July Family Devotion
5 Important Conversations About Jesus Every Christian Parent Should Have With Their Kid/Kids
As Christian parents, we want to introduce our children to Jesus in a way that their precious, little hearts can comprehend. Our responsibilities as parents are to teach our children the truth of the gospel. This is not a singular conversation but an ongoing one between God, your children, and you. Deuteronomy 6:4-9, “Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. 5 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. 6 And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. 7 Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. 8 Tie them to your hands and put them on your forehead as reminders. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”
There will be points where you hit the mark and other points where you fall short. There are opportunities we have daily to teach our children according to Jesus’ ways, not ours. This is one of the greatest ways we can reveal Jesus to them. Here are 7 important conversations about Jesus every parent should have.
ONE- Jesus Dealt With Temptation
We know Jesus was confronted with temptation. He was in the desert for 40 days, hungry, weak, and tempted by the devil. This is a great conversation point to have with our kids about what temptation feels like. Help your children understand that they may be tempted to lie, hit, use unkind words, and stretch the truth, among other things. Help your children to understand that Jesus also knows what temptation is like because He went through it. In the Bible, Jesus tells the devil that He won’t do what the devil tells Him, only what God tells Him. When your children are in a situation where they are thinking about hitting, lying, stealing, or being unkind, they can think about what Jesus did in His moments of temptation. He paused and turned to God.
TWO- Jesus Always Worked To Build His Church
Jesus was always working to build the church—His family. In Matthew 16:18 Jesus said, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hell will not overcome it.” — In Matthew 28:19-20 Jesus said, “Go, and make disciples out of all people in all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And I will always be with you.” We often forget that Jesus didn’t command us to become believers. He calls us to be disciples. Disciples follow, learn from and do what their master does. Take time to talk about individual things they can do to help build our church family and impact their friends and others around them with the gospel.
THREE- Jesus Can Do the Impossible
We often hear that all things are possible with Jesus. This is something your children should believe wholeheartedly. One of the best ways to help children understand that Jesus can do the impossible is by showing them examples of His miracles. One miracle that you can start with is Jesus feeding more than 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fish, referenced in Matthew 15-21. This is the only miracle repeated in all four gospels. There are also tons of miracles that they can read about in the Old Testament that speak to the power of God, like Noah and the Great Flood, David and Goliath, and Jonah and the Whale. Ultimately, each of these stories indicates that we serve a Mighty God. In addition to helping our children understand that Jesus performed many miracles during His earthly ministry, they should also understand that we still see many miracles today. Tell your children about the miracles taking place in your life and how God responsible for making these miracles happen. Explain to them prayers that God has answered and His incredible love for us. Just as the disciples were excited to talk about Jesus, we should be equally as eager to share Him with others.
FOUR- Jesus Had Established Spiritual HABITS
Jesus both modeled and taught us about the importance of spiritual HABITS. And these need to be HABITS, not something we do when we have time. Prayer was a Habit of Jesus. He often went away by Himself and prayed to the Father. God’s Word was a Habit of Jesus. He said we live by every word God has spoken. We need to read it and study it regularly. Worship in community was a HABIT of Jesus. He faithfully went to and taught in the synagogue on the Sabbath day. We need to be in Sunday worship regularly and faithfully. It’s a HABIT, not a when I feel like it. Tithing and giving was a Habit Jesus taught and modeled. He even told the pharisees to tithe. Jesus’ disciples and followers were often immersed in these spiritual habits. We must establish the importance of these spiritual Habits with our children. Encourage them to talk to God, pray at meals and other times. Read the Bible with them and encourage them to read their Bible. Get them to church every Sunday. Tithe and help them to tithe. Remember a tithe is 10% of their income. This goes to the local church. These Habits will help them get into the rhythm of spiritual growth and commitment and set the proper foundation for their walk with God.
FIVE- Jesus Thinks We Are Important
In Matthew 19:15, Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these.” When the disciples told the children to get away from Jesus, He told them not to send them away. There are times when children feel like they are cast to the side and not important in their eyes and to others. There are also times that we are so busy with our home lives, our work lives, and our personal lives that our children may not feel like they rank high in our top priorities. Reading this passage can help your children see just how important they are to Jesus. Even when they feel like their friends, and loved ones are too busy, they will know that Jesus always time.
We mustn’t get the gospel message confused with the message of the world. Romans 12:1-2 reminds us, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s Will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Be sure to teach your kids the gospel truth. This is the clear message that we are saved by faith, and there is nothing we can say or do that will take us away from our acceptance in Jesus. When we can communicate this truth to our children, we are on the right track.