Reunion
Genesis 46:28–30
Now let me die, since I have seen your face and know that you are still alive. Genesis 46:30

Nothing makes a good parent’s joy greater than the success, particularly the spiritual success, of a son or daughter. And conversely, nothing makes a parent’s heart break more irreparably than the spiritual shipwreck of a willful child. You who are children, be careful to honor your parents by your moral choices. If you have any compassion for them—any love for a mother, any love for a father—do not disgrace them by disgraceful conduct. Do your very best for Christ. Use the talents he has given you. And then, when you have achieved everything you can achieve, honor them at the same time you place your crowns of achievement at the feet of Jesus.

Parents, if the success of a son or daughter is the greatest of all earthly joys, strive to be good parents. Yearn to be a good mother. Take time to be a good father. What can it profit you to be president of the company or organizer of the most successful charity in town if your son or daughter is not walking with God but is instead going to the devil in high gear?

But I acknowledge this: children have a mind of their own, and it is not always possible for a parent, even with the greatest measure of faithfulness or the most selfless outpouring of time, to keep his or her offspring godly. Children will rebel. But since that is the case, do not cease to pray for them. From your perspective the situation may seem hopeless. But remember, it is not hopeless to God. With God all things are possible.

Jacob himself is an encouragement. He raised a large family, but except for Joseph (and probably Benjamin), they were not a godly family. But then God intervened. God brought the sin of the sale of Joseph to light and achieved a conversion in these brothers. God saved them, and Jacob’s joy at his reunion with Joseph was intensified by this additional great blessing. In one sense the brothers were also part of this reunion, for they too had been lost and were found. They had been dead and were resurrected spiritually.

There are parents who have died without seeing the conversion of their erring offspring. But remember that the end is not death. The conclusion is still to be told, and it will be told in the day of that final grand reunion of all the people of God in heaven. In that day the years of our lives will seem to have been few and difficult, but the best will lie ahead. In that day all tears will have been wiped away, and we will be filled with joy, being from that moment on forever with one another and forever with the Lord.

Taken from Come to the Waters by James Boice ISBN 9798887790954 used with permission from P&R Publishing, Phillipsburg NJ 08865 

Scripture quotations are from the ESV (the Holy Bible English Standard Version) copyright 2001 by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.