Reason 2

REASON II.

We should engage our Houses to the service of God, out of respect to our Houses too. Tis said a righteous man regards the life of his beast. How much more will a righteous man regard the state of his House? We have two things also to be particularized here.

First, our Houses are miserable through us, if they do not serve God. It is hinted as a most extraordinary misery upon any person, in Proverbs 5:35: He shall die without instruction. Fearful and woeful will be the case of those in our Houses, whom our instruction shall not endear the service of God to. Our Houses are starving, while our God is not serving in them. The Prophet said in Lamentations 2:11: Mine eyes do fail with tears, because the children swoon in the streets of the city; they say to their mothers, where is the corn? O doleful spectacle! But while our children are strangers to God, there is a worse famine in our Houses; we suffer their souls to pine and perish without the bread of life. Yes, our Houses are burning while our God is not serving in them. What a terrible desolation was that on Sodom! In allusion to which, tis said of a wicked man, in Job 18:15: Brimstone shall be scattered upon his habitation. Why, there is a dreadful storm of ardent brimstone, ready to fall upon those Houses, where the children are not bringing up for God; the wrath of God, like an horrible tempest of burning brimstone is impending over them. What shall I say more? Our poor children are enslaved to Satan, until they come to be serving of God. If a devil had a bodily possession of our children, how impatient should we be to see them delivered? We should cry out like the Woman of Canaan, in Matthew 15:22: Have mercy upon me, O Lord, my child is grievously vexed with a devil. But know, the devil has a spiritual possession of our children, till they come to serve the Lord; the evil spirit, he takes them, he tears them, and they foam and pine, and are thrown into the water, and into the fire. O pity them; if we are not more stupid than the ostrich, pity we our forlorn Houses, and let not the service of God be wanting through any fault of ours.

Secondly, we are accountable for our Houses, if they do not serve God. As the daughter of Pharaoh said to the mother of Moses, in Exodus 2:9: Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages. Thus does the Lord say to us: Take these children, take these young ones, and bring them up to serve me; I will reward you for it. The Apostle says, of ministers, They watch for souls, as they that must give an account; so it may be said of all house-keepers, They must give an account of the souls that belong to their families. Twas confessed by the Prophet in the parable, 1 Kings 20:39: Behold a man turned aside, and brought a man to me, and said, Keep this man; if by any means he be missing, then shall your life be for his. This, this is a thing certainly to come to pass in the dreadful day of God. Man, your life shall be for his life, who did not serve God, because you did not teach him, and your soul shall be for his soul, who is lost for ever, because you did not look after him. Jacob could say to his uncle about his lambs, That which was torn of beast, of my hands did you require it. Behold, you have lambs in your fold, little ones in your House; God will strain for it — if wild beasts and lusts carry any of them away from the service of God through any neglect of yours, you shall smart for it in the fiery prison of God's terrible indignation. Therefore, as Paul says, O keep, so I say, O save, that which is committed to your trust.