How to explain the Bible and God to children? Teaching the Bible to Children The most important thing you can do for a child is to teach him the good news about how to live right with God and how sin can be forgiven through the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Over the years, many have asked me, “How can I explain the gospel to children in terms they understand without diminishing the hard demands of Christ? Does a child need to understand the Lordship of Jesus for salvation?”
Certainly, understanding of spiritual truth is limited for children as well as adults. Very few people rationally understand the whole truth of the gospel at the moment of salvation. Fortunately, the basic facts are basic enough that even a child can understand them. Jesus himself described saving faith as childlike (Mark 15:10). True faith is not subject to advanced intellect, sophisticated theological understanding, or sophisticated religious knowledge.
Children old enough to be saved can understand the concept of coming to Christ with an obedient heart and letting Him lead their lives.
Teaching the Bible to children
Here are a few things to keep in mind when sharing the gospel with a child:
1. Repetition is especially helpful. State the gospel simply and concisely, but don’t assume that the first positive answer means the full understanding of the truth he needs. Continue to explain and expand your explanations. Many preschools equate any positive response with a genuine change of heart.
2. Use the Bible and explain it clearly. Even for children, God’s word is a life-giving seed (1 Peter 1:23). Do not use approaches that provide a summary of the gospel without using the Bible. Only the Bible can speak authoritatively to the human heart—including the heart of a child.
3. Understand the inherent risk of any predetermined summary or presentation. These methods tend to follow a predetermined agenda that may ignore the child’s real needs or fail to answer the child’s most important questions.
4. Finally, remember that rescue issues are the same for children and adults. The gospel has a similar message for every age group. Martin Lloyd Jones, the great British preacher of the last century, rightly pointed out:
“We must be careful not to change the gospel for different age groups. There is no such thing as a special gospel for the young, a special gospel for the middle-aged, and a special gospel for the elderly. There is only one gospel, and we must always be careful not to tamper with the gospel by recognizing these age distinctions. At the same time, there are differences in the application of this one and only gospel to different age groups; But this difference only refers to the method and procedure. (from Knowing the Times [Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1989], 2)
Children must be able to understand that sin is an affront to God’s holiness and that they are personally guilty (although most children will obviously not feel as deeply guilty as adults because of their limited experiences).
There is nothing wrong with telling children about hell and God’s wrath. Children have no problem understanding such concepts. They understand the punishment for bad deeds and are able to understand that Jesus sacrificed his life to bear the punishment for the sins of others.
They must be told that Jesus expects obedience, and they will understand even better than some adults that trusting Jesus means obeying Him. The importance of obedience should be repeatedly emphasized even after the child has professed his faith.
The Bible is very clear in emphasizing that parents – especially fathers – should bring up their children “in the discipline and training of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). Teach your children to respect you and to heed the Bible truths you teach them. Be precise and clear in explaining God’s Word, remember that teaching is not just verbal. It’s also non-verbal with the way you live your life in front of their watching eyes.
Raising godly children in an increasingly wicked world can sometimes seem like an impossible responsibility. At least, that’s what you might conclude from listening to some experts. Many parents and parents-to-be have been pressured into thinking that they cannot lead, love, and raise their children in a way that pleases God—at least not without long training seminars, strict methods, and complicated programs.
While the world may have changed, God’s Word has not. Effective, godly parenting is not only possible, but available to anyone who is willing to understand and apply what God has to say about it.
Bible verses about teaching the Bible to children
Proverbs 22:6
Train the child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not deviate from it.
Deuteronomy 6:6-7
Let these words that I command you today be on your heart. You must teach them seriously to your children and talk about them when you sit at home, and when you walk, and when you lie down, and when you get up.
Ephesians 6:4
Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but raise them in the manners and teachings of God.
Proverbs 13:24
He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent in chastising him.
Psalms 127:3
Children are an inheritance from God, and the fruit of the womb is a reward.
Deuteronomy 6:7
You must teach them seriously to your children and talk about them when you sit at home, and when you walk, and when you lie down, and when you get up.
Today in the article : How to Explain the Gospel and God to Children? We reviewed useful information about the Bible and the way of Jesus. If you wish, you can view other articles of Ali Vahidi about Christianity
