Date

12-4-2025

Department

Rawlings School of Divinity

Degree

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

Chair

Brandon Pugh

Keywords

parenting, parental discipline, God as Father, discipline, family ministry, intergenerational churches, children's discipleship, biblical literacy

Disciplines

Religion | Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion

Abstract

A pastor is responsible for instructing a congregation regarding biblical information and instruction. When a person is unsure of what the Bible teaches on a topic, the pastor can preach sermons and teach lessons that convey biblical truth. The growing congregation of Nevada Free Will Baptist Church consisted of believers who had been away from church for some time and new converts, resulting in a lack of biblical literacy due to their limited exposure to biblical truth. One area where congregants were uninformed was biblical parenting. This study addressed the problem of biblical illiteracy regarding parenting. It informed participants about biblical parenting and discipline, and presented God as a model father who disciplines His children. Participants learned that when God disciplined His people, He responded to rebellion with justice, remorse with mercy, and repentance with grace. The study used expository preaching and teaching to convey biblical truth to participants during sermons and lessons. Additionally, participants received a daily text containing a scriptural passage with an explanation, reinforcing the week’s sermon and lesson. The study showed that participants learned and retained biblical truth when exposed to expository preaching and teaching.

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