Parenting by God's Promises

Parents are unable to give their children what they need most―new hearts that trust in Christ for forgiveness of sins. All belief is a work of God alone. But parents must not “hinder” their children from coming to Christ, as Jesus’ disciples sought to hinder mothers and fathers from bringing small children to Him (Mark 10:13–16). On the contrary, they must do everything in their power to “bring” their children to the Savior, which means raising their sons and daughters in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4).

In Parenting by God’s Promises: How to Raise Children in the Covenant of Grace, Dr. Joel R. Beeke explores what this nurture and admonition looks like and offers gems of practical wisdom for parents on topics such as instituting and leading family worship, teaching children, modeling faithful Christian living, and exercising discipline. However, he carefully puts parental responsibilities in their proper perspective and guides mothers and fathers to lean not on their own abilities but to trust more fully in the God who knits children together in the first place. Above all, he affirms, parents must look to the one true God, who promises to provide everything His people need and to bless them and their families.

1. Opening Credits
2. Dedication
3. Epigraph
4. Foreword by Derek W. H. Thomas
5. Introduction: Parenting with a Strong Hope
6. Part 1: Covenantal Foundations for Parenting | Chapter 1: Encouragement through the Covenant
7. Chapter 2: Children of the Covenant
8. Chapter 3: Rearing Children by Faith
9. Chapter 4: The Covenant Promise
10. Chapter 5: Bringing Children to Christ
11. Part 2: Parenting as Prophets, Priests, and Kings | Chapter 6: Our Responsibility as Parents
12. Chapter 7: Teaching Our Children as Prophets
13. Chapter 8: What Should We Teach Our Children?
14. Chapter 9: Training in Godly Living
15. Chapter 10: Serving as Priests in the Home
16. Chapter 11: Sympathizing with Our Children
17. Chapter 12: Exercising Loving Rule as Kings
18. Chapter 13: Preventive Discipline
19. Chapter 14: Corrective Discipline
20. Part 3: Practical Steps for Child-Rearing | Chapter 15: Help from Our Puritan Forebears
21. Chapter 16: Teaching Children Piety
22. Chapter 17: Teaching Children to Listen
23. Chapter 18: Taming Children’s Tongues
24. Chapter 19: Handling Sibling Relationships
25. Part 4: Practical Helps for Teenagers | Chapter 20: Helping Teenagers Discern God’s Will
26. Chapter 21: Helping Teenagers Resist Negative Peer Pressure
27. Chapter 22: Helping Teenagers Manage Anger
28. Conclusion: To a Thousand Generations
29. Appendix 1: Cotton Mather’s Parental Resolutions
30. Appendix 2
31. Closing Credits