RELATING WITH CHILDREN.

FIRST BIBLE LESSON: LUKE Chapter 18 verses 16 and 17

But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me
, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you,
Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wi
se enter therein.
SECOND BIBLE LESSON: LUKE Chapter 9 verses 47 and 48
And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a child, and set him by h
im, And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth
me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is le
ast among you all, the same shall be great.
GOLDEN TEXT: MATTHEW Chapter 19 verses 14 and 15
But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: fo
r of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them, and departed
thence.
Brethren, this is spiritual nourishment which we are going to acquire this morni
ng. It is a nourishment which has existed from time immemorial in its prepared f
orm and we are only going to partake of it.
Beloved brethren, God's admonition on the relationship between adults and childr
en has been made known since time immemorial, I am therefore not going to tell y
ou something new. Indeed, as Our Lord Jesus Christ said, when the Comforter come
s He will not speak of Himself, He will only recall all that had been said and c
larify to you what may not have been understood. So it is going to be today. The
refore make no mistake today, to credit Leader Olumba Olumba Obu with the final
authority on this subject, as we derive all we do and say here from the scriptur
es. You are our witnesses on this score. You will no doubt agree with me, the wh
ole process can be likened to a school where children are taught and they are la
ter put to a test, as a means of ascertaining that they actually understood what
they learnt. We here just revise what we learnt from the scriptures, as we come
to the final days that are already here.
MY ADVISE AS WE GET CLOSER AND CLOSER TO THESE DAYS IS THAT GOD, IN HIS INFINITE
MERCY, IS GIVING YOU THIS GRACIOUS OPPORTUNITY FOR REVISION, SO IF YOU NEVER HI
THERTO BELIEVED, YOU SHOULD DO SO AND ALSO IF YOU DID NOT REALIZE, THE END OF TH
E WORLD IS IN SIGHT, YOU SHOULD IMMEDIATELY DO SO. GO AND TELL THE WORLD, THE EN
D OF THE WORLD IS DRAWING NEAR.
On this note, I feel it is incumbent on me to remind you of what God said about
children; His relationship and His regard for them.
It is on this basis God looks at the people of the world as little children. Tha
t statement of Our Lord Jesus Christ that the kingdom of God is like little chil
dren is not clear to the world. You are aware, the world is moving forwards and
not backwards. What is this progress of the world? It is the children who are bo
rn. What you have not seen, the little children will see; what you cannot do, th
e little children will do and where you cannot reach, they will reach.
It is quite pitiful at this end of time to observe how you curse your children w
hen you pronounce woe unto them. If you go to a person's house and see how he tr
eats his children, you marvel at it, because he treats them like beasts. Very ma
ny children, as soon as they hear the voices of their parents, they would want t
o vanish because of fear. Some of them quake at the sight of their parents. Even
 a person who is not capable of fighting his equal, will always wage war against
his children at home. Even a fellow who pretends to be quiet here, becomes talk
ative at home with his children. In deed, most people who claim to know Jesus ap
pear to be very cruel with their children.
Brethren, it is not easy to know how to bring up children. We should think very
seriously about this because our attitude towards children leaves much to be des
ired. Children need to be studied and cared for. They just come into this world
in innocence and do not know what is in the world. They are like tombstones. If
you want to know the nature of children, compare a newly born child with a goat,
sheep, or calf, it does not understand, it looks blank. We do not know our trou
ble is based on the fact, we fail to know how to get on with children. You only
ask God to give you children, but you do not know how to bring them up in the fe
ar, love and knowledge of God. If I tell you the task involved in caring for and
bringing up children, you will realize what a great task your parents had.
Among the whites, one who is a millionaire is satisfied with a lone child becaus
e his preoccupation is how to bring up that child in a proper way. IT IS NOT DIF
FICULT TO REAR CHILDREN, RATHER WHAT IS DIFFICULT IS HOW TO NURTURE THEM IN THE
KNOWLEDGE OF GOD. The trouble of many parents arise from the shabby parental hab
its and maltreatment of their children. Parents do not always have regards for c
hildren. You complain, your child is useless and is not worth anything. Who is r
esponsible for this? It is due to your useless attitude. You also complain your
children do not know God; you are the cause. Name any person whose parents do no
t know God, but they came up to know God and got related with him; and I will te
ll you many people in the Bible who followed God from the good examples of their
parents. WHAT YOU SOW IS WHAT YOU REAP.
