How can we as parents and teachers help children understand the glorious riches of the gospel? It begins by understanding how the role that God has given us is like that of a farmer. Have you ever pictured yourselves as farmers and your children and students as soil? Yes, maybe that’s a strange way to look at things but consider,
A farmer plows his field, sows the seed, and fertilizes and cultivates—all the while knowing that in the final analysis he is utterly dependent on forces outside of himself. He knows he cannot cause the seed to germinate, nor can he produce the rain and sunshine for growing and harvesting the crop. For a successful harvest, he is dependent on these things from God. Yet the farmer knows that unless he diligently pursues his responsibilities to plow, plant, fertilize, and cultivate, he cannot expect a harvest at the end of the season.
(Jerry Bridges, The Pursuit of Holiness, copyright©1996, page 9)
We should not expect a harvest of mature, vibrant faith in Christ in our children and students apart from careful and diligent labor—preparing their hearts to more readily receive the gospel, planting gospel seed by thoroughly and repeatedly teaching the word of Christ (Romans 10:17), and then earnestly, yet patiently, encouraging them to respond in faith.
Ultimately, the salvation [harvest of faith] of children is in God’s sovereign hands…However, this does not mean that we are not to labor in this ministry. As believers we have the privilege of being God’s instruments. We are laborers [farmers] in God’s vineyard [field], and God has “entrusted” us with this great privilege and awesome responsibility (1 Corinthians 3:4-9). We are to work in cooperation with God, who gives roots to the seeds of the gospel truth we sow in the hearts of children.—Sally Michael
This quote from Sally Michael is from our resource, Helping Children to Understand the Gospel. It was developed as a helpful tool for parents and anyone else who desires to “cultivate and sow toward gospel harvest” in the lives of children. And we are excited to announce that we have now made this resource more user friendly!
What's new?
- The devotional guide has been re-designed to make each devotional easier to use.
- The cover has been re-designed to be more distinctive and gospel-focused.
- Formatting and font have been updated to a crisp, clean look.
What’s the same? The content has not changed–You will still see the same helpful content such as:
- Preparing Children for the Gospel
- Presenting the Gospel to Children
- Family Devotionals—10 Essential Truths of the Gospel (Read through the Ten Essential Gospel Truths handout for more information.)
