Walking with the Wise #106: Helping Our Household

“Whoever troubles his own household will inherit the wind,
 

and the fool will be servant to the wise of heart.” 

—Proverbs 11:29 

The foundation of human society is the family—father, mother and children. In the ancient world family included grandparents and extended relatives. God desires that we honor the relationships with those closest to us, and He even codified the principle in one of the Ten Commandments:

“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you”—Exodus 20:12.

We see the same principle played out in the New Testament—God desires that we take care of our families. In fact, one of the qualifications for an elder or a deacon is that he be able to watch over and take care of his household (cf. 1 Timothy 3:5-6, 12). Scripture teaches that one of the most despicable things is to fail to take care of one’s household:

“But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever”—1 Timothy 5:8.

Troubling one’s household—those closest to us, is terrible. There is no inheritance or honor for those who trouble their own household. Solomon goes so far as to show that the foolish son, though wealthy, will actually be the servant of those who are wise of heart. Wisdom is far more valuable than wickedness, and those who seek good and take care of their loved ones, even at great sacrifice to themselves, will be blessed.

Are you helping your household or harming it? If you love God and want to delight Him, then take care of those closest to you. Serving others when it means sacrificing ourselves is a very Christlike thing. God will begin to work His will within us in wonderful ways beyond what we can know or understand without the teacher of experience at our side. Through taking care and helping our loved ones, God is glorified and we are sanctified. Amen.