If not you...who? If not now...when?

 

Recently, my 8-year-old daughter asked me a question: "What was the first job in the Bible?"

She's always been a very thoughtful girl. Always asking questions. Good questions.

It took me a moment, but after years of Bible study, I have learned that when I am looking for the "first" of anything, I always go back to where any story begins: the Beginning. I remembered that in the Garden of Eden, and after God had made Adam, He placed him in the Garden "to cultivate it and keep it (Genesis 2:15)." This was the first task ever assigned to anyone. So I told her.

"Cultivate" is not a common word today, so I used the phrase, "to care for," in its place. She understood what it means to care for something. She was given a puppy for her 8th birthday and was well acquainted with the tasks associated with caring for this tiny creature. She was responsible for helping to take the puppy outside so it could go potty, as well as entertaining the puppy by playing with her, and cleaning up the puppy's toys after playtime was over.

"What is something that God has given to me and your mommy that we are responsible to care for?" I asked her. She smiled sweetly, and then said, "Me."

"That's exactly right!" I told her. "God gave you to us, and it has been our job to love you, care for you, feed you, keep you warm and safe, and also to teach you about God, about His Son Jesus, and about His Word." She listened, still smiling, as I shared with her about how her mother and I care for her and love doing it.

It's the last of those responsibilities that I want to share about today. There has risen within the church a tradition of passing the buck on the responsibility of the spiritual stewardship of our children to others. For several years, I have served as a Youth Pastor, and I have seen many times where the only spiritual nourishment that a kid may receive was from their time in Church with the youth group, in Sunday school, or in Worship service if they indeed listened to the Pastor's sermon.

"What are you saying, Jessie? Are you saying it's not good that we bring our kids to church?"

That's not what I'm saying at all. But what I am saying is that the responsibility for the spiritual well-being of your children does not fall on the Youth Pastor or even the Pastor of your church: it falls on us as parents. Always has, and always will.

In the books of Ephesians and Colossians, the Apostle Paul clearly lays out the expectation of scripture that Parents, and more specifically, Fathers are responsible for the spiritual well-being of their families, including their wives and children. Take a look at these passages on your own:

• Ephesians 5:22 - 6:4
• Colossians 3:18-21

My purpose for this article is not to expound on the above passages but to point out a realization I had about our own stewardship of the time given to us as parents to fulfill the ministry that God has given us within our own families. The traditional mindset of many Parents is that if they get their families to church more than once a week...they are winning! "I got them to Church on Sunday morning, and to a small group on Sunday night. BOOM! Done." That may sound like an over-exaggeration, but when we really stop to think about it...it's sadly not far from the truth.

But let's look at the numbers. I like numbers. They are simple. They are easy to understand. And they don't lie (if we are honest in our estimations). Let's break down the hours of a typical week of a Church-going family, and see how much time the kids spend with parents, without parents, and at church.

Naturally, these numbers are not exact for every family, but this would represent a very basic schedule for most families. It does not include time spent on any extracurricular activities, but just the general idea of time: sleeping, evenings at home, days at school, and times at church on Wednesdays and Sundays. If this schedule doesn't match your own, take a moment to write out the times you have with your kids, the time that they are not with you, and set aside sleep time, and church time if you attend.

Looking at these numbers, and then considering the verses above, and the responsibility placed on my shoulders as a Father, and as a Husband. That's when I saw it. I saw the hours each week against the tradition that has crept into the church of passing the buck. This is what I saw:

As parents, if we adopt the popular idea of entrusting the spiritual development of our kids SOLELY to Youth Pastors, or the like, we are basically throwing away 67% of a kid's waking hours. This is time that we do spend with them, but time that is rarely seized as the opportunity that it could be to "bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Eph. 6:4)."

If we allow ourselves to think that getting them to church is the definition of a successful Christian parent then they are only being Spiritually enriched 0.04% of their waking hours. It's hard to fathom. We neglect 67% of the time and hope to God that 0.04% will be sufficient. No...not just sufficient. We are foolish enough to think that God is PLEASED with 0.04%. Not only do we give away that 67%, but we also do nothing to combat the 33% that the world has the opportunity to teach them and lead them, and, more than likely, that leading will not be toward, but away from the Lord Jesus.

"But you don't understand my schedule. You don't understand how busy I am, or how tired I am when I get home. You just don't get the demands that are on my life, or the things I have weighing on my mind. Plus, I'm not trained for this! I didn't go to seminary! I don't have a degree in Bible, or Theology, or anything like that. That's what you Pastors are for, right? I can't be expected to teach the Bible to my kids when I haven't been trained!" I've heard all of these excuses. I'm not saying they are not true, but I am saying that even if they are true...they are irrelevant and do not change the truth that the responsibility remains for discipleship remains with parents.

Take heart, parent! God does not expect you to be a world-renowned scholar, or a tenured Bible professor, or to hold multiple degrees from prestigious Divinity schools. No. The Bible simply tells us that we are to love the Lord and love His Word. We are to delight in the things of God. We are to read His Word faithfully and consistently. We are to surrender to the Holy Spirit within us to teach us and guide us as we read and meditate on the Word of God. The more we read, the more we will know and understand, and God has promised that His Spirit will lead us to truth and righteousness. But if WE never read the Bible on our own, then yes...I can see how one might feel inadequate to the task.

Parents...God has placed more responsibility on us than we may be willing to admit, but the Bible is clear. The responsibility of discipleship in the Word of God, and the walk of faith of children rests squarely on the shoulders of Parents. The question is...will we do what we have been entrusted to do? It is the blessed job that God has given to each parent to raise up children in the disciple and instruction of the Lord so that when they are older, they will not depart far from it.

But if not you...then who? Someone will teach your kids, but what are they teaching? Will they be leading them toward the Lord Jesus...or away from Him?

And if not now...then when? We must take full advantage of the time we have because we are not promised a specific number of days. Tomorrow is always the busiest day of the year because we always put off until tomorrow until things never get done.

Let it be YOU, parents. Let it be NOW.