Children
Originally scheduled for July 23
One of the things the Old Testament covers is
the task of making sure that your children understand what Passover
is, what it means and why they should honor it. First and foremost,
they are to be told that it is a memorial of the good things God has
done for the people of Israel. Anticipating that the children will
come up and ask why we keep the Passover, the Jew was given these
answers:
·
You were to answer the children
immediately, when they asked. It’s a teachable moment and you were
to use that moment to carry on the faith.
·
You were to give them the primary
answer that this is a sacrifice to the Lord. They were to be
reminded of how the Lord killed the Egyptians and save the people of
Israel. A child’s favorite question is very often, “why?”
The other rules about Passover — and there were
many — such as being required to be circumcised, were taught to the
child later, in a formal setting.
But why did they teach the children? There are some things that have to be taught in childhood
so that they might have time to grow in the child’s mind and be
effective when the child becomes an adult. What were they taught?
·
They were taught to put their
confidence in God. They were to trust in the Lord with all their
hearts, and this is best started when the child is young.
·
They were not to disconnect
themselves from their ancestors, but remember the works of God by
which he established the people of Israel.
·
In so doing, they were to learn to
keep his commandments.
The same principles apply to teaching our
children and grandchildren today.
·
Teach them when they are curious; do
not put them off. Answer their questions now.
·
Teach them to trust in God; teach
them that they should never forget God’s work on Calvary; and then
teach them to keep his commands.
·
Then teach them to pass this
knowledge on to their children and grandchildren.
This is not an easy thing to teach; indeed,
it’s rather difficult. The best way to teach it is by example. How’s
yours?
