God wants us to build godly homes for Him because our family life is important to Him. This can be seen in the way that God dealt with families in the Bible. When God called Abraham to go to the Land of Promise, he included the promise that “in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” (Genesis 12:3).
When the Gospel of Christ was preached by Paul at Philippi, it brought not just individuals to salvation, but their families as well. This was the case with a woman named Lydia, and with the Philippian jailer (Acts 16:15,33). And when God gave instructions to His people in His Word on how they should live, He included instructions on their family life as well. All these go to show us that God has a claim upon your home.
He wants you to make your home a godly home. But you need the right ingredients to do this. What are the ingredients that must be used to build a godly home?
Jesus Christ must be the Head of the Home.
The first ingredient is found in Colossians 3:16,17 – “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.”
You will notice that Jesus is mentioned no less than 3 times in these two verses. This indicates His pre-eminence within the church. His Word must dwell in every heart; His praise should sound from everyone’s lips, and His Name should be honoured by everyone’s works! But this also applies to the home, since each Christian family is a subunit of the family of God which is the church.
The Lord is therefore the most important member of the home. Even though He may not be visible, He must be given the greatest honour and respect by all in the home. In some Christian homes, you may find a plaque that reads, “Christ is the Head of this House, the Unseen Guest at every meal, and the Silent Listener to every conversation.” And He must be loved more than anyone else, even more than one’s spouse, one’s children or one’s parents.
It is this common love that all family members have for God that binds them all together. It is the mainstay or backbone of the family. And if the ideal situation is achieved, where all members of the family are equally and fully committed to the Lord, then that love becomes the strongest force that can bind the family and keep it from disintegrating despite any trial or crisis.
But how can such a home be realized? It will not come about without effort.
Efforts must be made to cultivate the knowledge of God and love for God in every member of the home. A godly home cannot be built and maintained without this. This is why you need to do what v.16 says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom…” The Word of God must be read, taught and studied not only in church, but even at home.
And this is not only to be done individually, when each family member has his or her own quiet time with God, but also together as a family.
