Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart
from it. (Prov. 22:6)
It has been said that the church is never more than one generation away from extinction.
Though Scripture promises that the church will persevere, the saying points to the
importance of passing the facts of our faith along to the next generation, including
those facts which pertain to money and its proper use.
The Bible has much to say about temporal things and their connection with eternal
things. In brief, that everything belongs to God and that people are only stewards,
or caretakers, of that which has been entrusted to them, however much or little
that may be. That money is a cruel master but a wonderful slave. That money and
time invested in God’s work in this life pays dividends in eternity. That the pursuit
of riches in this life is a valid undertaking only insofar as those riches are put
to kingdom purposes. Parents must teach their children the joy and importance of
kingdom giving as a part of any well-rounded biblical instruction.
But Christian giving cannot be separated from salvation itself. In writing to the
church at Corinth, Paul extolled the generosity of the Macedonian churches by saying
“but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God.” (2Cor
8:5) Those who find giving difficult should ask themselves if they love God and
have given themselves to Him. So also our prime directive as Christian parents is
to evangelize our children.
Just as birth is followed by growth, salvation is followed by sanctification. Sanctification
is the process by which children of God grow in godliness or “god-likeness”. And
because “God so loved the world that He gave”, giving is inextricably linked with
godliness. Any exhortation for our children to grow in the Lord must include the
importance of the giving of time, money and talents to Him. Just as Paul taught
the Corinthians, parents should teach their children that God is faithful and completely
trustworthy and will provide for his people when they give to His work.
When young children are recipients of cash gifts for birthdays or holidays parents
should encourage them to give a portion to the Lord. This should continue as they
begin to earn small amounts from odd jobs, etc. One may say that giving such small
amounts hardly matters. But this is not true. Men often avoid doing little things
by promising to do great things. The result is that they do nothing at all. There
is a clear connection between being faithful with little in order to be trusted
to be faithful with much. John D. Rockefeller, the richest man of his time said
“I never would have been able to tithe the first million dollars I ever made if
I had not tithed my first salary, which was $1.50 per week.” Children and adults
must learn that everything comes from God and belongs to Him. There is no word more
antithetical to spiritual growth than “mine.” Every gift, no matter how small, is
an act of faith and a stepping stone on the path to Christian character.
Teach your children the principles of stewardship. Teach them to work and they learn
self-respect. Teach them to save and they learn discipline. Teach them to give and
they learn to love.