To bear children should not be the your first duty on earth, but rather your fir
st duty should be to lead a righteous life that is acceptable to God. However in
your case you begin with going to soothsayers, necromancers or you consult orac
les and mermaids, you drink concoctions and you also wear charms in order to get
children. What will become of these children when you get them through such mea
ns? You do not want to know God, you do not love God; you steal, fornicate, curs
e, abuse and call people names. If you lead this type of life, what will become
of the children you want to bear? You want money, cars, ships, houses, and many
children, but you do not want to know God and keep His commandments. You do not
want to know anything about goodness, righteousness, nor do you want your childr
en to know and appreciate the way of God. What will be the fate of the children
you crave to bear?
Do you know, all your blessings come from your children and the blessing of your
children derive from your pattern of life; and so the symbiosis of the life of
the parents and the children has much influence on the shaping of the life of th
e children. Remember what Our Lord Jesus Christ said, "Suffer the little childre
n and forbid them not to come to me, for such is the kingdom of God."
Then He called the children and blessed them. Little children make up the kingdo
m of God, but you do not recognize them and do you bless them? Specifically, wha
t about your own children? Do you bless them and draw them close to you to appre
ciate your life?
I do not mean blessing them with wealth when you build houses for them, buy them
new clothes and prepare delicious food for them. WHAT I MEAN IS, YOU SHOULD BLE
SS THEM WITH THE WORDS OF GOD. BRING THEM UP IN THE FEAR AND KNOWLEDGE OF GOD AN
D TEACH THEM THE WAY TO RIGHTEOUSNESS, EMPLOYING SIMPLICITY, HUMILITY, PATIENCE
AND UNDERSTANDING. THIS IS THE GREATEST LEGACY YOU CAN LEAVE FOR YOUR CHILDREN.
Those who were here yesterday, heard a story on a similar subject: THE KINGDOM O
F GOD. THIS IS TO SHOW YOU BRINGING UP LITTLE CHILDREN AND MAKING THEM RESPONSIB
LE HUMAN BEINGS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO DO, FOR THE WORLD DEPENDS ON THE
CHILDREN AS THE FUTURE GENERATION.
It is true, the environment plays an important role in the molding of a person.
Why evil men are born is the resultant effect of what the parents have been doin
g. It is what they sowed for their children. The evils you commit come back on y
our children. If you steal, your children will be given to roguery. If you forni
cate, they will take to fornication. If you indulge in witchcraft, concoctions a
nd charms, your children will indulge in the same practices. When you therefore
procreate a child, that same blood of roguery or witchcraft will recur. If I sho
uld take you any longer, you will realize, all that happens stem from our ignora
nce in the treatment of children.
BEFORE WE CAN HAVE GOOD CHILDREN, WE HAVE TO REFRAIN FROM DOING EVIL COMPLETELY
AND BE DETERMINED TO DO GOOD. INSTEAD OF ABUSING AND CURSING, YOU BLESS; INSTEAD
OF PRONOUNCING WOES, WE ENCOURAGE. BY SO DOING, THEY WILL BECOME GOOD CHILDREN.
You are true witnesses to the fact, no person speaks good words to children, mo
st people have no regard for their children and they console themselves by sayin
g: "Provided they live." What are they living for?
The reason why Our Lord Jesus Christ compared the kingdom of God to little child
ren is, little children are like blank sheets of paper, an empty pot and it is y
our duty as a parent to fill the pot and write on the blank sheet of paper. All
you fill in the pot or write on the paper will show in the adult life of the chi
ldren. You are aware babies when they are born, are motionless and you have to m
ove them about; they must be molded by parents as to the formation of the parts
of the body. Any mistake by the parents leaves permanent deformities in the chil
dren.
