The Bible’s Guide to Biblical Parenting
“Raising Good Humans.”
“Positive Parenting and Discipline Tools to Raise Good Kids.”
“Parenting: Getting It Right.”
These are just a few of the titles that pop up when you search “parenting books” on Amazon. It’s clear that parents everywhere (not just Christian parents) want to do a good job of raising their kids and tend to turn to experts and parenting books for advice on how to do that. But the fact is, every single one of these books will fail parents in some way and fall short in comparison to God’s Word.
The Bible is fundamental to every parent’s success.
Scripture is full of practical, helpful tips for raising children. It gives parents:
- Values for us to teach our children
- Boundaries for us to set for our kids
- Role models to raise our children to become like
- Principles for raising responsible kids
- Guidelines for how to teach our kids to treat others
- Reassurance that we are not alone in our parenting
- Wisdom and encouragement for weary parents
One of the biggest concerns parents often have is that they will make mistakes in raising their children. Thankfully, God’s Word is full of guidance from our Heavenly Father, the perfect parent! He has never made a mistake, loves His children perfectly, and promises to give us wisdom when we ask for it. If parents spent more time searching the Scriptures than they did Googling for parenting tips, they would perhaps find better answers to their questions and greater success as they raise their children.
The Bible contains valuable, timeless advice for parents.
Following trendy advice on social media for parenting is convenient, but just because a psychologist, parenting expert, or influencer shared the advice doesn’t mean it is sound. This isn’t to say there isn’t value in gleaning from parenting resources. Many of them can be helpful! But as parents look for advice on how to discipline their kids or how to foster obedience and a cheerful attitude, they would be wise to turn to the Bible first. God’s Word has tried and true advice that speaks into these issues, advice that has been proven to be effective time and time again. Additionally, there are no inaccuracies or fallacies in the Bible, so parents need not fear the advice becoming obsolete or proven incorrect.
Parenting is not for the faint of heart. It’s challenging, it’s messy, it stretches us to our breaking point. And there are some (okay, many) days where we may feel completely at a loss how to love our children well, let alone raise them to be godly human beings. But, as hard as parenting is, God’s Word provides valuable insight into our struggles and sheds light on the overwhelming aspects of parenthood. Here are some Bible passages parents might find helpful:
- Genesis 18:19
- Exodus 10:2
- Exodus 12:26-27
- Exodus 13:8, 14
- Deuteronomy 6:7, 20-24
- Deuteronomy 11:18-21
- Deuteronomy 32:46
- Psalm 78:5-6
- Proverbs 3:12
- Proverbs 13:22
- Proverbs 19:18
- Proverbs 22:6, 15
- Proverbs 23:13-14
- Proverbs 29:15-17
- Matthew 10:37
- Luke 11:11-13
- 2 Corinthians 12:14
- Ephesians 6:4
- Colossians 3:21
- 1 Timothy 3:5, 12
- 1 Timothy 5:8
- Titus 2:4
- Hebrews 12:7
Conclusion
The world paints quite the picture of parenting, assuring parents that they need coffee every morning to survive and deserve wine every night for all the work they put in. The world says things like, “Just wait until…” and describes each stage with some sort of negative connotation (terrible two’s, threenagers, etc.) But the Bible says that children are a gift from the Lord, so perhaps we are listening to the wrong voices when it comes to our kids. And maybe we would have more hope and strength and JOY as parents if we regularly turned to God’s Word for our daily dose of parenting advice instead of our playdate circles and Instagram feeds.
“Yes, parenting is hard—in every stage in some way. But it’s also full of great joy, and it’s molding us into the image of Christ as we embrace the challenges AND the victories, recognizing that both have the potential to increase our faith.”
-Abbie Halberstadt, author of M is for Mama