Join Lori as she unpacks several practical ways to teach and model how children can be involved in the Great Commission right now!
Well hey friends, it is Lori Joiner, Your Discipleship Coach.
This season, I have turned our attention toward discipling our children and raising them in biblically grounded households. I am sharing a few of the things I have done throughout my sons’ lives to point them to Christ as often as I can.
Many of you have heard of the Great Commission, right? That Jesus, in Matthew 28:18-20 said,
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Jesus told his disciples, and now us, to GO and DO Something. To take the initiative to tell others about God and help them grow in Him.
In Luke 10:2 He said, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
We learn here that we as believers are to be a part of what God is doing on earth. That the harvest is plentiful. Meaning the people who need to hear and receive Christ are all around us. We are to pray to God for workers in the harvest-we are to be willing to be these Christ-centered ambassadors reaching out to the lost with the love and forgiveness found in Jesus Christ.
And Romans 10:13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
That people’s eternal destinies can be changed because of Jesus.
So can you guess where I am headed today? Today, the discipleship tip is-To teach your children the Great Commission. And, further, demonstrate how YOU are currently a part of the Great Commission.
So firstly, teach your children the Great Commission. Then demonstrate how you are fulfilling the great commission.
Let’s first tackle the teaching part.
Read these verses to your kids. Perhaps put a verse on a small chalkboard in the kitchen where they grab their snacks, write it on the mirror in their bathroom so they can read as they brush their teeth, once a week at a meal talk about the verse of the week-where you can take one verse, any verse and explain what it means.
Use the ones I used earlier in this message. Tell them that as Christ-followers, one of the most awesome things we get to do is being a part of other people’s lives as they go from unsaved to saved.
With my sons-even as I was formally teaching them about the Great Commission or even verses from the Bible that talked about this-I was already demonstrating it for them. This is the principle of Caught than Taught.
Say it with me, “Caught that Taught.” This is the principle that anything we want to teach our children will best be handed down if we demonstrate what we want to see happen, rather than merely teaching it.
That you can teach something all day long, but if your kids catch you doing what you taught them-it sticks in their minds and heart better, and deeper.
My kids are seeing me engage in the Great Commission as they are growing up.
For example-I recall one day at the pool visiting with a woman who was new to Katy. As our children swam and bobbed around us we simply chatted about any number of things. At one point, in front of my kids, I asked her if she was interested in finding a church to belong to and if she would like to come with me to mine. She said she would love to come and the following Sunday, she and her family met my family in the lobby of the church. We all walked the halls checking each child into Sunday school classes and such. It was a fabulous morning.
My children have literally seen this scenario take place hundreds of times. I personally find that simply inviting people to a church helps me find out where they are spiritually. Even if they say no, I am not offended, it is simply helpful information.
That day at the pool I said to my sons, “Did you hear me ask her if she was new to Katy, TX, and if she had found a church home? I asked her that because I don’t know where she is at spiritually or what she believes but that is a good way to start to find out.”
Let your children HEAR you do this. DO THIS in front of your children. At the park, at swim lessons, at the end of a play date, chaperoning a field trip, etc. Take steps of faith IN FRONT OF YOUR KIDS. Let them hear you talk about Christ, church, Bible study, and inviting people to these activities as a great model and example to them.
My boys regularly invite their friends to church. They have heard me doing it countless times, so for them, it is a natural way to do life. It's just what we do as believers and Christ-followers. And we are blessed to go to a church that has lots of amazing events and opportunities to invite friends to.
My son Josh invites people to church all the time. One of my absolute favorite stories is when in the third grade he invited his best friend to church.
I texted the mom. And she said ok. She texted me the morning of, I thought she was going to cancel and instead she said, "I am so happy my son is joining you all for church, but I am the one that really needs to go. Can we join you?"
She not only came but joined that day! She got plugged into a Bible study and I began to disciple her weekly.
That night, as I said Josh’s prayers, I told him how proud of him I was. That this one invite touched the lives of three people for Christ. This is what it meant to be a part of the Great Commission-Sharing God’s love with people, or at least bringing them to a place where they can hear and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
This year, our church put on a youth event called Fall Riot. Josh invited his entire junior High lunch group to come to the church youth event. One child came that had never ever been to a church before that we know of. I again told Josh how proud of Him I was that he had invited others. We also prayed for the salvation of his friend.
My other son Jake invited a friend to Vacation Bible School with my church. I picked up that child in my mini-van and as walked in I asked that child if he understood what he was hearing and learning. He said he did not really understand. He was from a home that did not attend any religious services. When I asked him where he thought people went when they died and he said, “I don’t know, I guess the dump?”
I was heartbroken that he thought that but so glad Jake had invited him! He learned that day that each person can go to heaven when they die if they place their faith and trust in Christ. He did this on his own. Later, Jake invited him to our church again and he was baptized.
I told Jake how proud of him I was that he had invited him and how his life will be changed because of Christ in His life and that God had used him to help.
Your kids are NOT too young to learn about the Great Commission. Start talking about it, demonstrating it, and reinforcing this. Your kids can lay up treasure in heaven starting NOW.
This relates directly to the women we are discipling. We need to teach them the exact same thing. The Bible says the harvest is plentiful. That is, the people that need to come to Christ and be saved are plentiful-they are all around us! The women I disciple hear me invite others to church, the women I disciple know I am reaching out to others with the love of Christ on a consistent basis. I am urging them, teaching them, and exhorting them to do the same in their lives and in their children’s lives. I am challenging them not to wait to be a part of the Great Commission until they are not busy in life-but to start NOW!
I feel so passionate about teaching our children young about their part in helping to fulfill the Great Commission that I actually traded in one car for another for the very purpose of bringing kids to church.
See, I had a Mitsubishi. It was a great car, a paid-off car, that fit our family of four perfectly. But there was just one problem. It could not fit anyone else comfortably. The back seat was very narrow and as my sons grew you could only, barely, fit another person in the middle seat. And there was no third row. This broke my heart as my boys would want to invite friends to church but I could not fit more than one. So I talked with my husband about getting another car. A van would do the trick!
He said, "So just so I understand, we have a car that is paid off, gives us absolutely no issues, and fits our family perfectly but you want another car?"
"I need a van. I need to fit more kids in the car for church, vacation Bible study, youth group meetings."
I had been brought to church by neighbors myself and that is how I first heard the gospel message and absolutely wanted to pay that forward.
So we sold my Mitsubishi Outlander and bought me a used Dodge Caravan and I COULD NOT BE HAPPIER! Last week my sons invited three kids to youth group and I drove us ALL!
Your kids can see their friends saved now, your kids and can lay up treasure in heaven now! Ask them, "Who do you want to bring to church this week?"
Let it be known you are up for bringing kids to a place where they can hear the love and forgiveness found in Jesus Christ!
Let’s pray!