The Bible does not specifically use the term child abuse. What the Bible does tell us is this: children have a special place in God’s heart and anyone who harms a child is inviting God’s wrath upon himself. When Jesus’ disciples tried to keep children from coming to Jesus, He rebuked them and welcomed the children to His side, saying, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” (Mark 10:14). Then He took the children in His arms and blessed them (verse 16).
Children are abused and mistreated in several different ways, all of which are abhorrent to God. Too many children are the victims of angry beatings and other physical abuse as their parents take out their own anger and frustration on their children. Though some forms of physical discipline may be biblically acceptable, such discipline should never be administered in anger. Paul reminds the Ephesians, “In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold” (Ephesians 4:26–27). Proverbs 29:22 says, “An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered one commits many sins.” There is no place for unrighteous or uncontrolled anger in the life of a Christian. Anger should be confessed to God and appropriately handled long before it comes to the point of physical abuse against a child or anyone else.
Sexual abuse or molestation is particularly devastating and is soundly condemned in Scripture. Warnings against sexual sin abound in Scripture. To force sexual acts upon a child is a horrible, evil offense. In addition to committing a sexual sin, the perpetrator is also attacking the innocence of one of the world’s most vulnerable persons. Sexual abuse violates everything about a person from his or her understanding of self to physical boundaries to spiritual connection with God. In a child, these things are so barely established that they are altered for life, and without appropriate help may not ever heal.
Psychological and emotional abuse are also forbidden in Scripture. Ephesians 6:4 warns fathers not to “exasperate” or provoke their children, but to bring them up in the “training and instruction of the Lord.” Harsh, unloving verbal discipline, emotional manipulation, or volatile environments alienate children’s minds from their parents and render their instruction and correction useless. Parents can provoke and exasperate their children by placing unreasonable requirements on them, belittling them, or constantly finding fault, thereby producing wounds that can be as bad as or worse than any physical beating can inflict. Colossians 3:21 tells us not to “embitter” our children so they will not become discouraged. Ephesians 4:15–19 says we are to speak the truth in love and use our words to build others up, not allow rotten or destructive words to pour from our lips, especially toward the tender hearts and minds of children.
It is abundantly clear how God feels about the issue of all forms of child abuse. Anyone who suspects a child is being abused has the obligation to report it to appropriate authorities. Anyone who has been abused or who has abused children can find hope, healing, and forgiveness in Jesus Christ. Talking to a pastor or finding a Christian counselor or a support group may be a good place to begin the journey to wholeness.
Dear friend,
Thank you for this.
It took a lot of time and God’s gracr mercy and forgiveness and love to forgive my mok for being the dominating person in mine and my dads life.
I know there has been a lot of days when I would just cry, tried committing suicide, was depressesed, Got away from God.
But now when God forgave me I believe He also gave me the grace to forgive her.
I now pray for her, even you can join me too, that she also finds love and peace and forgiveness from God, and that God changes her heart. Amen.
Hallelujah
God Bless you friend.
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My friend through Christ;
Thousands of people worldwide share in your pain. Many have, or have had, a domineering parent, husband/wife or other significant person in their life who was abusive. That abusiveness often stems from alcohol/drugs, a feeling of self inadequacy, anger and frustration or having been abused themselves. Abuse has a devastating and long term effect upon the lives of everyone it touches. Often causing the recipient of abuse to act out in ways we would not normally have done. As in your case: “crying/great sorrow,” “depression” or “attempts at suicide.”
