Parenting by the Book
STUDY 375
Text: Proverbs 29
31 August 2008
Dear Parents,
ARE SERVANTS REDEEMABLE?
Servants are difficult to train, but not impossible. Here is a text that offers a very significant insight.
He who pampers his servant from childhood
Will have him as a son in the end.Proverbs 29:21
1. Child slavery
a) Unfortunately this was also practiced.
b) Children were sometimes treated worse than adult ones (because they are unskilled).
2. Training child-slaves
a) Slavery was practiced in many countries (almost universal).
b) If the practice cannot be stopped entirely, good advice can be given to masters (owners).
c) A suggested method of training child-slaves.
i) The harsh approach to be avoided!
ii) A softer approach to be adopted instead.
iii) This is called “pampering a servant from childhood”.
iv) This simply means treating the child-slave as a son.
v) When a child-slave is treated like a good son, he might well one emerge as a son to his master.
3. The challenge to be wise
a) This was essentially a call to exercise wisdom.
b) Wisdom is to be humane.
c) Wisdom enables one to have this rare insight about a servant becoming a son!
Prayerfully,
Pastor Charlie