PODCAST
Making a Point
August 28th, 2017
Deuteronomy 6:1-9
I have heard it said, and you may have too, “I don’t believe in pushing religion on children. When they get old enough they can decide for themselves.” Such thinking ignores the fact that we teach children as much, perhaps even more, by the things we don’t make a priority as by those we do. The “commands, decrees and laws” mentioned in Deuteronomy 6:1 were not simply helpful guides to holy living–which they were. In observing them, the Israelites embodied their call to be the people of God.
The core of Israelite belief was faith in “the LORD (Yahweh) our God” and in God alone. It was their duty to “impress” this truth on their children. The word translated “impress” or “teach diligently” is a metaphor drawn from sharpening a point, such as on a sword or some other weapon or tool. Literally, when it came to passing their faith on to their children, the Israelites were to “make a point of it.”
Author: Duane Brush
