Teaching Our Children to Read God's Word
March 31st, 2022 • by Chris Ammen
I was born and raised within a few miles of the ocean. When school was out, you’d find me surfing almost every day. The smell of the beach is perhaps the most potent scent in my memory. Now I live in Tennessee, surrounded by less familiar smells. But, the beach is still in my bones. One whiff of sunscreen, and I’m transported.
The story of the Bible has a familiar “scent” to it as well. But to smell the centrality of God in all of Scripture takes time and attentiveness. It’s a learned perspective, one that we can pass on from generation to generation as we teach our children to study God’s Word. The more they saturate in the Bible, the more the story of redemption will seep into their pores.
How do we get there?
The Bible can seem gigantic, confusing, and culturally complicated! Is it even possible for us (much less our children) to understand what’s happening?
There’s one vital framework that can help us better understand the Bible. It’s one our children can grasp very early, and it centers around the concept of story.
God’s Word is one cohesive story from the first to the last page. But each small story within it is like a turn of a kaleidoscope—same light, but new angles—providing deeper insight and color. Every small story helps us see the big Story with more depth and texture.
An Example from Daniel
For instance, the story of Daniel is one of courage and bravery. But if we stop there and fail to see Daniel in light of the big Story, our children may walk away with an impoverished view of God. Instead, we can ask, “If the flow of the Bible is that of a broken, fallen creation on its way to final and full restoration in Jesus, how does the story of Daniel turn the kaleidoscope one more turn?”
To do this, we must look at the original audience (a good study Bible can help with this). Daniel was written to God’s people amid a traumatic time for Israel. They’d been forcefully removed from their homes, not knowing if they’d ever return. They were enslaved, and their identities were stripped. The faithful few looked on as their brothers and sisters made a fool of Israel through their sin.
Was there any hope? Would the words of Daniel encourage them and stand as an enduring testimony of God’s commitment to his people?
To answer that, let’s look at the most popular story from Daniel. Millions of children have loved this story, and you’ll hardly find a church worth its salt that doesn’t teach it at some point. You know what I’m talking about, right? The lion’s den, of course (Dan. 6).
What we learn about God from this text is shaped by how we answer a few questions. You can rephrase these for almost any passage in the Bible:
Why does Daniel survive?
What does this story teach us about God?
Where does this story point our attention?
Let’s dive in.
“The flow of the Bible is that of a broken, fallen creation on its way to final and full restoration in Jesus.”
Why does Daniel survive?
If the Bible is only a collection of stories with no cohesive narrative, then Daniel winds up as a moralistic tale. With little attention given to where Daniel fits in the whole of Scripture, we get lessons like…
Dare to pray like Daniel.
God protects those who are faithful.
God does not give Daniel (or us) a spirit of fear.
But, these fail to get to the beauty of the passage. Sure, in Daniel 6:22, Daniel was saved “because (he) was found blameless before him [God].” But there’s a bit more to unpack here.
What does the story teach us about God?
If the Bible does not have an overarching story, we may believe the lion’s den is teaching us that…
God helps those who help themselves.
God only listens to those who consistently pray.
Not only are these falsehoods, but they miss the point of Daniel as a profoundly God-centered, gospel-drenched book. Isolating Bible stories from the main story of Scripture almost always leads us to focus on the human(s) in the story instead of God. As a result, we nearly always arrive at incorrect or minimized views of God.
Where does this story point our attention?
The Babylonian guards got what was coming to them. Darius is shamed once more. Daniel lives to fight another day! All of these things are true, but we should not be content with only seeing each story’s short-term effects. The Bible is always trying to lift our eyes to Someone greater.
Now, let’s walk back through those questions once more with a big Story lens…
“The Bible is always trying to lift our eyes to Someone greater. ”
Why does Daniel survive?
Daniel did nothing to deserve his punishment. In fact, he was living in as close an obedience to God as you’ll find anywhere in the Bible. And yet, he received an unjust punishment—smell familiar?
Daniel lived faithfully amongst extreme wickedness. Does that scent remind you of someone else?
Daniel was put in a dark tomb-like pit with a large stone rolled over the entrance. Does that aroma bring another stone to mind?
Daniel defeated death because Jesus conquered death. That is why 6:22 can say Daniel was saved because he was “found blameless.” Why was he found blameless? Could it be that his obedience was fueled not by his fortitude but by the work of the Holy Spirit? Perhaps the Bible so anticipates the imputed righteousness of Jesus that Daniel is already counted as blameless.
Daniel’s faithfulness and prayer life did not shut the lion’s mouths. God did—and he did it to prepare us to see the truly blameless one, Jesus.
What does this story teach us about God?
Through Daniel’s story, we learn that God is steadfastly committed to his plan of salvation. He is all-powerful and all-knowing. Closing some oversized feline’s mouths is no more a feat for him than causing the flowers to bloom each Spring.
Secondly, we learn that everyone who lives on this earth will see God’s glory—either in their submission to God (like Daniel) or in the punishment that justly awaits their sin (like the tattletale officials).
Every book of the Bible—including Daniel—is most centrally about God. The characters are merely vessels through which we see more of his attributes.
Where does the story point our attention?
As we’ve already noticed, Israel was living through an intense amount of suffering. Daniel’s “resurrection” must have felt like a cold drink in a desert. God had not forgotten them! When the stone was rolled away from the lion’s den, the evidence of God’s commitment to his plan of salvation for Israel was plain for all to see.
Does Jesus’ resurrection not do the same for us? God’s intervening work in Babylon saved one person: Daniel. God’s resurrection of his only Son saves all those who trust God for their salvation. Jesus is the better Daniel in every way.
As Israel was called to live faithfully while surrounded by evil, so are we to follow the Lord despite the heartbreak and trials of this life.
Helping our Children Smell the Gospel
Wouldn’t it be beautiful if we raised a generation of theologically-aware children? It would be a miracle, and it can start with you, mom and dad! But, first, smell like the Bible because you saturate yourself in it. Then, turn to your child and hold the hand of their heart as you show them how wonderful God is.
Chris Ammen is the founder of Kaleidoscope, www.readkaleidoscope.com, and a Children's Pastor in Chattanooga. He has a BA and M.Ed. in Elementary Education as well as an M.Div. from Covenant Seminary. When not writing, Chris loves spending time with his wife, Sarah, and their four awesome kiddos!
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