March 01st, 2019

What Our Children Ought To Know!

 Presently at Liberty we are emphasizing the christian family.  " The Family Series" is off to a great start as we are hearing from the Lord through His Word how we must resist today's cultural principles. Especially concerning the family unit. In preparation for preaching i have read many books and listened to many sermons by many Biblical Pastors and Authors. Several of these books that have inspired me for today's blog are, "Successful Christian Parenting", and "Being a Dad Who Leads". by John MacArthur.  I want to share this blog particularly as to several things our children need to know.

Hope this inspires you to TEACH YOUR CHILDREN instead of allowing the culture to lead them away from God and His principles of life and eternity.


                          THINGS OUR CHILDREN OUGHT TO KNOW!


 There is a lot of stuff that kids today are not being taught! It’s shocking what our children know and don’t know. And after forty-five years of being in the ministry, it is still shocking to me, how many kids don’t know very much Bible truth.  

We need the Bible. They need the Bible! And we as church leaders need to be teaching Bible doctrine in our churches today. We need to get back to this primary command of the Lord to His church. It seems it is not the priority as it should be in todays churches. There are a lot of things that kids need to know, but  spiritual things are what kids need mostly in order to live prosperous lives now and for eternal reward later.

Every child needs to start off knowing the basics of the Christian faith – that they are sinners, and Jesus is the Savior. They need to know that they need  regeneration. This is the foundational knowledge of what kids need to know first because this is the beginning of wisdom.

The most important things kids ought to know are found in the Bible and some of the most basic truths they need to understand are found in the wonderful book of Proverbs. Proverbs is a book the Lord used a father to write to his son concerning foundational lesson of life. I would challenge every parent and teacher to send much time teaching children from this amazing book.

Hundreds of practical lessons are found in Proverbs, let me suggest a few LIFE LESSONS that are needed so much in our modern homes and churches.

I. Every kid ought to know how to respect the Lord. [Proverbs 1:7, 9:10]
Do the children in your ministry know who God is? Are you teaching the attributes of God? There            
is only one God, and He is almighty, all-knowing, perfect, Holy, Kind…Are you teaching the    
doctrine of who God is?

II. Every kid ought to know how to protect their hearts and minds. [Proverbs 3:3-4]
We need to guard their hearts and minds when they are small. By guarding their hearts and minds when they are small, they will learn how to do it themselves when they are older. Teach children the Word of God. Keep plugging the Word of God into their lives, hiding His Word in their hearts, so they might not sin against Him. Are you teaching children the Word of God? Are you being careful with what you are brining into your church and into their hearts and minds?

III. Every kid ought to know how to obey and honor all authority. [Proverbs 4:10-11]
There is an epidemic in America of disrespect of authority. Are you teaching your children to obey an honor their parents? To obey church authority? Teach them to honor authority, so they will honor the ultimate authority, Christ.

IV. Every kid ought to know how to select proper companions. [Proverbs 1:10]
We need to guard our kids and teach them how to choose their friendships carefully! The Bible teaches that who you choose to hang out with is who you will become. Are you teaching children to love people, but not to hang out with someone who is not following the Lord?

V. Every kid ought to know how to control their own bodies. [Proverbs 2:16-17]
There is a lack of discipline in God’s church. We need to be teaching children how to follow the Lord by controlling their bodies. Are you teaching children to say no to their bodies? To guard their eyes [from things like pornography]? To dress right and be modest? To turn away? The Bible is full of teaching’s about how to control our bodies, are we teaching it?

VI. Every kid ought to know how to treat their future spouse. [Proverbs 5:16-19]
Do you teach what marriage is and its purpose? Are you teaching what God designed the purpose of marriage to be? How is your marriage?  We are shepherds. We don’t just teach with our mouths, but with our lives. Teach children the way they should treat their (eventual) spouse, by the way we live.

VII. Every kid ought to know how to communicate lovingly and honestly. [Proverbs 4:24, 10:13,19]
We need to be careful what we say with our words. Kids need to know that their words will make or break them. Are we teaching children to use words sparingly and carefully? Are you partnering with parents to teach children how to talk to adults, how to shake hands? Are you teaching children to tell the truth, to speak kindly, to know when not to speak, and how to honor God with their words?

VIII. Every kid ought to know the value of working hard and the danger of laziness. [Proverbs 6:6-8]
Remember how the ants work? Are you teaching your children the value of work, of doing their best for the Lord? We are told not to be sluggards, but in the world today, this must be taught. Are you partnering with parents to teach the Biblical value of hard work to kids?

IX. Every kid ought to know the importance of stewardship. [Proverbs 3:9-10]
They need to know how to manage their resources, and not to let their resources manage them. Do you teach children what the Bible says about money? Giving? Generosity? About using their talents and resources for the Lord? Do you give them a chance to practice it?

X. Every kid should know it is better to love others than ourselves. [Proverbs 3:27]
The Bible tells us over and over again to love others. Are you teaching that in your church? Are you teaching it with mere words, or are you teaching children through action and example how to really love others, like Jesus did?


Teach doctrine to your children in your homes! There are lots of little hearts that God wants us to be teaching in Sunday School, VBS and other places!  We need the whole council of God, not just pieces and parts. I am all for stories and fun (they are kids after all), but we need to commit ourselves to teaching the Bible to children, teens and adults!

Are you working on teaching the spiritual things that kids really need to know? Why not take a few months and teach these and many other lessons found in the book of PROVERBS to the children and teens that the Lord has entrusted to you?