Thinking about church: The pastoral search, childrens church, Sunday School...

September 6, 2006

Thank You, again, Lord, for Your Word that spoke to my heart yesterday about my discouragement with the Pastoral Search process. Thank You that it is Your work, and I am simply to be Your worshipful and obedient and trusting servant. Thank You for the great things You have already done, and the great things You are doing even now, and will continue to do until all Your purposes and will are fulfilled, and all heaven and earth bows and gives praise and honour and glory to You, the Eternal, Immortal, Omnipotent, Great God and King and Lord of all! Amen!

I love You, Lord! Amen!

September 8, 2006

Thinking while doing my reading this morning (1 Samuel 15 - to obey is better than sacrifice) about the whole idea of childrens church/Sunday School during the Sunday church service. It occurred to me (and I believe this is from the Lord because it does seem to line up with scripture! Lord? Please show me Your truth) that if women in the church service are to be submissively under the headship (including explanation and teaching) of their husbands in the church service situation, then how much more the children who are, according to Deuteronomy 6:7 to be under the teaching of their parents at all time, and according to accounts like Acts 16:33 (Paul and Silas and the Philippian jailer) where the "whole house" was baptized when the father believed, and the scripture which says that the children are "sanctified" (as well as an unbelieving parent!) by a believing parent, and then Titus 2:3-5 which shows the pattern of headship, plus other passages like Ephesians 5 to 6 (especially 6:1-4) where children are to obey and honour their parents, and fathers are to bring their children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Now this all seems to make clear that the parents are responsible for the biblical (spiritual) training of their children at all times - and how can that be done when the church gathers but the children are separated so that the parents are not even aware of what the children are being taught?

The gathering of the church would seem to be to be probably the most important spiritual learning time outside the home, and the parents should be involved. As for the "option" of Sunday School at another time, the whole separation idea still concerns me (with others doing the teaching, and with the influence of the peer group rather than the family group, be that seen as the nuclear family or the church family). However, I can see value for the Sunday School as a learning opportunity for children from non-Christian homes, and for adult classes for new believers to help them grow in the faith [though personal discipling, and the meeting of the whole body is still more important], and for potential believers to hear the gospel. But even then, I see value in "family" classes where the family sits and learns together. I suppose that if we had "church" in the same way as the early church, this would happen more naturally, as the children would hear teaching from many adults (men), [including quite possibly] their own fathers, which would be similar in some respects to a Sunday School class situation.

Anyway, scripture seems quite clear that parents are directly responsible for their childrens learning... and of course that takes us onward to home schooling, etc.

I guess I do need to find that scripture(s) about the children being made holy by believing parents... I expect there is something key there!

What happens when we "delegate" the spiritual training of our children to others??? what if others are more spiritually mature? or less? If we are with our children, we can learn together - and if there are problems with the teaching we can straighten it out immediately. and what an opportunity to be motivated to keep learning and advancing ourselves (and being obedient and trusting, and having faith in God and glorifying Him in our lives - ourselves!)

..........

I Sam 16:24 "I have sinned... because I feared the people and obeyed their voice." I am seeing how serious a sin it is to follow the voice of the world over the voice of God. And how "peculiar" we are actually called to be, how "called-out" - how "holy!" -- even as we "live in but not of this world." Oh my! (see Psalm 101!)