By Pastor Kyle Smith
Ellendale
One thing that has been on my mind lately, and understandably so, is how beneficial it is for both children and adults to be part of Sunday School. We recently finished our Sunday School Program for the year and one new thing we did is have a Spring Program after the Service for the kids to show what they have learned - and wow, was it impressive! During the Children’s Sunday School Program, the children sang three songs together, several individuals had memorized Bible verses, 11 verses to be exact, and they even quoted all the books of the Old Testament in order!
Of course, we as a church aren’t interested in teaching kids for the sake of teaching kids; there’s a much greater purpose in mind. The purpose of teaching children in our Sunday School program is to help prepare them, not only for Confirmation, but also for life. Our desire is that the children in our church will grow up not to be like the foolish man who built his house on the sand, and as soon as rain fell and the waves came, his house came down. Rather, we desire our children to grow up to be like the wise man who built his house upon the rock, and when the rain fell and the waves came, his house remained firm because it was built upon the rock. This is not only a good children’s Sunday School song, it is not only a helpful illustration, but this is how Jesus describes His disciples who hear His words and follow Him (Matthew 7:24-27).
The need to “train up a child in the way he should go” (Prov 22.6a) is becoming more important than ever. It used to be, back before my time, that our culture generally would reinforce Christian principles, which meant that even if children weren’t taught well or didn’t have a Christian foundation at home and at church, the culture around them would help “fill in the gaps.” But this is no longer the case. Nowadays, young Christian parents who want to pass on the faith to their children who can influence culture rather than allowing the culture to influence their children certainly have their work cut out for them, but what a blessing to know we don’t have to do it alone!
This is what makes Children’s Sunday School such a blessing for both children and parents. When children are in Sunday School, they are not only building their faith on the solid rock of Jesus Christ, but they have the blessing of being able to do so with other children, both older and younger than they are. Children are able to learn the truth of Scripture through songs, Bible study, and Bible memorization, not to mention learning to become more comfortable praying out loud with each other.
As a parent, I often hear other parents say something along the lines of, “I want to be able to give my kids everything I didn’t have as a kid.” Don’t get me wrong, it’s wonderful for parents to want to give good gifts to their kids. Besides, our heavenly Father desires to give good gifts to us as well! At the same time, it seems that perhaps more important than giving our children the things we didn’t have growing up, is ensuring our kids are taught the things we were never taught growing up. Material possessions are only beneficial to a certain point, but how much more valuable is it to help set children on the best path we can by helping to cultivate their faith!
Granted, helping to set our children on the best path we can by cultivating their faith in Jesus does not guarantee they will continue in their faith for the rest of their lives, but it sure helps! This makes me think of what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 3:6, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.” We could have the most impressive Sunday School program in the county, in the state, in the country, or even the world, but even so, it would be nothing unless God works and gives growth, and when growth happens, the credit goes to Him, not us.
This is what makes Children's Sunday School so special. Yes, Sunday School is fun, which is great. Yes, there’s lots of nostalgia for us when children sing the songs that we learned in Sunday School, and that’s special. But what’s truly special is that we have a promise from God that, as His Word goes forth, it does not return empty, but it shall accomplish that which he purposed, and succeeds in the thing for which He sent it (Isaiah 55:11). May the Lord bless the children who learned God’s Word during Sunday School. May the Lord bless the teachers who taught the children, and may the Lord continue to use His Word in our lives to grow us in the faith and to glorify Him.