Whatever comes out of the life of a child is what was put in. God has made it cl
ear, we should treat little children kindly. WE SHOULD DESIST FROM CURSING THEM,
PRONOUNCING WOE ON THEM, CALLING THEM FOOLS AND SAYING WHAT THEY DO TO YOU WILL
BE DONE TO THEM BY THEIR CHILDREN. IN SHORT PREDICTING THEIR DOWNFALL. WHEN YOU
SPEAK LIKE THIS WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR CHILDREN WILL BECOME? THE REASON WHY A C
OW IS MORE KNOWLEDGEABLE THAN A HUMAN BEING IS BECAUSE WHEN A COW DELIVERS, IT W
ILL USE ITS TONGUE TO LICK AND CLEAN ITS CALF'S BODY.
You have been hearing how parents bless their children. Blessing is important. A
braham blessed Isaac and Isaac blessed Jacob. If Isaac had blessed Jacob and Esa
u at the same time there would not have been any trouble. But instead of blessin
g Esau, he told him he had already blessed Jacob, and there was no blessing left
for him. He added, Esau would be subject to his brother Jacob, whereas it would
have been simple to bless the two of them for the sake of peace. As a result of
this, Esau and his descendants became subjected to Jacob. That is exactly what
happens when you curse and abuse your children. When you pronounce curses on you
r children they are cursed.
Again Jacob called his twelve children to bestow his blessings on them. He prono
unced curses on his children, from the first son down until he got to Joseph who
m he blessed lavishly saying: he would be wealthy, and also an elevated tower, w
ise, fruitful and many other good things and that all would be subject to him. W
as it impossible for him to bless all the children? Who was the cause of the tro
uble?
What is the cause of trouble in your family? Who is responsible for its lack of
performing well? It is the curses you pronounce on them. What have your children
done to you to prompt your ill-treatment of them? You always remain with them w
ith heavy hearts and long drawn faces whereas they do not know anything. You sho
uld lead, and guide, and teach, and mould and be easy with them. You should alwa
ys look at them with smiles instead of being fastidious.
If your child is a thief, it is because you have been a thief. Whatever he has d
one, he learns from you. WHY DO YOU NOT USE KINDNESS, PATIENCE AND TRUTH TO REAR
THEM IN THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD? BY SO DOING YOU WILL REMOVE SEVERAL PRONOUNCED CU
RSES ON YOUR FAMILY. As to the question of eating, most of your children do not
eat from your plate and with your spoon. Which is greater, your child or your sp
oon? You do not allow your children to go near your bed, not to talk of them sle
eping on it. You would not even allow them to touch your bed. Is it how God has
told you to treat your children?
Instead of thinking of how you will lead a life of good example to the children,
you go about stealing, fornicating, indulging in preparing concoctions and char
ms and consulting oracles before them. What type of life do you want them to liv
e, when they grow up? God says: "I WILL VISIT THE INIQUITIES OF THE FATHERS UPON
THE CHILDREN; UNTO THE THIRD AND FOURTH GENERATION OF THEM THAT HATE Me; AND SH
OWING MERCY ONTO THOUSANDS OF THEM THAT LOVE Me AND KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS."
Think of how such a family will be blessed. Is the light of God shinning in such
a family? Now, one person has a hundred children, the hundred children bear one
thousand children and the thousand bear ten thousand and the multiplicity thus
continues.
What is the sense of having so many children without the knowledge and awe of Go
d? Which families were Sodom and Gomorrah? Who were their great ancestors? Nothi
ng happens without a cause which cannot be traced. Sodom and Gomorrah descended
from the first son of Noah. The first son of Noah was cursed by the father. He w
ent away, the descendants waxed in wealth and knowledge and they became prominen
t people who established the two cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Why did Noah curs
e the first son? Because he saw his father's nakedness and laughed at it. If Noa
h had led a good life, he would not have been drunk and would not have slept nak
ed and his first son would not have laughed at Noah's nakedness.
This curse passed unto the first son's children and his grandchildren. It was ho
wever the second son who when he discovered his father's naked body, covered Noa
h's nakedness and took Noah to a place of rest. Later on, when Noah returned to
his consciousness, he was told that the first son laughed at him while the secon
d son covered his nakedness. It was because of this, Noah cursed his first son.
