"As the twig is bent, so grows the tree." That familiar old adage embodies very basic scriptural and spiritual principles which teach us that as a life is directed an influenced in its early years, so in most cases will it go in later years. The responsibility for bending the twig or training the child is placed squarely upon the shoulders of parents — not the state or the church. As parents, it is our God-given duty to train up our children in the way they should go.

Proverbs 6:20-23	My son, keep your father's command, and do not forsake the law of your mother. Bind them continually upon your heart; tie them around your neck. When you roam, they will lead you; when you sleep, they will keep you; and when you awake, they will speak with you. For the commandment is a lamp, and the law a light; reproofs of instruction are the way of life.
Proverbs 13:24	He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly.
Proverbs 19:18	Chasten your son while there is hope, and do not set your heart on his destruction.
Proverbs 22:6	Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.
Ephesians 6:1-4	Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.

Issues And Answers From God's Word (D. James Kennedy, Ph.D.) Page 10-11