Passing on Faith: Teaching Children to Love God

Show Notes

Episode 472: 
In this episode, Chris and Jeff delve into a reading from Deuteronomy chapter six, emphasizing the importance of teaching and obeying God's commandments. They highlight the foundational concept of monotheism and the significance of teaching children about God's ways from a young age. They also reflect on the responsibility of parents to instill faith in their children intentionally and consistently. 

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You're listening to The Bible Guys, a podcast where a couple of friends talk about the Bible in fun in practical ways. Hey, welcome everybody. We are so appreciative that you have tuned in or you know, watched, So appreciative the Bible guys. So appreciative. Yeah, I think we are, and we're just bursting at the seams of appreciation. Yes, well, I always am, Jeff, I don't know about you. I can't speak for you. I am. I actually believe, I'm, I'm I'm always bursting the seams of being dumbfounded. I just can't believe. Keep tuning in. Well, we do appreciate it very much, absolutely and phenomenal. Today. Desiree, who is has become famous. She's super famous. If we ever changed staff members and we're in trouble, we're in trouble. If we have a mutiny, yeah, they'd be like uh and then the new the new Hiary would be like somebody like Sally. And then we're gonna say when Sally people boo yah. Right anyway, So desire right now now, we can't hire a Sally right in las name Sally. I just said that. So Desiree is going to ask us to do something she's never asked us to do before, which is to do a draft list on iconic duos. Okay, yeah, so so the way she wrote it was, Jeff and Chris are our favorite iconic duo. For today's draft list, let's pick some of the other favorite iconic duo. So Rock Paper Scissors first? Ready? Ready? One two three? Shoot? Oh? We both did scissors one two three shoot oh? P one two three? Shoot I did rock scissors. Yes, Okay, there we go. Okay, iconic duo. I know you're gonna choose iconic duos. Well, I'm going to choose one. You're not going to choose right off the top. Well, I know I know what you're gonna choose, Salmon frodo what that's where your brain went or you're just trying to You're just trying to pick go ahead, that's what you're saying. Okaym the rings that I have to choose Batman Rock, you would That's why I gave it to you. Well, I don't like that, but I know I know I want I wanted to leave it for you. I wanted you to choose it's slow hanging fruits. I wanted to hear you say, well, is that an iconic duo Batman and Robin. Yes, well, they were known as the Dynamic duo, Dynamic duo. Yes. Yeah. In fact, I would venture to say they may be according to just social polls, maybe the uh because we all learned them as children right in our generation. Yes, I would say people who are older than us, no, but I would say for for for younger, Yeah, I even today. Wouldn't you think that somebody who's like twenty years old, if they said name an iconic duo, don't you think they would say Batman run Around number one? I think so. Yeah. Absolutely, I've rejected it on purpose because I wanted you to say it Sam and Frodo. By the way, you know, I hate that, right, like like I wanted to like the Salmon proto so much, but then like you know, you know, it's just it's why I chose Sam and Frodo, and then they're forced you to say badman. I remember the journey, Remember the journey to the very last scene when he's trying to get up to the mountain to throw it in, and and and it's so long and drawn out, and then there's all these close ups where he's just staring at one another and he's like, it's me, you're sad, and I'm like, oh my god, that's Peter Jackson. That's not the buzz. I'm like, I know, but I'm like, let the pain end. It was so painful. Go ahead, I'm gonna say Michael and Scottie. Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippin. Oh yeah, of course, yeah, Michael. Yeah, that's a great duo. Yeah yeah, iconic, very economy and issue sports. There's no doubt. I'm going to say Laurel and Hardy to give over Abbott Costello. Well really yeah. Well here's the reason why Laurel and Hardy came to my mind, because my grandfather used to say Laurel and Hardy that and step and fetch it. Yeah, but I'm not choosing step and fetch it. I'm choosing Laurel and Hardy. Wow. Okay, I'm gonna say Butch and Sundance. Butch and Sundance Yeah, wow, Okay, that's great Sundance kid. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I used to love those books, by the way. Yeah, yeah, there's no doubt. And then I'm going to say, let me think I didn't think this through. I'm gonna say, how about this one? Ready, we're gonna go a different genre. How about Sonny and Chaer all right, so this would be more like this would be more like my mom growing up, right, you know, like it's either it's either like Donnie Marie or Sonny and She in the music work Captain too. I'm gonna say, Sonny and Shri, I'm gonna give a tribute. Okay, how about let me see Andy and Barney, Andy and Barney. There you go? Wow? What is that again? Andy, Andy, Griffith and Barney. Yeah, okay, and then it's my last one, right because she said four, Okay, here we got ready, I'm gonna I'm gonna go for a I'm going for all the gamut here. I'm gonna go with Shaggy and Scooby. Oh man, that's a great one. That's a great one. