Your kids need to hear the Gospel from you. Even if they have received Christ, they need you to tell them again and again what the Gospel is and how it affects every aspect of their little lives. They may graduate preschool, kindergarten, fourth, eighth, or twelfth grade, but they need to hear the story. What do we tell them about exactly? I’d like to point us to 1 Corinthians 15:1-4…
Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preach to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you- unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.
The Gospel is the story of Jesus coming to live a sinless life, dying a death that we deserved to die, being buried, raising from the dead, and conquering sin and death for us. It is the totality of the message of the Bible. From cover to cover, we are pointed to Jesus and what he did for us. It is the greatest story ever told. It is exactly the kind of story we should love to share with our children. Scripture even demands this from us In Deuteronomy 6:7-9 where he says,
You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
We see constant reminding of Scripture and the stories passed down through the ages of God and his faithfulness and his love for us. We can take this literally. We can fill our homes with Scripture. Signs, mugs, decor, and clothing filled with God’s Word is such a good idea. Your kids need more than that literal form of filling your home with God’s Word. They need you to tell them. I think we can all agree that reading to our kids as early and as often as possible is a really good thing. How much more of a good thing is it though to teach and preach God’s Word to our children as early and as often as possible!
How do we do this? I think this is where we get stumped. We know we must teach our kids about the Gospel daily, but how? I’ll give you some resources we’ve used and the ways we’ve taught our kids. Some of these will be posts coming up, so I’ll dive into them deeper.
The Jesus Storybook Bible- This isn’t the only option, but it's what we have used. The subtitle of this bible is “Every story whispers his name.” It doesn’t get much simpler than that as to why this is such a great resource in sharing the Gospel with our kids. It is selective with the stories it shares and makes sure to point every one to how Jesus is better.
The New City Catechism- It is a series of questions and answers that are foundational to the Christian faith. It is something simple for them to memorize and hold onto. We like that there is an app version available as well that has songs for each question and answer. This is a tremendous resource for us that has led to many great conversations about the Gospel.
Go to church- This one is pretty self-explanatory. Your kids need to see the Gospel impact your life and need to see that the regular assembly of believers together is important.
Music- Find good music for your kids. Again, this one should be pretty easy to understand. Make your home a place where your kids are often hearing praises being sung.
Audiobooks- This is one I’ve recently implemented with our oldest. She’s almost 8 and we have been listening to the Chronicles of Narnia every Tuesday and Thursday on the way to and from school. It has led to many great conversations about Jesus and other stories in the Bible and is something she loves and looks forward to.
Two questions I ask them every night- We ask lots of important questions to our kids throughout the day, but I’ve really been encouraged by asking my kids two questions: what are you thankful for today? And, what are you looking forward to tomorrow? This will be expanded on in my next blog, but essentially, the goal here is to hear from them the things they are thankful for and then see what has them anxious, excited, or scared for the next day. For us, these questions have led to lots of discussion about Jesus, the cross, and how God is constantly with us in every circumstance.
You need to exemplify the Gospel to them- This is the biggest way your kids will learn the Gospel. They need to see that it is real in you. I think this is the biggest reason we struggle with daily teaching the Gospel to our kids. The Gospel hasn’t daily touched us like it should. This involves an awareness of our kids and ways in which you can infuse teaching into your walk side by side with your kids.
I could say much to close, but I will instead leave you with one more Scripture. Paul closes out a massive section of Romans with these verses in Romans 11:33-36,
Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
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