“And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the Lord, that he did for Israel. And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being an hundred and ten years old. And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnathheres, in the mount of Ephraim, on the north side of the hill Gaash. 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. And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord…” Judges 2:7-11
Here we have a bleak account of parenting gone wrong. After Joshua’s generation (who served God and knew the Lord) died, the succeeding generation doesn’t know God, and doesn’t know the saving works of God. Something went wrong here. Certain rituals within Moses Law are designed by God to pass down the knowledge of God from parents to children. Somehow, that didn’t work out. We were not told the details, but if God designed Moses Law for parents to do the passing down of the knowledge of God to their kids, then it is reasonable to say that the parents failed in their role such that the succeeding generation does not know God nor the works which He had done for Israel. God entrusts the spiritual education of children upon parents (Deuteronomy 6:4-7) and this passage in Judges is a sobering reminder to us, parents, that it is possible for a godly generation to raise an entire new generation of godless people.
Our children’s spiritual education is serious business indeed. As parents do devotion/ read the Bible to their kids, a good way to end the session could be to ask two summary questions: what does the passage say about who God is, and what does it say about what God has done for us.
In line with the significant role that parents play in their children’s spiritual education, it is a good reminder that the children ministry role in all churches is not to take the place of parents, but to assist parents in their all important task of discipling their kids. So I’d just like to take this opportunity to say to all the parents – 加油! And also extend a big thank you to Yanling and the many Children Sunday School teachers for their tireless efforts in serving the cause of the gospel among the little ones all these years! Praise God for all their valuable contributions!