In Matthew 6 Jesus is teaching disciples how to pray and in doing so outlines how we are restored into intimacy with God whenever we have displeased Him. In fact, Jesus instructs us to build into our prayers a request for God to forgive us in the same way that we have forgiven others who have harmed us (Matthew 6:12). If there are those we have not forgiven when we ourselves pray for forgiveness, then practically speaking we are asking God not to restore a right relationship with us after we sin. To emphasize the importance of restoring broken relationships with our brothers and sisters, Jesus states that asking for God’s forgiveness for one’s own sins, all the while withholding forgiveness from someone else, is not only bizarre but hypocritical. We cannot possibly walk with God in true fellowship if we refuse to forgive others. [ see also: The challenge: forgiving ourselves]
To be sure, an unforgiving spirit is a serious sin and should be confessed to God. If we have un-forgiveness in our hearts against someone else, then we are acting in a way that is not pleasing to God, making our prayers and a proper living relationship with Him difficult. God will not hear our prayers unless we also show ourselves ready to grant forgiveness. If we are harder than iron in this regard, Christ’s exhortation ought to soften us.
I believe strongly in intercessory prayer and I will be praying for your mother. I also encourage others to pray for her as well. You have a great message and testimony here but I also think it is incomplete. To bring it to completeness you need to go to your mother, tell her what Christ has done for you, tell her your story and, most importantly, tell her of your forgiveness of her and what she has done. Hopefully this will begin a healing process between you two and lead her to Christ. It will also lift this burden you have carried around for so long….
Thank you ever-so-much for your comments and testimony. Both are greatly appreciated.
May the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob bless and keep you and yours always…..
Yours in Christ;
Michael
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My dear friend Michael,
I can understand what you are telling me, thank you from the bottom of my heart will not be enough for your guidance.
However through I forgave her when I did I said I forgive you and in very light tone I said for everything you did for me.
But my mom does not recognize her mistake that’s the problem she thinks that in my depression when I pointed out to her that she is dominating it was wrong for me. I mean she thinks she did what was necessary by hurting me for 16 years (well still now she feels slapping me is fun, I allow it maybe because I try to be more like Christ) and literally she is dominating my dad ever since I came to know them.
I dont know, I can only pray for her that one she realizes and asks forgiveness from God. Because I forgave her and because Im a sinner too, how can I still judge her when my eyes are opened by the light of Jesus Christ.
Lets Hope for the best, I have faith in Kurios Iesous, let his love help me to accept the persecution that occur in my life. One thing I want to mention is she is stopping me to write God’s word, she’s spying on me, so I hop3 thar now Jesus Christ finds a way though which I may still be able to write his words. Amen. Hallelujah
Thank you again friend, Love Abraham
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Dear Abraham;
You are in a very precarious position. One: I gather you are but 16 and remain living at home as a result of your age. Secondly: you are trying to live a Christian life under the most horrific conditions and abuses imaginable for a young man your age. It is very hard for a young man, or woman, to live under such conditions as yours when at you age you want, and need, the love of a parent. As well as their guidance and nurturing.
You speak of your father (dad) who is also abused by her actions. Your father should be acting as a spiritual adviser within the home. I gather he is not filling his role as head of the household as Christ is head of the church. This is a problem and one you might address with him in private. You do not make it clear that your father is saved through Jesus Christ and this may well be a means of bringing rest and peace to your home. If you father is not saved it might be a great benefit to everyone if you were to witness to him and bring him to the Lord. If you have a good relationship with your father this may well be easy to accomplish. He would certainly understand, if not share, in your feelings of being abused and suffering at the hands of tyranny brought by your mother.
I am surprised by your knowledge of ” Kurios Iesous”. For those unaware of what it is, or means, let me bring a short summation to it’s meaning and origin. Kurios Iesous is the Greek pronunciation of “Jesus (Iesous) is Lord (Kurios)” and it comes from very early on in the history of the Church. To understand the significance of the phrase you have to understand the context of the time. The term “Lord (Kurios)” was used only for royalty and specifically royalty who claimed to have divine authority. For those in the Roman empire at the time of the early church, one would be forced to swear loyalty to Rome by proclaiming “Kurios Caesar” (Caesar is Lord). The early Christians recognized that no man can serve two masters, and that a person’s allegiance can only be given to one Lord. Their pronunciation of faith came down to one simply, defiant, phrase that stood up to the powers that be of their day: “Kurios Iesous”. In short, “Kurios Iesous” is a declaration that Jesus is the most important thing in life and all our hope, joy, love, and trust rest in Him and that we will say no to the promises and guarantees of the world and saying “YES!!!” to God. Jesus is Lord!
