We took a little detour yesterday, but I want to get back to thinking about fatherhood, and how the book of Deuteronomy relates to it. I want to focus on our responsibility as husbands and fathers have for our homes, and I’m not talking about home improvement.
The home is a special place. It’s should be a safe place for our family, a refuge. Our kids should feel more at ease there than anywhere else. To our wives, it should feel like it’s where they can be themselves, be loved for who they are, and make it the retreat they need from the world outside. It should be a place where our family is protected, where they feel loved; a place that we have carved out for them especially to live in. What, or who, we allow into our homes are deemed safe or approved by our families.
So my question is this: what are you allowing into your home?
Do we really think about the things that we allow into our homes? Do we care for our homes like we care for our houses? Think about it: we go to great lengths to protect our homes from pests, from exposure to harmful chemicals. We replace fire-alarm batteries and we make sure that a leaky pipe get fixed quickly. We pay for alarm systems to monitor our doors and windows, and we keep our yards (kind of) neat and maintained (or at the least, it’s usually our goal).
But are we guarding the things that enter our home silently? The things of the world that pollute not the physical side, but the spiritual? Not to be legalistic, but do we watch what comes in through our TVs (No pun intended)? Do we guard the content that streams across our Wi-Fi to our laptops and phones? And beyond that, and perhaps more importantly, are we bringing anything like that in ourselves?
“Nor shall you bring an abomination into your house, lest you be doomed to destruction like it. You shall utterly detest it and utterly abhor it, for it is an accursed thing.” Deuteronomy 7:26
An abomination is a “disgusting thing” or a “wicked thing.” I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t want anything that met those physical characteristics in my house, near my family. But do we allow perhaps even more harmful things spiritually into our homes? I challenge you to think about this.
In context, the verse above is dealing with idolatry, or false gods. Beyond anything that is overtly evil and harmful (which I pray that none of us are allowing in already), is there anything in your home that you’ve allowed to take the place of God in your life? Is there something that your kids think is more important to you that your relationship with Jesus? If so, then you’ve allowed an abomination into your home, and your kids will see it, whether you think it or not.
Let me ask you this: why do you think God detests these idols, these false gods? Is it because He’s jealous? Well…in a word…yes! But not like you think! God is jealous that we not have any other gods besides Him because He knows full well the destruction and devastation that a life given over to false gods brings. He knows the horrors of the false gods of alcoholism, of materialism, of pornography, of adultery, and He is jealous that we would not bow down at their altars.
He is jealous that we have life, and that abundantly, and that life is only found in a relationship with Jesus Christ. He knows that anything outside of that relationship will leave us empty and broken, either now or later, and grasping desperately for more. He is jealous that we accept the Way He made for us, and enter into the fullness of life that He provides so freely in His grace.
So tonight, think about what you allow into your home. Are you guarding the hearts and minds of your wife and kids? Are you guarding your heart and mind, too? Do you need to do some housecleaning? Do you need to get rid of some false gods or abominations that have crept into your home? I pray we’ll all see any areas where we’ve done this, and allow the Holy Spirit to clean us and our homes.
The Wading Pool 