by robert

God is a Good Creator but We Sin

In early July we started a series on the Bible as one story about God. I have used the following breakdown of biblical themes to direct our lessons: creation, fall, promise, redemption, and restoration. Below is a summary of our lessons on the creation and the fall. The overall layout is that each session has a breakdown some of the points we talked about, with commentary. The purpose of these updates is for you, the parents, to know what your kids are learning and be able to follow up with them. The application section is a list of optional questions and concepts to walk through with your kids.

God is a Good Creator. (Genesis 1)

I. God is eternal and all powerful

In Genesis one we see that in the beginning, before anything else existed, God was. The truth that God has no beginning and no end is one that is difficult to grasp. Just this Sunday one of the kids asked, “Who created God?” This is a totally reasonable question. One of the fundamental truths this passage confronts us with is how different God is from us. He has always been and He alone creates from nothing. God’s omnipotence is placed on display here when He merely speaks and things come into being. This fact will lay the foundation for talking with our kids about God’s authority. God, as the creator of all things, has given purpose and meaning to all things. He determines what is good and right. He decides the standards, not us.  (Also, be sure to tie in Colossians 1:15-16 when tying the story in with Christ.)

II. God is good.

The problem of evil is one that has been a pressing concern for many skeptics and one that our kids will eventually encounter. If God is good, then why is everything so messed up? I think the creation and fall narratives give our kids a good foundation to answer that question. In this first section, the mere fact that the phrase “and he saw that it was good” is repeated seven times causes me to think it is important. On the one hand, it is meant to emphasize that the world hasn’t always been messed up, in the beginning, it was wonderful. But beyond that, I think this passage is communicating to us that the creator is good. Jesus talks about the fact that a bad tree can’t produce good fruit and in the same way, God created a world in accordance with His character, which is good.

IV. God is worthy of worship

I believe that whenever we study Scripture, we should be moved to worship. Genesis one paints a vibrant picture of who the creator God is. He is eternal, all-powerful, good, wise, and holy. I pray that one of the kid’s biggest takeaways was that we serve an awesome God. The God of the Bible is one in whom we find our existence, meaning, and very life. This alone is a reason to worship Him. Worship is at the heart of what plagues our children. When we say they are sinners, we mean that they are worshipping the false gods of self-identity, self-fulfillment, and self-rule. Our children are born spiritually blind, as are we, to the fact that the world is not about us. We live in a universe that, with each and every moment attests to the fact that there is someone greater than us and He alone is worthy of worship.

Application: 

  • How does this story show us God is good?
  • Where is Jesus in this story?
  • What does it mean for God to be in charge/have authority?
  • All too often in parenting, we settle for behavior modification. The real issue is a heart issue.
    • Use this story to start conversations with your children about why God is worthy of worship.
    • Talk about what it means to worship something or someone
    • Communicate with them that we all worship something/someone
    • Remember that parenting is never merely behavior modification, it is about gospel transformation.

We Sin and it Separates Us From God (Genesis 2-3)

I. As bearers of God’s image, we have a unique purpose.

God gave us a unique purpose. As image bearers, we have the role of stewarding God’s creation as “rulers” and reflecting His image. God gave Adam and Eve the garden to tend to and keep. We have been given the task to steward his creation and make disciples.(Matt 28:19-20) This starts at home with our children. Everything we do in parenting is about making disciples. This means that every interaction we have with our kids is ultimately a gospel opportunity and a chance to model, teach, and dialogue with our kids about biblical truths, the gospel, and Jesus.

II. Sin is disobeying God

Sin is a concept that can be tricky to boil down to one sentence. That being said, I think it is effectively rooted in disobedience. (which stems from disbelief).  The point to this story isn’t that there was something wrong with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, it is that disobedience against God is heinous. It doesn’t matter how “small” a sin might be, the consequences are disastrous. Sin destroys relationships and breaks us apart. Sin separates us from God. Sin must be punished with death. (Romans 6:23) Our children need to know what sin is and they need to be reminded that it lives inside of them. As parents, we are tasked with confronting our children with their desperate need for a savior and we can’t do that if we don’t take each and every opportunity that presents itself to show our children sin and preach the gospel to them in that moment. Parenting is about getting to the root of bad behavior (sinful nature) not just punishing the behavior itself.

III. Sin is a choice

The worldview our kids are being exposed to often promotes a victim mentality. Phrases such as “I was born this way” or “I did it because of all these terrible things that happened to me” are pervasive in our society.  This isn’t a new mindset, we see it when God confronts Adam and Eve with their sin. (The woman, you gave to me…” and “the serpent….”) Instead of owning up to their choices or repenting and asking for forgiveness, they play the blame game. (Genesis 3:12-13) Teaching our children to understand that sin is inherently a choice helps them to understand that we are responsible for our sin, not our circumstances, friends, or genes. All these factors may influence us towards sin, but the buck stops with us. Just to clarify I am not saying sinful nature doesn’t make us bent towards sin. I am saying that we still choose to sin and are help accountable for that choice.

III. God seeks us out, even when we try to hide from him

In the darkest of moments, there is hope. It is important to emphasize the depths of sin’s depravity, but it is equally important to communicate to our kids that the depth of our sin serves to highlight the extravagance of God’s grace. Yes, we were lost, dead in our sins, and enemies of God.(Romans 5:10) But God, who is rich in mercy, loved us and sent His Son as a ransom for us. (Ephesians 2:1-10) Don’t miss the opportunity to talk with your kids about the fact that God gave His Son so that we, His enemies, could have life. The previous two points really emphasized our sin and our desperate need for deliverance. This is where God’s love and mercy shine through we all need rescuing from ourselves and Jesus has come to pay the price for our sins and to create in us a new heart.

Application: 

  • We learned that sin is when we disobey God’s commands
    • How do we break these commands? (disobeying our parents, not loving others, etc)
  • We learned that sin creates a problem, it separates us from God
    • What does it mean to be separated from God?
  • When we confront kids with their sins, it is important to focus on the heart.
    • Talk with your kids about why we do the things we do, emphasize that sin is a choice
  • Don’t miss out on the importance of transparency with your kids…we sin too
    • apologize when you lose your temper with them
    • talk about the ways God has forgiven you. Empathize with them that sin is something you struggle with too.
  • Don’t forget that God is sanctifying you just as much as he is working to  draw your kids to Himself
    • Parenting is meant to highlight our selfish and sinful nature and instill in us an awareness that we need to be changed too.
    • Reflect as a couple on what God has been teaching you about your sin this week through your parenting.
  • BRING THEM JESUS. I realize I focused a lot on sin in this post but that is because the depths of our need emphasize how great a savior we have in Christ.
    • Don’t just emphasize how lost your kids are, make clear that we have hope in Christ and He loves them and gave his life for them.
    • We learned that, just like with Adam and Eve, God loves us and seeks us out when we sin. Share the story of how God sought you out. (share part of your testimony)

These first two lessons have been laying, I hope, a foundation for the kids on how they understand God, sin, and the gospel. As you talk with your kids I would love to hear how they seem to be absorbing these truths. Ultimately, I want to serve you and your families well, so any feedback is appreciated.