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, So I almost did Bugs and Daffy. Oh but they weren't necessarily the jew I know, where you see one, you see the other kind of thing? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Still when you think of yeah, yeah, yeahs and Day Okay, well, good job, Yes, I like that one. Shaggy, yeah, Scooby, Yeah, that's great. Right, Yeah, that's such a good one. All right, well, hey, thanks Dez. That was incredibly enlightening. Yes, I think so too. Now what ones did we miss? Did we miss any really important? Well? I think I sort of named a few of them, but I know there's going to be ones that people are going to type in, Yes, like things like that, things like that where they're like, come on people, Yeah, right, there's gotta be ones that are like that. I can't think of any others. Yeah, well we could look it up if we really want. People are going to start sending in Yeah, famous duos paints. Yes, all right, Well, hey that was just off the top of our heads, and that was a fun one, so thank you, Doz. We had a lot of fun with that. So yesterday we read from Deuteronomy chapter five, Yes, where God reestablishes through Moses. He's reminding them of the importance of the commandments, and then he unpacks a couple of these ideas, particularly the first one, and so I'm going to just go ahead. We were only going to read just a few verses, yes, but I think I'm going to read the whole chapter. And there's a reason for it. So Deuteronomy, chapter six, Verse one says, these are the commands. Remember he's still talking. Yes, he's still talking. This is all same conversation as what we had yesterday, only expanded. He says, these are the commands, decrees and regulations that the Lord your God commanded me to teach you. You must obey them in the land you're about to enter and occupy, and you and your children and grandchildren must fear the Lord your God as long as you live. If you obey all his decrees and commands, you will enjoy a long life. Listen closely, Israel, and be careful to obey. Then all will go well with you, and you will have many children in the land flowing the mid honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors promised you. Listen, o, Israel. The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you must love the Lord your God with all of your heart, all your soul, all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to this commands that I'm giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you're at home, and when you're on the road, and when you're going to bed, and when you're getting up. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your foreheaders reminders. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. The Lord your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give you when he made a vow to your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It's a land with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. The houses will be richly stocked with goods you do not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you've eaten your fill in this land, be careful not to forget the Lord who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt. You must fear the Lord your God and serve him. When you take an oath, you must use only his name. You must not worship any of the gods of neighboring nations. For the Lord your God, who lives among you as a jealous god, his anger will flare up against you, and he will wipe you from the face of the earth. He must not test the Lord your God as you do. As you did when you complained at Masa. You must diligently obey the commands of the Lord your God, all the laws and decrees he's given. You Do what is right and good in the Lord's sight, so all will go well with you. Then you will enter and occupy the good land that the Lord swore to give your ancestors. You will drive out all the enemies living in the land, just as the Lord said you would. In the future, your children ask what is the meaning of these laws, decrees and regulations of the Lord our God has commanded us to obey. Then you must tell them. We were Pharaoh's slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with his strong hand. The Lord did miraculous signs and wonders before our eyes, dealing terrifying blows against Egypt and Pharaoh and all the people. He brought us out of Egypt so he could give us this land he had sworn to give our ancestors. And the Lord our God commanded us to obey all the decrees and to fear him so he can continue to bless us and preserve our lives, as he has done to this day. For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all the commands the Lord, our God has given us. I find this chapter very comforting. Yeah, I find it very It's like to me, it feels like a warm blanket. It's like it's like, what God is saying is he saying, I care so much about you that I'm giving you my decrees, my rules, and if you just trust in me, not anybody else, one God, right, then you'll live a long and happy life. Right. And what he's really saying is is he saying, I've given these things not you know, not not to bother you or to you know, for your you know, to make you frustrate or anger. I'm giving everything for your benefit. And he's not demanding, which is another thing too. It's not