Friday
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your
heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments
that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit
at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get
up. Tie them as symbols on your
hands and bind them on your foreheads.
Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. –
Deuteronomy 6:4-9
The Puritans had a wonderful little saying, “every home a
little church.” They believed the father should be the pastor in his home the
same way an ordained minister pastors the church. The Puritans went so far as to publish elaborate directories
of family worship. They were so
serious about this that if a father neglected the spiritual training of his
family, he could be brought before the elders for church discipline and if he
refused to take his proper leadership role, he could be disbarred from the
Lord’s Table. Such a thought seems
extreme to us, which perhaps says more about our casual attitude than it does
about the strictness of the Puritans.
In 2 Timothy 3:14 Paul tells his young protege to remember
not only what he had learned but who he learned it from. In this case that
means his grandmother Lois and mother Eunice. Those two godly women had taught
him the Word of God from infancy (3:15). That same Word would make him wise for
salvation and would completely equip him for anything he might face in life
(3:15-17).
In an article for the Christian Research Institute, Chris
Sherrod writes,
Current research reveals that we are realistically in
danger of not passing on biblical Christianity to the next generation. Both an
overexposure to worldly philosophy and an overdependence on church programs
have caused us to fail in our task to hand off a vibrant, kingdom-focused
faith. To counteract this dangerous direction, five pivotal factors are needed.
First, we need a
clear definition of what we’re looking for—do we want nice kids who don’t get
in trouble, or passionate followers of Christ?
Second, we must
adopt a multigenerational perspective, providing opportunities for those older
and wiser in the faith to impart a spiritual legacy to the next generation.
Third, following
the Deuteronomy 6 model, parents must both possess and pass their faith on to
their children, making the most of teachable moments in everyday life.
Fourth, Dads must
take the lead! Fathers must recognize that they are the spiritual thermostat of
the home and are commanded to raise their children in the training and
instruction of the Lord.
Fifth, both the
home and the church must partner together to educate kids in sound doctrine,
equip in apologetics, and explain moral principles.
Raising confident kids with a desire to make an impact for
God’s glory doesn’t happen by itself, it will not happen by accident! This requires eyes to see teachable
moments and the determination to intentionally pass on our faith in to the next
generation.
Jeff Frazier
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