Do Not Fail Your Children

     I Samuel starts with the beautiful story of Hannah promising her son to God, but within the chapters about Hannah dedicating Samuel to God is the story about the two sons of Eli, the High Priest.  While Hannah kept her promise and delivered a new coat each year to Samuel, Eli’s sons were taking advantage of their positions in the temple.  I Samuel 2:12 reads, “Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not God.”  The reference of ‘sons of Belial’ refers to wicked men.  With their father watching them, they took advantage of the people coming to serve God.

     Eli knew that his sons were using their positions for profit and committing sins in the temple.  He did not punish them and allowed them to continue in the temple.  A father overlooking the sins of his children.  I wonder what he was thinking.  I knew such a couple.  They tried to hide the sins of their son, but everyone knew what the son was doing.  Many wondered how such a nice couple could have such an evil son.  There are a few reasons.  They were too busy with their own lives to give their time to nurture and love their son.  Instead of guiding and training their son, they were busy building a business.  Instead of discipline, they used the philosophy of “boys will be boys.”  They saw the wicked ways of their son and like Eli, they did nothing.

     By not disciplining his sons, Eli’s sons and grandsons suffered.  God is patient.  Hundreds of years past while so few of the children of Israel had faith.  They worshipped idols.  They sinned over and over.  God sent judges and prophets to lead them, but they still turned from God.  Eli’s punishment is in I Samuel 2.  “And the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off from mine altar, shall be to consume your eyes, and to grieve your heart; and all the increase of your house shall die in the flower of their age.  And this shall be a sign unto you, that shall come upon your two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas; in one day they shall die both of them.” (33,34) Eli lost his sons.  Then, the priesthood was removed from Eli’s family in I Kings 2:26.  By not disciplining, Eli lost much.

     Eli’s family lost more than long lives.  They lost a walk with God.  God spoke to young Samuel, not Eli.  Samuel’s faith drew him closer to God. In Samuel 3, Eli knew that it was the voice of God speaking to young Samuel, but God did not speak to Eli.  Eli failed God through his disobedience.  He failed God by not training his own sons in the words of God.  Eli’s wicked sons never experienced God’s favor, because they made evil choices.  Even today, evil choices have consequences.

     Choices we make will have consequences.  The choice to have faith and to live out that faith before our children.  Living our faith before our children each day is the beginning of keeping them from becoming ‘evil men.’  As we love, nourish, and teach our children, we are leading them to God and away from evil.  Do not fail your children.  Eli failed as a father.  He witnessed the sins of his sons and said nothing.  His silence led them to continue in their wicked ways. 

 

“But the wicked will be cut off from the earth,

And the unfaithful will be uprooted from it.”

Proverbs 2:22 

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