The reward for humility and fear of the LORD is riches
and honor and life. 5 Thorns and snares
are in the way of the crooked; whoever guards his soul will keep far from
them. 6 Train up a child in the way he
should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:4-6
Within the Rite of
Holy Baptism, parents of small children, sponsors and congregations promise
that we will lead the child into a healthy life of faith in Christ Jesus. We promise that we will bring the child to
God’s house for worship, teach them the Lord’s Prayer, Ten Commandments and the
Creed. We promise to place the Holy
Scriptures in their hands and help them learn from them by reading the Bible
together. We promise to provide for
their instruction in the Christian faith so that they would live in the
covenant of their baptism and in communion with God’s people. Parents of the newly baptized children
especially bear responsibility for these promises; promises their parents first
made on their behalf years ago.
The Proverb above
speaks to the importance of such promise keeping. Usually, when the Proverb is spoken of, it is
verse six that stands alone; “Train up a child in the way he should go; even
when he is old he will not depart from it.”
But when we read this verse in its fuller context, we soon realize the
importance of a young life being provided a strong foundation of faith. The world is filled with powers that defy
God, temptations that are overwhelming and so many of the devil’s false promises.
We all want our children to have a good life, a full life, one that brings
pleasure to their selves and to others.
But as we read in Scripture, and know through our experience, the devil
and his minions set thorns and snares along the pathways of God’s people. On our own, we are no match for them. Left to fend for ourselves, we will fall deeper
into sin without even realizing it.
For several decades
now, there has been a worsening condition permeating the Christian Church, one
by which we have seen ever increasing numbers of our younger members fall away
from faith. I believe it is so important
to address this condition that I have devoted my doctoral studies to develop
resources for pastors, congregations and families to bring about faith
formation for our children and children’s children.
I think we can all
agree that we would love to see more of our young people in worship and Sunday
school. The trouble is that so often we
don’t know how to encourage them. Instead,
we sometimes inadvertently enable them in their staying away. Truth being told, children, especially teens,
earnestly desire to have a healthy relationship with church families, one
centered upon Jesus Christ and one that shares a desire to grow in relationship
with God and his people.
Over the years, I
have ministered to parents whose children have fallen away from the
church. I have ministered to
grandparents who faithfully bring their grandchildren to worship often (and
that’s a good thing). I have also heard
questions from such children that ask, “If mommy and daddy don’t have to go to
church, why do I have to go?” This is a
heartbreaking question because at the root of it lies a deeper and more central
question, “Why don’t mommy and daddy WANT to go?”
Jesus says, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God” (Luke 18:16). The riches, honor and life the Proverb speaks of is a life lived eternally in the presence of God. When we fail to keep our baptismal promises, we hinder our children; we keep them from growing in a life of faith in Christ. And not only that, first and foremost, we break the promise we initially made before God and one another.
People of God, I know this is a sensitive issue. I myself have had to face this truth in my
own life. I know first-hand the
difficulties of keeping such promises, especially when children grow older and
become more independent. That is
precisely the time when parents should strive to keep the promise they made to
their child. Train them up in the way
they should go. Encourage them when they
are older, and faithfully come to God’s house together and enjoy a life lived
among God and his people. Doing so will bring us to the reward God has in mind
for all his people; life in his kingdom forever.
Grace to you and
peace, Pastor David Nuottila