This is an example of the "woe onto you," you pronounce on your children. The cu
rse on the first son was later passed onto his descendants who were finally dest
royed in Sodom and Gomorrah. Of what use was the destruction to Noah, who pronou
nced the curse?
FIRST BIBLE LESSON: LUKE Chapter 18 verses 16 and 17
But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me
, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you,
Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wi
se enter therein.
PARENTS' NEGLIGENCE OF CHILDREN:
Brethren, have you heard the lesson? Why do you bear a child and abandon him? Wh
y do you impregnate a woman and when she bears a child, you run away from the ch
ild and the woman? Why do you bear children but later on you drive them away, as
king them who was their mother? Whose duty is it to care for a child, is it the
mother or is it the father's responsibility? Or is it the joint responsibility o
f both mother and father? Do you know, to reject a child is to reject the blessi
ng of God, life and all other good things? If you reject him do you know what th
e child will become? You who commit abortion, do you know what that child is com
ing to do or who he is: whether he is John the baptist, Jesus or Moses.
When Pharaoh wanted to exterminate all Israelite male babies in Egypt, the mothe
r of Moses, because of her love and humility, did everything to save the life of
Moses. If she had been negligent and the infant Moses had been killed, who woul
d have delivered the children of Israel from Egypt?
After the departure of the three wise men, the angel advised Joseph and Mary to
take the child Jesus to Egypt because Herod was seeking to kill him. If the pare
nts did not obey the angel, and the infant Jesus had been killed, who would have
redeemed the world? We therefore have a responsibility for all little children.
You are indebted to God, unless you nurture them and bring them up in the fear a
nd knowledge of God. You have to teach, guide, and love them whether, they are y
our own children or the children of other parents. If you do this, you will rece
ive blessing from God.
Till today, many communities are still crossed about twins and their mothers. Th
ey kill the children and in some places, kill their mothers too. And some say, t
hey do not want two babies, why? But for the timely arrival of Christian Mission
aries who would have rescued the twins and their mothers. Today some of these tw
ins have become prominent persons in the society.
You who deliver a number of children and abandon them with the father and run aw
ay in favor of prostitution, thinking, you want the father to suffer, where are
you going to? When you abandon your children, you cannot receive the blessings o
f God. Because of such an attitude, the children suffer. Some parents who have s
eparated, adopt the attitude of throwing their children from father to mother an
d vice versa. You do not know you are torturing the children who themselves have
come in the likeness of God.
This gospel is not a simple one that one can easily understand and practice, esp
ecially when it comes to the question of proper care for the children. Look at a
situation where mothers were taking their children to Our Lord Jesus Christ for
blessing, but His disciples prevented them and ordered them to be taken away. U
nless you begin to change your attitude towards children, things will never be g
ood in the world.
Here is an illustration: There is a huge tree, which needs to be cut down, and y
ou have an old blunt axe as well as knives, which are no more useful. You are li
ke these blunt implements. When God sends these little children, who are like sh
arp axes and knives, capable of cutting down the tree, you reject them and mistr
eat them. How foolish are you? The Word of God preached to you enables you to kn
ow how to handle little children, how to nurture them when they are growing up a
nd at different times. It is only when you know the Word of God, you are able to
bring up your Children in the fear and knowledge of God.
You say you want to serve God, and if you were to see God, you would do everythi
ng for Him, but, the little children sent to you are the likeness of God, theref
ore whatever services you would have rendered to God, if you had seen Him, rende
r to these children. If you want to prostrate to God, prostrate to these childre
n. If you want this world to be good, you have to develop good attitudes towards
the children and bring up children with good attitudes. Do not curse them, but
always bless them, be simple, tolerant, loving; and show merciful and peaceful a
ttitudes. Use humility to lead them to the type of life God wants them to live.
Do you realize, whatever you do to a child, he will grow up with that upbringing
? If you beat, curse or torture him, he will apply the same attitude and when he
becomes a parent, he will behave the same way you behaved towards him. If we co
ntinue with such attitudes, when do you think the world will be reformed? Is it
because you regard them as defenseless and that no person would ask you question
s?
