Family Shepherds

Voddie Baucham has made a significant impact on my life during every stage of my life since college.  As a preacher at some events at which I led worship, I got to know him and see that he is off the stage who he is on the stage.  His thoughts on family discipleship sparked a fire in me that I don’t think I can quite possibly articulate.

I was very excited to read his book, Family Shepherds.

Overview

It’s hard to overestimate the importance of the family, and that of fathers in particular. We’ve heard it said, “As the family goes, so goes the nation.” But it can also be said that “as the father goes, so goes the family.” Consequently, Voddie Baucham has set out to teach men how to faithfully shepherd their families.

Derived from Baucham’s monthly meetings with men in his church, Family Shepherds calls men to accountability for their God-given responsibilities in their homes. Baucham’s clear style and practical approach will spur men to protect their marriage, raise kingdom-minded children, value the synergy between church and home, and navigate difficult family dynamics.

Family Shepherds is a book for any husband or father looking to lead well, and it will serve as an excellent resource for churches looking to equip the men in their congregations.

Favorite Quotes

  1. We do not rely either on the pulpit or on the home.  Both institutions are charged to play their role in this matter, and neither is called to do so without the other (20).
  2. Maturity in Christians is marked not by gray hair, but by the fruit believers bear in keeping with their sanctification (30).
  3. The parents serve as chauffeurs driving children from activity to activity, but they rarely engage the children spiritually (40).
  4. Although the Jones children were never told, “Your parents are no longer the principle spiritual leaders in your life,” their thinking was shaped in this direction ever so gradually as they were herded through a system that determined the trajectory of their spiritual development completely independent of their parents’ input or knowledge (43).
  5. Think about it; the gospel is news!  Therefore, we don’t “live” the gospel; we proclaim it (55).
  6. When we believe salvation is all about man exercising his will in making the right decision, our methods of evangelism tend to be emotional and manipulative (70).
  7. How do our hearts not burn with a desire to bring God’s Word before our families as often as we might in an effort to see the souls of our children converted (75)?
  8. Christ’s example is the blueprint that shows every family shepherd what his role is in marriage (89).
  9. The greatest source of security our children have in this world is a God-honoring, Christ-centered marriage between the parents (98).
  10. However, unlike feminists who, for example, will rarely come to the aid of a conservative Christian woman, the biblical model isn’t bound by political allegiances; instead it views all women as worthy of respect, honor, and protection (108).
  11. We end up teaching our children a theology through our practices that will be very difficult to overcome with our later explanations of theory or philosophy, since much more is caught than taught (120).
  12. If God has warned us against something in his Word, we owe it to our children to point out the warning (127).
  13. Loving reproof (of a child) is private whenever possible.  The goal of rebuke is not humiliation, but correction (138).
  14. I’m arguing that the most important thing for a family shepherd to do – when he’s evaluating how he’s leading his family – is to ensure they’re healthy members of a healthy church (147).
  15. However, it didn’t take a degree in rocket science for him to figure out that he couldn’t continue his pace of entertainment consumption and be serious about shepherding his family and participating fully in his church (160).
  16. We must remember that while our livelihood may be tied up in the kingdom of man, our future is not (171).