like do this or else. It doesn't have that apparently go to your room kind of a thing. It's what it's saying is like, hey, I'm saying it strongly, but it's also an invitation, right, so just just please obe And to me, it just it feels great to me because it's it's even back then when people are often quick to say the Old Testament is you know, the wrathful God, which is you know, there's a lot of truth to that. But you know there's there's that that type of spirit. Well, that's not this type of spirit here. So for me, this is this is a great chapter. Yeah. So verse four is the foundational verse for Judaism and is a key concept within Islam and is fundamental to Christianity. So it's kind of interest. I'm not saying that those will equate. I'm just saying this is a very important concept, and that is listen, o Israel, the Lord, our God is our God, the Lord alone, or it could have been translated to the Lord, our God is one Lord, or the Lord our God, the Lord is one, or as the Jews would quote it, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one. Right, and this is called the Shama within Judaism, and it's often repeated, and this is the foundation to the idea of monotheism. But the fact that there's one got Mono being one, theism being God, study of God, or belief in God. So monotheism is stands in contrast to most of the West, of the rest of the religions in the world, and almost all of the religions of that time right were polytheistic, poly meaning many so much many, many different gods as opposed to having one God. Yeah, and that's foundational too, as he's trying to establish don't have any other gods before me. He said, By the way, I just want to remind it there's only one God. Yeah. So the rest of these are just idols. So stop making idols. Stop bound down. Yeah. So I'm going to bring up something that I rarely ever bring up, even even with me and you. But my brother Jim is active in with people from India. Remember that I mentioned that once or twice. So my brother Jim, who was a pastor for years and years and then all of a sudden, he's now working with creationism. He's working for a company. I should know the name of it, but it's a it's a company that works on creationism and it's versus evolution and it's pretty cool. And he's a video guy, a content guy anyway. So he's been doing that for the past several years and stepping away from the pastoral role, but he's in a way he's still a pastor because in his church, people coming over from India. The government had called his church because it's so large, and they said, will you will you be able to develop a program within your church to welcome these people who step off the plane for the very first time from India in the United States. I guess Texas for some reason is some sort of a hub where they arrive from. I guess. So there's plenty of that going on. Well, it turns out that my brother Jim stepped up volunteered and then he became so integral in doing this that now the government officials call his house directly. And so now he has over a thousand I think I believe over a thousand Indians right who. That's all he does is just has them over his house. So he has he posts pictures all the time. They're like, oh, we have this party, we have like a Christian Duali, and and it'll be like a huge picture of like three or four hundred people and it's Indians. And then you see like a couple of white guys in the middle and it's him and his wife. So anyway, the point is this is that I told you all that to say this, he has lived his life in trying to explain Jesus to a polytheistic culture. Yeah, because the Hindus have millions of gods, yes, and so so for you and me. We live in the United States of America, and it's easier to introduce the concept of a of one God, and people don't necessarily, you know, in the United States lean that way. But in where you know, in his little world, he fights. And here's what he says. He says, Chris, he says, I spend all my time in convincing it in these three different steps. He said, Number one, Jesus is a God, and then Jesus is the God. And he said, you know, God among God's and he said, and then the third step is Jesus is the only God, and Jesus, you know God, the Father Father is and the Holy Spirit. Right and so, which is a pattern Paul uses in the Book of Acts when he's at the marsh Hill at Mars Hill. Yeah yeah, yeah, to the unknown God. Let me tell you about the God right right, right, So, so the but it's just an incredible idea that you and I read this and we go, oh cool, the Lord God is one. It's like no, no, no, no, no, no, no, you don't you don't understand, right. If you live into that, the world does not believe that, right, And if you live in that world, do you understand how unbelievably difficult it is to introduce that concept to somebody, especially you know, in their day, every pharaoh was their own god, right and then they they and they were a god among gods. And so yeah, this idea is a radical concept, is what I'm saying. So God is driving that deep and then he's also telling them, hey, I'm going to send you into this land, I promise, and you're going to have to remove these enemies of God. And that can be you know, you mentioned the wrathful God or whatever. People sometimes can be surprised by that idea, but you have to remember a couple of