Most of the time you abuse your children because you feel they have not sufficie
ntly provided for you. What have you done yourself, upon all the blessing of God
for you? Are you not ashamed of yourself when you cannot provide for your child
ren, and you rather turn around to ask the children to provide for you. It is no
t the children who should provide for the parents but the reverse should be the
case. Where would the children get these things from, in order to supply to the
parents. If you serve and provide, you will receive blessing from God. These are
the Children of God, the Christs of God, they therefore need to be cared for pr
operly. From now on, do everything as if you are doing it unto God and this goes
with blessing.
The father of Abraham did not know the son he bore will be the father of many na
tions. Was he himself the Father of many nations? When the mother of Moses deliv
ered Moses, did she know, Moses would be the person to deliver the Children of I
srael from Egypt? When Mary delivered Jesus, did she know, Jesus would be the Ch
rist, the Messiah, and the Supreme ruler of the universe?
I cannot enumerate all the good things which have been done by men born of good
parents. Do you realize, any good thing you do for these children, you do same f
or God? We should help the children, we should supply their lack. The attention
of the parents should be focused on the nurturing of children, speak good of the
m, care for them, provide for them, whether you know them or not, whether black
or white. It is only in this way you can be blessed. Do not order them about, le
t them be free to speak and do not hush them up. Do not starve them and do not b
e difficult with them. The whole world should stop maltreating children.
SECOND BIBLE LESSON: LUKE Chapter 9 verses 47 and 48
And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a child, and set him by h
im, And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth
me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is le
ast among you all, the same shall be great.
Have you heard that lesson? You are now looking for God in the sky, and Jesus to
come down from the clouds. What about the children in your midst? Do you receiv
e them, and are you happy with them?
The whites have gone very far from the blacks in this direction. A black man may
go overseas and stay there for ten to twenty years, but may come back as a blac
k man. This is because he fails to imbibe the white man's attitude towards child
ren. Our Lord Jesus Christ said, any person who receives children receives Him a
nd that any person who receives Him receives the person who sent Him. Have you r
eceived them? Are you happy with them? Have you accepted Christ? You have always
driven away the children who come to you. Sometimes children are very much surp
rised at the way they are beaten by the parents. You beat them up and say, they
should die if they want to die.
You complain, your child does not respect you. Do you respect your child? Who sh
ould respect the other? Don't you hear that the three wise men travelled all the
way to worship the infant Jesus? Do you respect and accept children? Our Lord J
esus Christ was a child. If you do not accept these children as the kingdom of G
od, you cannot enter into it. Those monstrous eyes which you show to your childr
en, have you ever shown them to your equals? Or do you do this because you feel
they have not got any person to protect them? Is it evil for a visitor to come t
o your house or is it evil for a brother to call at your house to give you solac
e? Do you know, these children are definitely sent to help you; they are sent to
put right what was wrong and to amend the mistakes you have made? You say, you
have run out of luck. Have you ever wished your children good luck?
We should now ponder over these questions and retrace our steps because the chil
dren are greater than us. They are the great prophets and apostles of old who ha
ve now reincarnated. They are greater, they see better and they think clearer an
d they are purer than we are. If you are not as pure as they are, you have no sh
are in the kingdom of God. Now, you call the children names, have they ever foll
owed you to fornicate, steal, smoke or drink? The children do not know anything,
for they are as harmless as doves. Why do you oppress them and blame them? Are
you not the person who taught them to steal and to fornicate and tell lies? You
take them to soothsayers, and juju doctors, you direct your daughter to meet wit
h a man. If she refuses you curse and disown her. You ask her to tell lies. When
she refuses, you drive her away from your house. You teach the children all the
evils they commit, left for them alone they would not hurt a fly.
If you were a rogue, you have to forsake stealing and live a life expected of yo
u by God. The children are sent to you in order that you may care for them. You
should therefore try to care properly for them. In this kingdom, many people cla
im, if it were in their youthful days they would have done this or that. Now, yo
u are old and weighed down with your sins, what about these little innocent ones
? Would you not give them the chance to perform by nurturing them well? Let us h
ear the Golden Text.