I ask you remain strong in Christ. Pray for His strength in your life, and ask God to work His will in your Father’s life as well. When you are ready try approaching your earthly father with your sorrow, fear and belief. Message to him the urgency of his being a strong father and how God, in Ephesians, structures family and home…. Perhaps a solution lies in your bringing your earthly father to Christ. Honor your mother & father for it is good…. and continue your prayers for them, strength and God’s divine will in your life. It seems you are doing all you can and I will do all I can through prayer and support of you.
Again, may the god of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob bless and keep you and yours always..
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Dear friend,
I am 21 year old as of now,(just celebrated my birthday on 5th of June) and yes I do stay my parents because its a custom in India, that children even if they are old enough they stay with their parents, if we try to go out it is looked as something a grave sin and all. It says that the family would be broken and what not. However, My father before marriage was an atheist, He had an encounter with St Anthony which made him to change his belief to Christianity, long before marriage, now my dad thinks men and women should be equal and he is a feminist type just like my mom. In many occasions I have tried my level best to make him understand, through bible and or or through many examples stating facts that you are head, husbands are heads of wife just like christ is the head of the church. But it was all in vein, he won’t understand. I with my own eyes saw my mom slapping my dad, in a very young age for a sin which my dad committed against her. Though he was a sinner, yet I felt the slap was not made to him but to all men, especially to me. I used to hate women, I wanted to burn them all, I became a follower of Adolf Hitler, and I wanted to torture them in ways even I could not imagine. But on this Manudy Thursday one of our local priest, whom I had a reverential fear off, washed my feet and kissed it, I was one of the 12 disciples. And in front of the entire church he washed my feet and kissed it. I felt like Jesus Christ kissed my feet, Only one tear drop came out from my eyes, and I can only say “My Lord”. Later I came to know that those who does not respect authorities that are created by God, those who are dominating, all those who cannot love,(as stated in 1 Corinthians 13 by St Paul) well they are not of Christ, and they are just blind, and I cannot blame someone for being blind. I just have to show him or her the light thats how my blog started. Previously I used to write in Facebook, my mom warned me against it, so I prayed to God, asked him to show me a way, so he gave me a name Abraham, and told me that you can write a blog only(I had a poetry blog before this for 3 years). My mom doesn’t wants me to preach because she thinks I’m still in my listening period I should not speak, but what she forgets is if Holy Spirit is in a Rock, then if its God’s will it can bear the living testimony of Jesus. My mom and dad thinks they are very good in prayer life, I would not judge them, for I too am a sinner, but I doubt that. Whenever I try to share something with them they just say we know more or reject me, or change the topic. They do not even go for confession for years I know. So after my feet was washed I know that I am also authorized now, to wash the feet of others too, I tried to do it with my dad, so that his sins can be forgiven, maybe my timing was not right, and he rejected and rebuked me so badly that I felt, how Jesus Christ must have felt when I have rejected him out of my life, when I was with my pride ego and futility(my old life). Though I know that Christ never left me to die, he kept on pushing me with his love, he even washed my feet, to bring me down on my knees. And I know that maybe this means that I should not give up hope on my mom and dad and pray for them, and try my best to bring them to Christ. At one point of time, a few days ago I wanted to be a Priest, because at lest I can evangelize people, but I realized that my mom and dad wont let me go, I shared with them, and they rejected the idea, saying I’m not of that type. I don’t know, I would just try my best to surrender my life to our Lord, and I’m sure he will lead me to greener pastures, for he always does.
Now I know that Jesus Christ is the Son Of God, and it is through him that I became a Child of God too, did not had a great childhood, did not had peace, yet I know that I have family in heaven with God the father, God the son my Lord and my King, on who’s army I’m in and God the Spirit, with a most loving and caring mother of all times, my dead mother marry. Amen. God Bless you friend. Hallelujah Amen.
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