"After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel." - Judges 2:10
This one little verse tells a very real and very sad story. It tells the story of a generation that died leaving behind a new generation that did not follow God. Judges Chapter 2 and into Chapter 3 shows a cycle of sin, judgment and repentance that Israel found themselves in over and over again through the next 300+ years. The very center of God's law was found in Deuteronomy 6:4-9
“Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Generation after generation the Israelites failed to teach their children to love and follow God.
It's easy for us to think that the church and the christian things are kids are involved in will teach our children what they need to know about God, but God says that this is primarily the job of the parents. Children learn the most by example and as parents we are the people that they see in action more than anyone else. What a huge responsibility. Are we taking it seriously enough that our future generations will know, love, and follow God?
What does Deuteronomy 6:4-9 look like in my life? What does it look like in yours?
Tomorrow's Bible In a Year Passage: Judges 3-5
5 comments:
A lot of today's Christians want or try to live as much as possible like everyone else around us. How am I living different than my neighbour? Do my kids see a difference in how I live?
Judges 2:10 stood out to me too.
I like that you quoted the passage from Deuteronomy on equipping our kids and future generations on knowing, loving, and following God.
Being the kid in this situation, I can say yes, I do look up to my parents, and when I was little, wanted to grow up to be exactly like my mom. I look at the great example my parents have set and hope that I will be just as good of a parent one day.
For the majority of our passage today it talks about it being too difficult for the Israelites to drive out the Canaanites. If it had been easy, they probably would've done it. But it wasn't easy. So they took the easy way out.
The reality is that more often than not, the easy way is the wrong way. This was true for the Israelites and is true for us today. Are we willing to obey when it's hard to do so? When there's a cost? Either financially or emotionally? Or do we only obey when it's easy or convenient?
Aldo.noticed the same verse. We need to be purposeful and proactive when it comes to passing on our faith to our children.
In the parenting course that we have been facilitating during the Sunday School hour, Rob Reinow believes that the God's grand vision for your family is to teach your kids (and ourselves) to know God and to love God with their whole being. Then he asks the question "how, do we teach them this?" And he gives us Deuteronomy 6:7-9 as the answer to this question:
"Talk to them when you sit at home when you walk along the road, when you lie down ad when you get up Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframe of your houses and on your gates. "
The older I get, I am realizing that our walk with God has to permeate every aspect of our lives, so that our children can see how authentic it is.
P.S. This is Leanne, not Steven
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