things. One, all of the humans on the planet were part of God's creation, and some leaned into God. Many rejected God and then took up all kinds of evil. We know that the Canaanites did human sacrifice. We know that the Canaanites had sexual practices as their religion, as their religious practices, all these things, abuse of children, and it was pretty horrific. And so throughout history God always calls people to himself, and these people had rejected God aggressively. And so God is love, certainly God that is also just, and God will always bring to justice every evil, and so he chose to use the people of Israel to bring to bring the other Canaanites, the Canaanite people to justice. And if you can think of this as in World War two, Nazism was taking over the world, this horrific concept that there are superior humans and inferior humans, and that we are going to not only promote what we view as the superior, but we're going to exterminate the inferior. And then the other nations, Great Britain, the US, the Allies, they rise up and go no. And not only did they decide to defeat Nazism, they decided to try to eradicate Nazism, right, and you and I would stand him and go yay, get rid of the Nazis. That was the concept. Now, let's have this be a full on religious affront against the Creator, raising up and celebrating other gods that are quite honestly, they're demons. Right, So they're worshiping demons and they're sacrificing humans and making sexual abuse and all kinds of things a part of the religious belief system. And God says, I'm going to use the people of Israel to wipe out these people who are living such horrific lives and choosing to go against God. If you can think of it in those terms, then it's not so much the harshness, the harshness or the heavy handedness of God as it is the justice of God. God draws a line and says, Okay, they're done doing what they're doing, right, and that's reasonable. God. God has the right, as the creator of the world to execute justice, and we wanted him to execute justice against Nazis, right, so we have to be content that he would execute justice against everybody who stands against all that is good and moral and right, that's good and the abuse of humanity. Yeah, that's good perspective on that. So anyways, he says this, you're gonna go in You're gonna have houses you didn't build, You're gonna eat food you didn't cook, and you're gonna drink water that you didn't dig the wells. Right, God says, I'm gonna give you this because I'm gonna run out these other people. But in between those two things, there's only one God, and I'm going to give you everything I promised to give you. In between, he says, hey, don't forget to teach your kids them over and over and over. Where you sit down, when you get up in the morning, when you sit down at the dinner table, when you're walking along the way, put it on the doorpost of your house. Wear it right, all of my words and obey the words. Teach your children to obey my words. Yeah, and it's a great pattern. I've definitely heard this in family ministries over and over because it says when you get up in the morning and when you lie down at night, right, and so it's like it's like and then when you walk along the road, So it just it indicates like it's when you walk down the road means like during the day, right, So it's the first thing in the morning, it's it's it's during the day. It's as you're doing life with them, and it's also you know, walking on the road. And then when you're putting them down at night. And then it says put it on your door posts. Well, we all know what that means. That is a that is a statement about you know, what your home represents. And so every time you enter in through through you know the gates of your house, or through you know the front door of your house. It's it's what your house stands for, which is a very big statement. You know, it's like, hey, it's for me and my house, we're going to choose the Lord kind of thing. So when you walk in my house, that's actually one of the two things that you see. You open up the front door and you walk in, and I think my wife has psalms. You know, this is the day the Lord has made. And then and then there's and you sort of turn left, and then there's another really big one that says as for me and my house was sort of the Lord. And and again it's just a statement about this is what this house stands for. And it's just a great pattern for us to say, Okay, this is how God wants us to teach our families, and this is how our kids needs to be raised up, you know, under the nurturing and admonition and the instruction of the Lord. Always there's something distinct that's missing in this passage that has permeated our culture, even Christian culture. God does not say that your children grow up and try to figure out what they believe right right right? God says, teach them that you used to be slaves Mom and Dad in the modern time. Teach them you used to live in sin, and that you needed a savior and that God rescued you. And if there's a God in heaven that forgives sin and saves us from our sin, and that if we choose to go God's way, God will bless us. There's an underlying threat there as well. Right, So he says multiple times, if you obey me, you're gonna live well. Right, But the other side of that is if you don't, there's