For those parents that were unable to attend the Parent-Teen night I wanted to make available the challenge that I shared. Kaleb took the teens and shared a challenge with them so that I could speak with the parents and share a challenge that God had laid on my heart.
Raising our Children to Hope in God
Parent/Teen Activity August 1, 2008
Psalm 78:4-7 4 We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done. 5 For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: 6 That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children: 7 That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments.
The Command (v.5)
Parents must teach their Children the things of God! The Bible is clear that the primary spiritual responsibility in the upbringing of our children lies with the parents.
Deuteronomy 6:6-7 6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: 7 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.
Ephesians 6:4 4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
Charles Spurgeon once wrote: “To teach our children is a personal duty; we cannot delegate it to Sunday School Teachers, or other friendly aids, these can assist us, but cannot deliver us from the sacred obligation… mothers and fathers must, like Abraham, command their households in the fear of God, and talk with their offspring concerning the wondrous works of the Most High. Parental teaching is a natural duty — who so fit to look to the child’s well-being as those who are the authors of his actual being? To neglect the instruction of our offspring is worse than brutish. Family religion is necessary for the nation, for the family itself, and for the church of God.… Would that parents would awaken to a sense of the importance of this matter. It is a pleasant duty to talk of Jesus to our sons and daughters, and the more so because it has often proved to be an accepted work, for God has saved the children through the parents’ prayers and admonitions.” (Mornings and Evenings, July 11th evening).
The Goal (v. 7)
1. That Our Children Would Hope in God
You will hopefully notice the inward out emphasis of this passage -- It all starts with the heart. The Psalmist starts with focusing on the hearts of our children and he says that the goal of our instruction must ultimately be aimed at their hope or faith in God. This should be our chief desire with our children, that they hope in God. If we don’t achieve this then everything else is of little value. We should not be content with “good kids” that outwardly conform to the rules. We should constantly strive to make sure that their hope is in God.
2. That Our Children Would Remember God’s Works
This second goal is related to the first. If our children are to hope in God it will also mean that they will remember his works -- they will not forget what he has done. This is essential if they are to hope in God, for how can we expect them to hope in a God they don’t know -- and how can they know God apart from what he has done. Thus we should constantly be pointing them back to what God told us he has done in the Word of God. For the Bible is ultimately a revelation of who God is by recording what he has said about himself and what he has done in history.
Deuteronomy 6:20-25 20 And when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What mean the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which the LORD our God hath commanded you? 21 Then thou shalt say unto thy son, We were Pharaoh's bondmen in Egypt; and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand: 22 And the LORD shewed signs and wonders, great and sore, upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his household, before our eyes:
23 And he brought us out from thence, that he might bring us in, to give us the land which he sware unto our fathers. 24 And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day. 25 And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us.
3. That Our Children Would Keep God’s Commandments
Having started with the heart, the Psalmist moves now to consider obedience to God’s commands for surely little else reveals the heart as well as how well we keep God’s commands. Certainly it is possible to have outward conformity to a set of biblical standards without a heart for God…just ask the Pharisees. But it is not possible to have a heart for God that doesn’t affect our obedience.
John 14:15 15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
John 14:21 21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me:
John 14:23 If a man love me, he will keep my words
John 15:10 10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love;
John 15:14 14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
The Method (v. 4)
1. Show them God’s Praises
When the Psalmist says that he will show the generation to come the praises of God the point is that he will tell them about God’s praiseworthy acts. He will recount to them that which God has done in history and in his own life. Again Deuteronomy 6:20-25 illustrates this point. If you want your children to know and love God, to hope in Him, you cannot expect this to grow in a vacuum. You must realize that love for and hope in God grows under the fertilizer of recounting God’s majesty.
“My child, you must love and hope in God, and let me tell you why. He is altogether lovely and He will never fail you. He is the most beautiful and wonderful one whom you could love. He is the One whom you can trust though all else may fail you. Listen to how he proved his faithfulness to people long ago…and let me tell you how He has proved himself faithful in my own life.”
2. Show them God’s strength
Again, if we are endeavoring to raise our children to hope in God, we must tell them about God’s strength. He is a Mighty God! He is Almighty, therefore you can trust in Him!
“A mighty fortress is our God! A bulwark never failing.” Do you believe that? If you don’t first believe that then it won’t matter how much you tell you children to hope in him. You must first believe this truth deep down in your heart. And you must believe it so much that it affects the way you live. Show them God’s strength by showing them how much you trust in his strength. When they see that, it will be a great encouragement to trust in God themselves.
3. Show them God’s wonderful works
The way to encourage your children to hope in God is to tell them about God’s wonderful works. Make your family devotional time a time of exciting discovery. When you read the stories of what God has done in the past seek to do so in a way that causes wonder. Too often we recount God’s works without a sense of wonder – we become dulled by way of familiarity to the wonder of God’s amazing working. Pray that God would restore a sense of wonder to you in your own life so that your children can see it and know that God is a God they can hope in because he truly is wonderful.
