And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man.

--Luke 2:52

Would you like to bring up your children like Jesus? We have a great model for giving our child instruction from Luke 2:52.

If you look at our verse today, you will see four critical components of fully developing a child through Jesus’ example.

“And Jesus increased in wisdom… ”—Jesus grew intellectually.
“and stature… ”—Jesus grew physically.
“and in favor with God”—Jesus grew spiritually.
“and man.”—Jesus grew socially.

These are the four areas that we as parents should give our attention in instructing our children. In each area, we should teach them from God’s perspective and make sure they know the fundamentals of faith.

If you’re not sure about the fundamentals, here are the non-negotiable beliefs of the Christian faith:

• The divine authority and inerrancy of the Word of God.
• The depravity or fall of man causing a need for salvation.
• Salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone because of what He did for us on the cross and through the resurrection.
• Knowledge that every life has a destiny with God, either separated from God forever or in the presence of God forever in heaven.

If you are a parent or grandparent, you must instill these beliefs in your children before anything else.

THINK ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN. ARE YOU HELPING THEM GROW MENTALLY, SOCIALLY, AND SPIRITUALLY?