Teach Your Children Well

Joel 1:2,3 "Hear this, you elders, and give ear, all you inhabitants of the Land! Has anything like this happened in your days, or even in the days of your fathers? Tell your children about it, let your children tell their children, and their children another generation."

Here we go with some of the Minor Prophets.

Joel is an interesting book, because not a whole lot is known about this guy. He was the son of Pethuel. Who was he? He is not mentioned anywhere else in the Bible. The thing that we know is that God is using Joel to describe the "day of the Lord."

Kind of cool. A guy who is a no name. A guy that we really don't have a ton of information about. A guy whose writing is mentioned only one other time in the Bible…this guy God is using. He is using him to warn the nation of Israel, and probably all of us about what is going to take place. Just shows you, God wants to use all of us.

And he begins with "hear this you elders and give ear, all you inhabitants of the Land." In other words, you guys who are older and in charge…listen up. In fact, everyone needs to hear this because this is new, this is different, this has never happened before and you need to know about it. Not only that, but you need to tell your kids, and you kids have to tell their kids and their kids have to tell their kids. This is something that needs to be spoken about from the top down. This is something that needs to be spread throughout your families. This is something that has to be so ingrained in all of your hearts and minds that you are going to pass it on from one generation to another. Teach your children well. Make sure that they grasp it so they own it, so they give it to their kids and their kids grasp it and own it so they can give it to their kids.

At this point, I wonder if we do this? I wonder if we understand the gravity of this thing we call our faith and the importance of it? If we do, guess what? We will absolutely be passing it down to our children. We, as elders, as fathers have a responsibility to make absolutely sure that our children see our faith, understand our faith, hear about our faith, know our faith and grab onto our faith so that it is their own and they can do it with their kids. It is the 2 Tim 2:2 principle lived out in the family. "And the things that you have heard of me in the presence of many witnesses, the same commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." Or, if I can play with this verse a little: "And the things that God has taught you, the same commit to your children who will be able to teach their children also."

I love the verse in 3 John that says: "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth." Even though John was talking about his spiritual children, frankly it needs to start with our physical children who become our spiritual children. When this happens, when your kids believe God, trust God, obey God and they are committed to giving it to their kids…there is no greater joy.

Elders, give ear…Dad's listen up. This is your deal. This is your responsibility. Do it.