You can't hit your children when you want, and how you want. You can't just strike them willy-nilly, give a bang over the ear. Listen, that's not Biblical discipline at all. You don't do it for punishment. It's actually all done totally, that you might correct a behaviour, and a heart attitude that are wrong, and God commends us for that, but you've got to do it right. He never endorses us just hitting and slapping kids. Getting the idea?
Okay, so the core difference - now here's the key issues now. One, God called you to be a parent, and gave you responsibility and authority. Don't let anyone take it away. Two, you need to discover what the responsibilities are, and how to fulfil them. Go to a parent course, or you'll just carry on the mistakes of your parents. Three, kids need to realise, young people and our young adults, need to realise the requirement God has of us that we have a submitted heart towards those over us, and we respond with obedience and respect. Need to understand that. We need to understand that if we hit children, hit young people, that is not smacking. That is not Biblical correction. That's just frustration, acting it's way out, and the kids will get angry and upset by that.
So what shall we do now? Here's the simple thing to finish it. Now when the government invades the home and takes away a parental right, the first thing you should do is be concerned whether you're fulfilling your parental responsibility. So I think the first thing, that would help a lot of Christians right now, instead of jumping up and down about smacking, jump up and down about parents being responsible, and understanding their call by God and what they're supposed to do, and beginning to accept it and do it. That's the first thing. Second things is, I think you should raise a voice over the changes, because the changes are not good, and they'll actually penalise and create many problems for parents which are Godly, and do use some measure of corporal punishment with their kids. Three, I think you need to pursue your parenting skills. You need to learn how to communicate. A lot of parents don't know how to communicate with the heart of a child.See one of the best things you can teach them how to do, is how to express their feelings, what they feel. See some kids go [wah-wah] like that. You're just trying to shut - actually they're going through something, you want to find what's in the heart, teach them there's another way of doing it. You understand? Change the heart, not just get the behaviour, so it's nice and you've got a happy home. It's not about you. It's about raising up godly children.
Finally, it's your own personal decision what you do about smacking, about corporal punishment, but if you're going to do it do it the right way, do it in the right attitude. Understand this: if the government passes a law, still, it's your right as a parent to do it, because God said you can. Now that's a bit of a one isn't it aye? You see in China for example, they forbid parents to tell their kids about Christ, so what would you do if you were in that situation? I'd be a lovely good citizen - let your kids go to hell. I don't think so. You'd tell them about Jesus. Now when you tell your kids about Jesus, you know what will happen In China? If the kids let on that the parents have been talking about Jesus, you'll be arrested, put in jail and your kids taken off you. Will you still talk to them about Jesus? Well if you understand that actually, it's not all about the kids, it's actually about me fulfilling my responsibility to God, you'll make the stand. That's where the challenges come see? If you don't - to have a heart commitment, to actually raise our kids so they're great kids for the Lord, they love God, love the house of God, love to serve God, and they've got great character, see? Really good isn't it aye?
So if you're going to disobey remember, don't have a truculent attitude against authorities. Have a good attitude. We just disagree. Now the Bible's full of examples of it; Daniel, they said: listen, I know you want us to eat this food. We're not going to eat the food, but can we make some options? Then Peter, they said listen, you can't preach the gospel. He said listen, we know you said we can't preach the gospel, but God said we're to preach the gospel, we're going to preach the gospel. But if you preach the gospel, you've got to face the consequences, so when they got thrown in jail, beaten up, they just said: praise the Lord. We're counting it honour to suffer for Jesus' sake - so what you do in this area's a personal thing, but I don't think you should make smacking the issue. I think you should make: am I fulfilling my responsibilities as a husband, wife and parent; make major on the majors, and prepare yourself to be a great parent. Say Amen! Amen, praise the Lord! [Applause] Come on, let's give the Lord a clap shall we. [Applause]