeon, I highly recommend All of Grace, available online for free.

Spurgeon once said that the secret to his highly regarded preaching was this: “I take my text and make a bee-line to the cross.”

Zerubbabel

According to Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary:

ZERUBBABEL [zeh RUB uh buhl] (offspring of Babylon) — head of the tribe of Judah at the time of the return from the Babylonian Captivity; prime builder of the Second Temple.

Zerubbabel is a shadowy figure who emerges as the political and spiritual head of the tribe of Judah at the time of the Babylonian captivity. Zerubbabel led the first group of captives back to Jerusalem and set about rebuilding the Temple on the old site. For some 20 years he was closely associated with prophets, priests, and kings until the new Temple was dedicated and the Jewish sacrificial system was reestablished.

If you’d like to read more about Zerubbabel (and listen to his name pronounced), try these links:

• Zerubbabel leads the Jewish exiles back to Jerusalem and begins rebuilding the temple: Ezra 3-5
• Census of those who returned with Zerubbabel: Nehemiah 7, 12
• Prophecies concerning Zerubbabel: Haggai 1-2
• More prophecies: Zechariah 4
• Zerubbabel was also an ancestor of Christ. For his place in the genealogy, see Matthew 1:12-13 and Luke 3:27

Haggai 2:4-7

4 Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, 5 according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not. 6 For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. 7 And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. (ESV)

Zechariah 4:6-7

6 Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. 7 Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’” (ESV)

Psalm 127:3-5

3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one’s youth.
5 Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate. (ESV)

In the meantime, just waiting for the real show to begin. And so without further ado:

Random Thoughts, Labor Edition

• iMonk has an excellent commentary on Ed Young’s 7 day sex challenge
• Mark Driscoll offers up six essentials for Bible study
• Lydia Brownback enumerates biblical reasons for thanksgiving
• Terry Delaney reviews C. J. Mahaney’s latest book, Worldliness
• If the hospital didn’t block Flash video, I’d be watching this presentation from James White on New Testament textual reliability
• Gerald Hiestand contemplates the loss of God’s presence
• And just for fun, I will be trying this recipe sometime soon

A sample:

Lessons

13. Pack in truth while your children are little and trust the Lord to unpack it in his time.
18. On some days, it’s just fine to accomplish nothing more than keeping your kids fed and safe.
21. There’s nothing wrong with boredom for your children. It causes them to be creative.
25. Kids can memorize scripture very quickly.
39. God elects. God saves. Parents cannot do this heart-changing work. At best we can pray and point to the One who can cause our children to be born again.

Tips

3. Talk to both good and not-so-good parents; you’ll learn lessons from both.
15. Martin Luther said he had the responsibility to be the worship leading pastor in his own home. His home was to be both a school and a church. Fathers, do you have this mindset?
17. Don Whitney encourages “brevity, regularity and flexibility” in family worship.

Read the rest

As parents, you must not become complacent when your children give only outward compliance to your directions. If you put up with a grumbling, complaining spirit as the price for your children following your directions, you open the door to lying to God. God desires obedience from the heart, not the outward form of ritual sacrifice. (Amos 5:21-23; Isaiah 29:13) So, the mindset that says, “At least he took the garbage out, even though he moaned and groaned about it,” totally misses the point of loving God. This child is not being shepherded. Rather he is being encouraged to believe that God will be satisfied with mere outward compliance to his commands.

The Shepherd Press Blog: Lying to God.