Through The Bible in a Year - October 6, 2026

“...that Christ's body, the church, would be so powerful that the gates of hell would not prevail against it... we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities and spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ephesians 6:1-4

Before Paul writes even one word about parenting, he spends most of his letter describing the church — the body of Christ, made up of different people, gifts, and backgrounds, united in God's mission. That is not incidental to the passage on parenting; life in the church is the context for life as a family. God’s ordinary plan for the spiritual nurture of children is not for families to raise children alone.

When our church baptizes a child, it is not only the parents who make vows to raise that child “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” — the whole congregation vows to provide prayer and a Christian example for the child. That vow is not mere sentimentality. It is a defense. Children who grow up surrounded by adults who know and love the Lord are being provided a spiritual fortress against spiritual enemies that constantly arise from the world’s circumstances and priorities.

The church’s spiritual protections are also a gift for parents, not just children. In seasons of stress — that can be intensified by feelings of isolation and uncertainty — parents need other believing parents to support them, to debrief with, to be corrected by, or to laugh and cry with as we face the hard and silly moments of raising kids. Of course, we are called raise our own children in Christ’s love, but, in the life of a real church family, we also support one another and, in doing so, help raise each others’ children.

RESPOND: Who are the other believing adults currently speaking into your children's lives — or, if there now seem to be none, who could you invite in? Over the course of a child’s maturing, there will be times that parents seem to have less credibility (especially in teen years). So, are there other mature believers, that your children will love and respect, to give guidance and care at those times?

By God’s grace, your family's involvement in the church can be so much more than a habit to maintain appearances or socialize your children. A genuine relationship with the body of Christ can be one of the greatest provisions God gives for the spiritual nurture and eternal security of your child.

Consider how God has designed the mutual support we find in the church to help us “raise each other's kids.” Then, consider how a conversation, a prayer, a lunch with a friend, can be an honest check-in for mutual support that we and our children need.

PRAYER: Lord, thank You that You never meant for us to parent alone. Thank You for providing the church as a fortress of prayer and example around our children. Give me the humility to lean on other believers, and the faithfulness to be that kind of presence for someone else's family. In Jesus' name, amen.