Imagine for a moment that one day you decide to go on a diet. From now on, you tell yourself, I will fast every single Sabbath. The following week you start your plan. You eat a balanced abundant diet for six days, and then fast on the Sabbath. The second week you do the same. And so forth and so on. What do you think might be the results? You might stop looking forward to the Sabbath hours, but otherwise, you will survive and perhaps even thrive by fasting one day a week.
Now imagine that you decide to implement a more drastic approach. I’m going to stuff myself with food every Sabbath, you tell yourself, and then I’ll fast for six days each week. I probably don’t need to tell you that such a course of action may lead to your eventual demise. No one can survive eating one day a week long-term.
Many of us, however, try to follow a similar approach regarding spiritual nurture. We stuff ourselves each Sabbath, assuming the spiritual food will last until the next Sabbath we worship. Is it surprising, then, we don’t get the spiritual results we are aiming for?
From Generation to Generation
The transmission of the knowledge of God and its implications for living on this earth were the center of family unit dynamics in ancient Israel. Teaching within a family setting was not theoretical but led to an experience of daily connection with God through praise and prayer. “From generation to generation we will proclaim your praise,” wrote Asaph (Ps. 79:13, NIV).
This connection between older and younger generations was a natural part of regular interactions between parents and children. The teaching could sometimes take place in a formal setting, but often would happen in the everyday environment of the home or everyday experiences. God-fearing parents were supposed to summon their children and initiate moments of worship and reflection. But parents also had to be ready to answer their children’s questions whenever they arose, as in the case of the yearly Passover celebration: “When your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What is this?’ that you shall say to him, ‘By strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage’ ” (Ex. 13:14).
Another important aspect of intergenerational teaching in Israel is that it did not happen in a vacuum. Teaching your children and grandchildren was part of a historical and theological continuum, a small but important part to play in God’s plan of salvation. In the case of Israel, the passing of God’s instructions to the next generation was a given, a key element for the ongoing survival of God’s people. Its goal was straightforward: “So that you, your children, and your children’s children may revere the Lord your God and follow, as long as you live, all His laws and commandments . . . to the end that you may long endure” (Deut. 6:2, Tanakh).1 People can be motivated to obey out of fear or love. God is suggesting that teaching children His law and requirements might motivate everyone—both parents and children—to obey out of love.
At the same time, it is important to note that teaching one’s children would be preceded by a series of presuppositions about God and “homework”—that parents would have previously learned and understood before even thinking of starting their children’s “classes.” This is not unique to Israel. These prerequisites are essential for anyone who wishes to engage in a formal or informal system of sharing God’s knowledge to younger generations.
For a committed parent, any instance at home, out in nature, or in the marketplace can become an opportunity to impress a lesson on younger minds.
Knowing Who God Is
After God outlined the goal and the results of paying heed to His teachings—“Obey, O Israel, willingly and faithfully, that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly” (verse 3, Tanakh)—He pronounced the words that became the most well-known confession for Jewish people even today. “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!” (verse 4). Or: “The Lord is our God, the Lord alone” (Tanakh).
This is not a discussion of Trinitarians versus anti-Trinitarians. The focus is on the uniqueness of God. Simply put, there is none like Him (see Jer. 10:6). “All the gods of the peoples are idols, but the Lord made the heavens” (Ps. 96:5). Or as a thankful Hannah acknowledged in 1 Samuel 2: “There is none besides You, nor is there any rock like our God” (verse 2).
Even before formal or informal teaching takes place, parents must grasp the biblically based idea of who God is. He is the Creator God, who not only created but has subsequently sustained and protected His people on their journey. “He alone is your God, the only one who is worthy of your praise, the one who has done these mighty miracles that you have seen with your own eyes” (Deut. 10:21, NLT).2 Thus, any divine requirement, any commandment, any future transmission of those requirements and teachings to the next generation is grounded in the character of this God, who “gives to all life, breath, and all things” (Acts 17:25).
Acknowledging the uniqueness of God is a worthy first step. It is not, however, an end in and of itself. On the contrary, it should move the believer to engage with that unique God in a unique way.
Engaging with God
Once the believer acknowledges the uniqueness of God, God Himself calls His people to love Him with all they are and have. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength” (Deut. 6:5). Unlike the Greek notion of gods well beyond the comprehension of human earthlings, forever detached, forever unreachable, God calls His people to engage with Him in a loving relationship framed by our way of thinking, feeling, and acting. There is no aspect in our lives—our thoughts, affections, hobbies, projects, our lifework—that is beyond the possibility of interacting with the Master of the universe.
That relationship is devoted, candid, and lifelong. It may go through rough patches, but even questions, doubts, or complaints to Him take place within an understanding that there is no plan B. There is no meaningful life without God.
This human-to-God relationship does not hesitate to question or ask for explanations, just as Abraham did when advocating for the citizens of Sodom. “Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Gen. 18:25).
It’s not wrong to question a perceived absence or remoteness of God, as David and others did. “My God, my God, why have You abandoned me; why so far from delivering me and from my anguished roaring?” (Ps. 22:2, Tanakh).
One of the tragedies of many young people growing up in Christian homes is perhaps that they are handed down a prepackaged bland model of a relationship with God. They never move past formulaic prayers and perfunctory worship. They never learn to wrestle with God, or to “chat,” demanding things from Him even when it results in ultimately surrendering to His will. In these circumstances, our children may mature spiritually aboveground but never develop roots. They may pay their respects, but never engage with their deepest thoughts, feelings, and actions. Eventually, this may result in withering and drifting away.
Through heartfelt discussions, open-heart testimonies, and Bible-based prayer, daily family worship can become an outstanding opportunity for teaching younger generations to love the Lord with all they are and have, and in everything they do.
Always a Teaching Moment
After God is acknowledged, God’s words dwell in the parents’ heart, and the family unit itself learns to engage with Him in a wholistic loving relationship, effective formal and informal teaching can take place.
According to the Bible, at this stage, two elements are key: diligence and repetition. “Take to heart these instructions with which I charge you this day. Impress them upon your children. Recite them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deut. 6:6, 7, Tanakh).
Both elements are important. The sharing of the knowledge of God, His commandments, and requirements are not a onetime event, but a daily, planned, calculated endeavor. Random Bible teaching results in random, shallow Christians or worse. For a committed parent, any instance at home, out in nature, or in the marketplace can become an opportunity to impress a lesson on younger minds. These opportunities are not simple forums for parents to share their personal opinions and preferences, but “classrooms” to recite and explain God’s words in terms children can understand and to lead by example.
Against this background, attending church on Sabbath can certainly be the cherry on top of a week of delightful spiritual meals. Regarding our spiritual life, one meal a week is not enough. Only the daily eating and drinking from the life-giving Source will do.
1 Texts credited to Tanakh are from Tanakh: A New Translation of the Holy Scriptures According to the Traditional Hebrew Text. Copyright © The Jewish Publication Society of America, 1985, 1999.
2 Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.