Intentional Teaching

Scripture

Deut. 31:9   Then Moses wrote down this law, and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel. ¹⁰ Moses commanded them: “Every seventh year, in the scheduled year of remission, during the festival of booths, ¹¹ when all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God at the place that he will choose, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. ¹² Assemble the people—men, women, and children, as well as the aliens residing in your towns—so that they may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God and to observe diligently all the words of this law, ¹³ and so that their children, who have not known it, may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, as long as you live in the land that you are crossing over the Jordan to possess.”

Observation

As Joshua was preparing to take on the mantle of leadership, Moses was providing intentional teaching. For the law of God to be passed down to the generations to come there had to be a plan. Every seven years the people were to be gathered together. This included everyone within the community — whether they were Israelites or not. Whoever became a part of this community would need to listen to and apply the law of God. 

Children would be born every year and there had to be a plan to bring them into the faith family. If the teaching occurred every seven years then children would also receive it on a regular basis. Repeated every seven years, it would become a part of who they were, their life and their culture. The community would not be able to forget to whom they belonged and how they were to act in this world. Moses was teaching Joshua, who was to teach all the people for years to come. It was a plan from God, and it was intentional in regard to passing along the faith. 

Application

Just as Moses gave Joshua an intentional plan for passing along the faith, so we must have a plan as well. The next generation won’t just “get” it, if we don’t make sure that they are receiving from the Lord. The sad truth is that the Israelites didn’t follow through on this plan. Eventually they stopped reading the word of the law, and the scrolls were literally lost. If it had been important to the Israelites, had they been intentional, they would have known exactly where the scrolls were and they would have been reading them on a regular basis. 

How will our children and grandchildren know about Jesus? Only if we become intentional about passing along our faith. I wonder if life has simply gotten too busy to read the word and pray with our little ones? There must be intentionality. They need to see us pray. They need to see us reading the word. We are to become mentors by the way in which we live our lives. This is what it means to be intentional. 

Nothing will just “happen” if we don’t plan for it to happen. We must be intentional about planning for the future and passing along our faith. What happens in the years ahead will be greatly dependent upon our faithfulness to those who will come after us. If they have not heard, nor been taught, how can they be to blame? Today we must begin to take responsibility for the future, and be intentional about planting and watering the seeds of faith. 

Prayer

Lord, I am so grateful for those who have invested in me. Please help me to be intentional to share what I have received.  Amen.