consequences. Matter of fact, he ends the Book of Duteronomy that way. He says, I'm giving you a choice between life and death. Oh, that you would choose life. That's how he ends the book. Right, there's a good way to live, in a bad way to live the good way. Follow my way and you're gonna have a good life. You go your way and you're gonna have death. Everything's going to be destroyed. And so God does not say, let them figure it out on their own and make their own choices. God says them from the day they're born, Teach them when they get up in the morning, Teach them when they go to bed at night. Teach them while you're walking along the way. Teach them while you're sitting down at dinner. Make sure it's on the doorposts to your home, meeting, spread all throughout your house. Make sure that it's you know he's talking about you know how the Orthodox Jews WI wear the little box on their head and the box on their wrists. That's they're using that as this. But what he's saying is wear it. Have it be a part of your life all the time. Everywhere your children turn, they should see that there's a God in heaven, and mom and Dad genuinely believe in it. So I would reject the concept that we should just let our children figure it out. God is being very clear there's a right way and a wrong way to live, and mom and dad, it's your responsibility. Teach them the right way, teach them God's way, point him to Jesus and be aggressive about it. And he says, and by the way, they'll have a long, fulfilling, meaningful, blessed life if they do. Yeah, And it's the single best thing you can do. I like the word intentionality, right, so you know, just to do it, havehazardly, or to do it when you think of it, but rather to be intentional. And if you think about it, we're intentional about so many things in our lives. And we're intentional about making bagged lunches every day, right, We're sometimes intentional about checking the weather based on what we wear. We are intentional about so many things. We plan ahead and all of that, but we you know, hopefully financially plan for the long haul. You know, there's so many things that we have to think intentionally about. And so I would just say, if you have not thought about your family's spiritual journey, and you know, if you if you've not thought about an end product you know, and how to get there the best way and an end product is you know, the success, which is what is when your children leave and their faith stops being mom and Dad's faith, and their faith becomes their own, you know, and they and they adopt that. They they they'll be educated, they'll be grounded. What does the Baba say teach a child and the way that he or she should go, and when they're old they won't depart from its right. So just just to be intentional about it, I think is just a great takeaway, probably the best takeaway I think from this chapter. And so all of this is in the context of verses four and five. So verse four being there's only one God, worship him. Verse five is the verse Jesus quotes in Matthew chapter twenty two, you must love the Lord your God with all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. And then from there he immediately pivots to so teach your children. Yeah. Right. So one of the indicators of whether or not mom and Dad really really really do love God with all of who they are is if they're raising their children to do the same, right. Right. It's not the only one, but it's one of them that it's so important that you need to pass us on to your children. And so for those of you that have grown children, hey, you don't do your battles with your words. You do your battles on your knees. Now, it's prayer. You know. My grandmother prayed for my dad every day for forty years. But for those of you that are listening that have children in your home, make it every morning. The thing my mom and dad did right out of all all the things, because I mean they had some rough boys to raise, was every morning and every night we spent time in the word. Every morning, my dad shared with us what it was he was reading in the Bible. Every evening before we went to bed, we read of one of the proverbs. Right, whatever the date was for that day, we read that proverb, and it was every single day. And I would say that, you know, all four boys are in the ministry serving the Lord. There's a reason for that is because my mom and dad were faithful in this area. It's how they demonstrated that they loved God, is that they taught us. And we certainly don't have time to get into what happens when a parent tries their best and then they have wayward sons and daughters. Because God did. God had two sons, Adam and Jesus, and only one of them turned out. Right, that's right, that's right. So it's a you know, if anybody listening, who you know, they're thinking, geez, I tried to do everything you're saying, and yet I'm just really praying and I don't understand what I did wrong. I would just say you're in good company. And just like Jeff said, the battle is on our knees of this point. Right. So anyway, that's another topic for another day. But but yeah, just do your best and serve your way back into their lives intentional, strong, pray, everything else. So hey, that is our time, so we will see you next time, hopefully on the bibble guys. Mhm hm hm