Sermon Central
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Baby Dedication For Ethan Jadusingh
Contributed by Joshua Blackmon on Aug 22, 2020 (message contributor)
Summary: Baby dedications are wonderful moments when we can point parents and churches to their responsibilities in the process of spiritual formation of our children.
Ethan Charles Myers Jadusingh
Acknowledge those in attendance.
Grandparents:
Elanor and Donald Jadusingh (Sarad's parents)
Jerry and Laura Thompson (Natasha's parents)
Tonya Sandefer (Natasha's mom)
Rhonda (Natasha's stepmom)
Jerry Charles Thompson, Sr. (Natasha's deceased grandfather). Who knows if he can see what is happening right now.
Sarad's grandfather (deceased)
Aunt:
Kristan Riojas
Ethan carries on and joins two legacies with his name Charles and Myers. His grandfather and two great-grandfathers. The prayer of this family today is that Ethan will walk in their steps. I believe everyone here today is committed to doing their part to ensure that he does.
Introduction
While we know that Ethan will one day make his own choice to serve the Lord, to be baptized in His Name, and filled with His Spirit, we do not want Ethan to wander around in the spiritual wilderness until that time.
Today, I want to talk to all of those present about your responsibility.
The Scriptures tell us in Proverbs 22:6 to, "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."
Psalm 103:17-18 says, "The steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon those who fear Him, and His righteousness to children's children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments."
Jesus said, "Let the children come to me, do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of God" (Mark 10:14).
Psalm 34:11: "Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord."
21 Eight days later, when the baby was circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel even before he was conceived. 22 Then it was time for their purification offering, as required by the law of Moses after the birth of a child; so his parents took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.
Names matter.
Ethan: Strong, firm, enduring, impetuous
Charles: Free man
Myers: Physician, mayor
Other names that matter to your child will be the names:
Accepted
Loved
Valued
We do not only name our children with the names we put on their birth certificates, but we name them with our actions and words every day of their lives. How we speak to them, what we teach them, and what they see us model all shape who they are.
Dedication Sermon
Today, we dedicate Ethan to the Lord, but there is another dedication that must happen as well. All those gathered are being asked to dedicate to doing their part to help shape Ethan for good.
"Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him." (Psalm 127:3 NIV)
In the book of 1 Samuel, a story is told about a young wife named Hannah who desperately wanted a child. She prayed soo deeply that she had no words left. In her heart, she vowed to God that if He would grant her a child she would dedicate him t the LORD all the days of his life. The priest in the temple thought she was drunk. She protested that she was not drunk, but she was depressed because she wanted a child. The priest blessed her and God gave her a child. She kept her promise. Once her son was weaned she brought him to the temple and gave him back to the LORD.
"I now dedicate the boy to the LORD. For as long as he lives, he is dedicated to the LORD.” So they worshiped the LORD there." (1 Sam 1:28 BSB)
When Hannah prayed for a child and the LORD granted the gift of a child. She realized that the child did not belong to her alone. The child was first and foremost a gift from God and belonged to him. Hannah was merely a steward of the gift. We are responsible for what we do with our children and the role we play in their development.
1. Children's Lives Are Important to the Church:
Hannah may not have realized it, but her child was also a gift to the covenant people.
Samuel reformed the priesthood. He helped Israel to turn back to God.
God has a purpose for Ethan. Who knows what God has planned for him. He was fearfully and wonderfully made on purpose by God.
Hannah brought Samuel to God. Our responsibility as parents is to bring our children to God consistently. It is important to read the Bible with him, to pray with him, to bring him to church.
2. Children's Lives Are Important to the Community:
Samuel anointed the first two kings of Israel.
Ethan will have an impact on the world around him. It is our duty to the entire community to make sure we do our part to help Ethan become all that he can be to bring about the good things of God in the community.
