Faith Filled Family
Throughout the Bible, we see that God has entrusted parents with the sacred task of discipling their children. It is our duty as Fathers and Mothers to work diligently to instill the knowledge of God and obedience of faith in the hearts of our sons and daughters. We are to be visible examples to them of what loving God really looks like, and we are to train them up in the truths of the scriptures. In this way, our homes are to be hubs for discipleship, with the family serving as the foundational place for cultivating deep faith in each person who lives there.
One of the places where we see this taught is Deuteronomy 6:4-9.
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Notice the layers of this commandment to us from God. We are to love him with all our heart, and to cultivate that same love with those in our family by immersing the law of God in our home. We are to teach it, talk about it, write it on our doors, our walls, and our hearts!
The question that remains for all of us to answer is how can we do this? How can we as parents walk faithfully with Jesus in a way that cultivates faith in the hearts of our children?
In January 2020, our Emmaus Institute offered a 3-week class entitled Faith Filled Family that explored these questions in detail. Here is a brief overview of the class, with embedded audio recordings of each week so you can walk through this journey with us!
Week 1 – It Starts in the Heart
In this first class, we explore the truth that we cannot instill passion for Jesus that we do not already possess ourselves. We’ll look into the type of people we must become in order to lead our families to walk in faithfulness to God. Our content begins with an overview of the entire class, followed by an in depth examination of some of the habits of spiritual discipline that we can practice to cultivate hearts of faith. Listen to the audio below or click here to read an article that summarizes the content.
Week 2 – Making Disciples at Home
In the second week, we explore the biblical mandate for leading our families in discipleship as well as some intentional strategies that we can implement to be faithful to the biblical model. We explore habits such as family worship, personal devotions, celebrating spiritual milestones, and redeeming little moments for discipleship in the home. Listen to the audio below or click here to read an article that summarizes the content.
Week 3 – Shepherding Little Souls
During the final week of the class, we take a deeper look at the task of discipling young children. We take time to explore offensive strategies for cultivating godliness such as personal devotions, scripture memory, and connecting discipleship with your local church. We also look at defensive strategies – protecting our children from the schemes of the enemy bent on destroying their faith. Listen to the audio below or click here to read an article that summarizes the content.
Looking for more help?
The Emmaus Institute exists to equip God’s people to follow Jesus and make disciples faithfully. We offer a variety of articles, sermons, and classes online to assist you on your journey. If our team can be of service, please send us an email today.