One Generation from Forgetting
Faith does not travel through the bloodline. It has to be handed on, one generation at a time, and it can be dropped. It happened in Israel within a single lifetime.
“And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.”JUDGES 2:10 · KJV
Joshua's generation crossed the Jordan and watched the walls of Jericho fall. Their children grew up in the land those miracles had won, and they did not know the God who won it. Somewhere between the parents and the children, something was never passed on.
Moses had seen that danger coming. Before Israel entered the land, he gave the people the charge that has guided believing parents ever since.
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”DEUTERONOMY 6:4–7 · KJV
God spoke those words to Israel, but the duty did not end with Israel. Paul tells Christian fathers to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4). The Psalmist states the goal: We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD (Psalm 78:4). Joel pictures a chain of four generations (Joel 1:3).
This study is for parents and grandparents, for the single mother raising children alone, and for the believer married to someone who does not yet know Christ. It offers no formula that guarantees a result, because no such formula exists. It offers a clear charge and a faithful God.
If your children were asked what you love most, what would they say?
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For Deeper Study
- Family WorshipAmazon Donald S. WhitneyA very short, practical book on reading, praying, and singing together at home. Whitney is a Southern Baptist professor in the Reformed tradition; we differ on election.
- Shepherding a Child's HeartAmazon Tedd TrippA widely used guide to reaching a child's heart and not only his behavior. Reformed; we differ on election.
- Age of OpportunityAmazon Paul David TrippWhy the teen years are an opening for the Gospel, not just a stage to survive. Reformed.
- Already GoneAmazon Ken Ham and Britt BeemerSurvey research on why young people leave the church, from a young-earth creationist ministry.
- Foxe's Book of MartyrsAmazon John FoxeThe classic Protestant record of those who died for the faith, from the early church to the English Reformation.
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Parenting on Purpose
Parenting on purpose means receiving children as a stewardship from God and shepherding their hearts toward Jesus, changing how you lead as they grow, and trusting the Lord with the outcome.
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