Parenting With The Image of God in View

Mark Lauterbach with a great post for how the image of God should influence our parenting.  He writes:

First, we see them as utter equals in creation and redemption. I may be Dad and a parent and have a responsibility to raise them in the nurture of the Lord, but that child is my equal in dignity. They are, in creation, crowned with glory and honor (Psalm 8).

Sin makes us despise people, especially people beneath is in power. Religion forms crazy rules that excuse cruelty or apathy to needs. Jesus faced this each time he healed on the Sabbath.

Parents can be bullies by treating their children with dishonor. That is sin. The way we treat the image of God is how we treat God.

This means that any act of parenting which demeans, dishonors, shames, or humiliates my child is an assault upon the image of God. Therefore it is an assault upon God. (I would apply the same rigorous test to all exercise of authority, by the way). I wonder if we, as parents, are tempted to use humiliation as a powerful tool to motivate our kids? I wonder if we treat our kids as less than us?

Alongside of this is the evil of the old adage, “Children are to be seen and not heard.” While that may sound like the height or order in the home, it can be applied in a way that despises the child and marginalizes them until they have something adult-like to offer.

Read the rest for his further thoughts.