Equipping Children with God’s Word
By: Rhonda Stoppe
Jesus said, “The student will become like his teacher.” (Luke 6:40)
Notice Jesus didn’t say the student will be like the teacher teaches him to be, but rather he will emulate the characteristics and values he observes in his teacher. As a parent, you my friend are that teacher.
So, how can you equip your child for a future that brings glory to God? One way is to teach them to think biblically. What does this mean? Simply stated, it means to filter all of life’s experiences through God’s Word.
To instill a scriptural foundation in your child, you’ll need to know the Bible well enough to season with sound doctrine the conversations you have with them.
In Deuteronomy 6:4-9, you’ll find a simple outline for developing a biblical worldview in your child’s mind:
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”
Let’s break this down:
Verse 4-5: You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. Your wholehearted commitment to God and His Word will demonstrate to your child how much you love God and value Scripture.
Verse 6: Think about, meditate on, and memorize Scripture, so your obedience to God will be a response based upon biblical precepts. When you transform your thinking with Scripture you will be prepared to teach your kids how to speak and act in God-honoring ways, without hypocrisy.
Verse 7-9: Relate your child’s everyday experiences to the Bible. This practice will make talking about spiritual matters a normal part of your conversations.
When you arm your children with godly knowledge, they will learn to recognize when others are attempting to deceive them.
Editor’s Note: Part of this devotional was taken from Is Over-Parenting Turning Your Kids away from Faith? by Rhonda Stoppe. You can read the full blog post here.
Related Resource: A Fresh Way to Memorize Scripture
Christians shouldn’t just think—they should think Christian. Join Dr. James Spencer on the Thinking Christian Podcast! In today's episode, James is joined by co-host Maggie Hubbard and guest Natalie Abbott from Dwell Differently. Listen in to hear fresh ideas for scripture memorization and why it's so vital for Christians to write God's Word on their hearts and minds. If you love what you hear, be sure to subscribe to Thinking Christian on Apple or Spotify so you never miss an episode.
