The single most important piece of Christian parenting advice I can give you is to be regularly involved in your child's education.
A young boy once approached his father to ask, “Dad, why does the wind blow?”
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?”
“Not at all, son. How else are you going to learn?”
Our children today need answers. And the most important answers we can provide them are those that come from the pages of Scripture. The Bible is our source-book for godly and righteous living.
In the Bible, we are told that young Timothy had been studying the Scriptures “from infancy” (2 Timothy 3:17). Timothy was not unique. Educating children in the ways of the Lord was a top priority among the ancient Jews in biblical times.
Indeed, in biblical times, the child was considered the most important person in the community. It was believed that out of all the people on earth, the child was most dear to the heart of God. Understandably, then, educating children was considered a monumentally important task.
In fulfilling their task of educating children, the ancient Jews didn’t simply send all their kids off to school and leave everything in the hands of teachers. Rather, the parents played the critical role. In fact, it was believed that the home was the absolute center of education for children.
Don’t get me wrong. Certainly schools were considered important. But the ancients recognized that schools cannot take the place of parents. Primary instruction to children must begin with the parents.
This stress on educating children is not something the ancient Jews just decided upon for themselves. Rather, God Himself commanded parents to educate their children in the ways of the Lord.
Every Jewish parents’ desire for their children’s education is encapsulated in Proverbs 1:8, which portrays a father speaking to his son: “Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.” By parental instruction, children were trained in the art of godly living. And then, as the children grew to adulthood, they themselves would be prepared to train their own children just as they had been trained. This pattern is God’s ideal.
Let us resolve to follow the lead of these ancients. Let’s train our children to walk in God’s way!
— Dr. Ron Rhodes
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