GOLDEN TEXT: MATTHEW Chapter 19 verses 14 and 15
But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: fo
r of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them, and departed
thence.
Brethren, see what God has revealed to you, to show you, God loves little childr
en. In your house, you do not allow the children to come; you always drive them
away, saying, you do not want them to soil you. Our Lord Jesus Christ advises us
, not to forsake the little ones because the kingdom of God is like them. He ble
ssed them. What lesson has Our Lord Jesus Christ now taught us? If Our Lord Jesu
s Christ went as far as acknowledging and recognizing little children, holding t
hem up and blessing them, then every person should be aware of the significance
of blessing children. That blessing bestowed on little children by Our Lord Jesu
s Christ, has passed on to all the children of the world. Till today, Our Lord J
esus Christ is still the friend of little children. He walks with them, converse
s with them, sings with them and blesses them. Let us emulate the example of Our
Lord Jesus Christ, by feeling free to talk to children, eating, singing and con
versing with them.
Do not worry yourself about having many children, yet not being able to care for
them. Rather be happy with the few you have, and care for them in the knowledge
and fear of God. It is wrong to say you have no child. What about all the child
ren around? Who owns them? They are the Children of God, and if they are God's c
hildren, they are your children. Therefore, you should care for them. Whoever wa
nts children is foolish and whoever wants many children is equally foolish. Any
person who cares for children, cares and ministers unto them, is great in the si
ght of God.
Little children constitute the kingdom of God. Both God and Christ are in little
children. They work and bless through them. WHOEVER MINISTERS UNTO LITTLE CHILD
REN WILL BE BLESSED BY GOD. IF THERE IS A PERSON WHO HAS NEVER GONE TO CHURCH BU
T STAYS AT HOME WITH LITTLE CHILDREN, CARES FOR THEM, TEACHES THEM, BLESSES THEM
, AND IS THANKFUL TO GOD FOR THE CHILDREN; AND IF THERE IS ANOTHER PERSON WHO IS
A BISHOP WHO DRIVES A LUXURIOUS CAR, WHO BETWEEN THESE TWO IS A MAN OF GOD? The
whole world should love little children, care for them, nurture them, in the fe
ar and love of God, in this way, you will bring up a generation of good people.
It is foolishness for one to say the children nowadays are senseless and useless
, for it means their parents are first, and equally senseless and useless. It is
the reflection of the parents' attitude. The reason why John the Baptist is gre
at was, Elizabeth his mother was a lady devoted to the services of God, and his
father Zacharias was a high priest. The union of the two brought about the great
ness of John the Baptist.
Why was Christ born of Mary? It was because Mary was a virgin who served God dil
igently and Joseph was also devoted in the services of God. It was because of Ma
ry's chastity and devotion she became the mother of the Son of Man, Son of God,
Christ the Messiah and God incarnate. If it were you, you would have caused Mary
and Jesus to be killed, because there was a law any woman betrothed to a man, i
f she becomes pregnant without her husband's knowledge should be killed.
Who is that man to whom a beautiful girl is given in marriage and who has no int
imate knowledge of the girl, but finds she is pregnant and would not cause a lot
of trouble or divorce her? We are told, Joseph was making secret plans to divor
ce Mary, but the angel of the Lord appeared and warned him she was conceived by
the power of the Holy Spirit. If it were today, even if you were warned by the a
ngel, you would have sent away the woman. This is to demonstrate to you, Joseph
was devoted to God and because of this Our Lord Jesus Christ was born unto him.
There is nothing you can teach little children, but do not look down on them, ra
ther look at them with mercy, with tolerance, with patience, with respect. The w
hole world should live properly with children. We should speak well of them, act
well and think well of them. Let us pray God to use the children for the origin
al purpose for which He intended to use them.
Brethren, I do not want to take you on a long winding course. Those who have ear
s to hear let them hear. May God bless His Holy Words, Amen.
THANK YOU HOLY FATHER.