Here’s a mistaken assumption Christians sometimes make: our children are the future of the church. That is not true. If it were, Jesus would have spent all of his time training his disciples to be great husbands and great fathers. But he didn’t. Instead, he trained them to be servants to the needy. Listen to how Paul summarized this emphasis in Acts 20:33-35 and how he cited Jesus’ teaching as the basis for it.
“I have not coveted anyones silver or gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Being the Church is about keeping a sacred covenant (the New Covenant) with God and with our fellow believers – not just our wife and children. The New Covenant is so important that Jesus instituted an ordinance to constantly remind us of it – communion. In communion, we watch as the pastor raises the cup and says, “This cup is the New Covenant in my blood which is poured out for you.” (Luke 22:20)
The New Covenant comes with a New Commandment: to love each other – not just our wife and children – as Christ has loved us (John 13:34-35). Because Christian widows and single moms are part of the group delineated by the phrase “each other,” and because they usually are the neediest people in our congregations, loving them the way Christ commands us to forms a critical part of our obedience to the New Covenant.
Fidelity to covenants forms the basis for all of society. Marriage is a covenant relationship. But it is just one type of covenant. The social contract is a covenant between individuals and their government. Work contracts are covenants between employers and employees. Mortgage contracts are financial covenants between lenders and borrowers. Adults make these contractual agreements and are held accountable to them under the terms and conditions of each contract. They either keep the terms of their covenants or they don’t.
When Christian adults take their New Covenant seriously by guaranteeing the well being of the widows and single parents among them, they too demonstrate fidelity to their covenant. In the process, they form a raison d’etre for keeping all other covenant relationships in their society – including marriage and family; namely, reverence for God and love for God.
And when our children witness the amazing reality of Christian adults keeping their covenants, especially their New Covenant with God and with each other, we form a true foundation for the future of the Church.
This post first appeared in NewCommandment.org.
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Learn how to form teams of men for every widow, single mom
and fatherless child in your church at NewCommandment.org.
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