October 2, 2005

Series - Dinner's On Us - 4

A young boy once came up to his father and asked, “Dad, why does the wind blow?” to which the father responded, “I don’t know, son.” “Dad, where do the clouds come from?” “I’m not sure, son.” “Dad, what makes a rainbow?” “No idea, son.” “Dad, do you mind me asking you all these questions?” And his dad said, “Not at all, son. How else are you going to learn?”

We don’t always have the answers to all the questions our children ask us, do we? We don’t know everything. So how are our children going to learn from us? Shouldn’t we be able to give them more answers than we do? And not just about clouds and rainbows…

Imagine a boy coming to his father and asking, “Dad, how did the world get here? Dad, does God love me even when I’ve done something wrong? Dad, does God love everyone? Why did He let the hurricane hurt all those people? Dad, what happens when we die? Will everyone go to heaven? Dad, how do we know we will be there?” What if the dad said, “No idea, son.”?

Now that would be a tragedy! We need to answer these questions for our children. And for anyone else that would ask these questions of us. We hear in 1 Peter 3:15: “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” We must be ready to give answers, or find them.

That means we need to be growing in our knowledge of God’s Word. And we need to be as curious as the children who ask us all those questions in finding out more about it. A few verses later, Peter writes: “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.”

One spring, a family was driving down to Tampa, Florida. As far as the eye could see, orange trees were loaded with fruit. When they stopped for breakfast, the father ordered orange juice with his eggs. “I’m sorry,” the waitress said, “I can’t bring you orange juice. Our machine is broken.” He was dumbfounded. Here they were, surrounded by millions of oranges, and they knew there were oranges in the kitchen because orange slices garnished their plates! So what was the problem? No juice? Hardly! They were surrounded by thousands of gallons of juice! The problem was that they had become dependent upon a machine to get it.

Christians are sometimes like that. They may be surrounded by Bibles in their homes, but if something should happen to the Sunday morning service, they would have no nourishment for their souls. The problem is not a lack of spiritual food. The problem is that many Christians haven’t grown enough to know how to get it for themselves. And for their families. At home.

Don’t you think that we all need to get a little better at feeding ourselves and our families at home with spiritual food? It says in Hebrews 5:12: “In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!” See the point? God wants us ALL to be teachers of his Word! In our homes, we are all teachers – teaching our families, our children, sharing God’s Word with all who reside there. So we all need to be properly equipped to do that teaching!

That’s right – YOU are the teachers! Even more so than the church! The church’s job is to equip and train you to do that job! It says in Ephesians 4:11-12: “It was he who gave some to be…pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up, until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God…” You are the teachers, and the church’s main job is to equip YOU to do yours. We haven’t always gotten that right. The church has been trying to do all the teaching, and parents have been relying on it to. But children need to learn about God from their parents at home. And pastors and teachers need to be training the parents to fulfill this responsibility.

Restaurants invented take-out food so that people could eat at home without having to prepare the whole dinner by themselves. I see a parallel with spiritual growth. The home is the best place to grow in God’s Word together as families. The church can help you put that heart-warming, soul-filling food on your “table.” The church can equip you to be teachers for your families. Making your job possible. Making it easier. It’s kind of like take-out. But it is Take-Out for Your Heart! The church is better serving you when it understands that spiritual growth starts at home and its most important job is making it possible for you to do your spiritual eating and growing at home. “Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law.” Take to heart these words. They are take-out for your heart!

You need this nourishment for life. Your children need this nourishment for life. And YOU are the best teachers that your children will ever have. God knew that and that’s why He said, “Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” God wisely appointed parents to be the main teachers of their children. Because it is in the home with parents that children live most of their time. And learning about God is something that happens not only with teaching from the Book, but also with examples lived out in life. Kids will learn from their parents better than from anyone else: any pastor, teacher, or professor.

It is at home where learning can best be combined with example. Four preachers were debating what the best Bible translation was. The first argued that the KJV was the best. It showed God’s Word would endure from generation to generation, and the Old English was beautiful. The second minister argued that the NASB was better because it is the most accurate. It has the closest word-for-word translation from the original Hebrew and Greek, and so is most reliable. The third pastor argued that the NIV was the best. He said it was much easier to read than the other two, and while it didn’t have the word-for-word meaning like the NASB, it captured the original meaning of the text and communicated it best in modern language.

Each of them looked to the fourth pastor to see which version he would support. He said, “I believe the living bible is the best translation.” The others responded, “The TLB isn’t a translation – it’s a paraphrase, and too wordy to be trusted!” The fourth pastor smiled and said, “No, I don’t mean the book; I mean the living Bible I saw lived out in the life of my father every day. He lived the scriptures in such a way that I was convinced the Bible was indeed the Word of God. Dad’s living Bible changed my life.” Friends, that’s what it means when we are told to teach God’s Word to our children as we sit, walk, lie down, and get up! Teaching happens with Bible lessons, devotions, and also the godly lives that we live. The most important task parents have is to raise children who trust in Jesus as their Savior and who put God first in their lives.

But there is no molding without modeling! We must, first of all, put God first in our lives. He put us first in His life. We must put his Words first in our life. Because his words “are not just idle words for you – they are your life.” God’s Words are your life. They give you LIFE. Real LIFE. Life with God forever. This spiritual food hooks you up with and keeps you together with God. Forever. These words tell you about his love. They feed your soul. They remind you again and again that Jesus died for you and rose again because He loves you. You are forgiven. Even for your poor eating habits. Forgiven! Loved! Precious to God!

So let’s learn more about Him! Let’s take his Words to heart! Our life and the lives of our children depend on them! And here is how the church can help. The church can offer a menu of spiritual take-out that will be a true blessing for your families. The church can give you Christian training through Bible study, Leadership Training, Catechism Training for Parents to teach their children, Home Devotion modeling, and Gospel motivation for you in Living your Christian LIFE. Come and get it! Dinner’s On Us! Free food. Take-Out for Your Heart! Let us equip you to feed your families at home. That is God’s plan.

He wants you to have his words. Because his words are your life. Two years before he died, a World War II veteran and his wife once again opened the box of all the love letters which they had written each other while he was serving in the war. They decided that each evening they would open the box and read each other a letter they had written. They started with the earliest letters, and went in order through the creased pages whose ink was now fading. Night after night, they reminded each other of their love by reading those wonderful words that lived like magic in their hearts, and kept their love alive during the war. While the war was raging on, and life was uncertain, they treasured each letter that arrived. Because they were temporarily separated, they read them alone – not once, but over and over again. As they read, they could see the other’s face and hear the other’s voice through the words. Romance swelled in their hearts as they longed for each other. Those letters were among their most important possessions.

In one Book we have many love letters from God bound in one volume. As we read them, we hear his voice and imagine seeing his face. Love swells in our hearts as we long for the day when we will be together in the way we have always dreamed. But for now, we are content to read the letters. Each day we bring another one out and let Him read it to us. We are reminded of his undeserved love. His grace. His forgiveness. Only this constant reminder can keep our love strong until the struggle is over and our heavenly Lover returns.

Until then, He has given us these letters. This Word. This food. This wonderful way to nourish our souls. Friends, at home, at school, at work, at church, let’s make the Word of God and its comfort part of our lives every day. These are not idle words. They are our life. Amen.

 

Back to the Pentecost page
Back to the Pastor's Messages page