Psalm 78:1-7
Preaching
A Journey Through the Psalms: Reflections for Worried Hearts and Troubled Times
Preaching the Psalms Cycles A, B, C
Object:
What are the things we teach our children? Anyone who is a parent would likely confess that they have taught the following things to their children: Don't talk to strangers; look both ways before crossing; don't do drugs or alcohol; and keep your room clean. Certainly this isn't an exhaustive list, but the point becomes clear. There are things that children need to be taught. Essentially, these things relate to survival. All good moms and dads want their kids to be okay. It's just that basic. As the psalmist relates, there are things we don't hide from our children.
However, it's doubtful that the psalmist was referring to inappropriate strangers or traffic lights. No, the "dark sayings of old" that get passed on from generation to generation have to do with the accumulated experiences of God. Yes, those experiences are sometimes "dark." From the floods of Noah to the Babylonian exile to the sufferings of our Lord, there are dark things that we dare not hide from our children. They do not stop at the pages of our Bible.
The father who reveals how God accompanied him through a brutal wartime experience is the father who relates a "dark saying of old." A mother who shares her own life struggles and how God was present in them also shares a "dark saying of old." The pastor who opens up and shares his or her own doubts and struggles with God shares "dark sayings of old." The story of a people of faith is, or ought to be, an accumulating volume of the felt experiences of God.
Unfortunately the stories are too often kept light and fun and within the confines of scripture. Picture, if you will, the light-filled paintings of Jesus with the little children on his lap. Pleasant and welcoming, to be sure, but such one-sided representations keep Emmanuel (God with us) too far from us. Yes, every parent should read and teach scripture to their children, but they should read it all. They should witness daily to God's present power in their lives. In this way children will learn to seek God's power in their own life experiences.
To the tried and true list of dos and don'ts it is important to add the "dark sayings of old" that come from the depths of our own souls as we struggle, wrestle, and walk through life with a wonderful and incredibly present God.
However, it's doubtful that the psalmist was referring to inappropriate strangers or traffic lights. No, the "dark sayings of old" that get passed on from generation to generation have to do with the accumulated experiences of God. Yes, those experiences are sometimes "dark." From the floods of Noah to the Babylonian exile to the sufferings of our Lord, there are dark things that we dare not hide from our children. They do not stop at the pages of our Bible.
The father who reveals how God accompanied him through a brutal wartime experience is the father who relates a "dark saying of old." A mother who shares her own life struggles and how God was present in them also shares a "dark saying of old." The pastor who opens up and shares his or her own doubts and struggles with God shares "dark sayings of old." The story of a people of faith is, or ought to be, an accumulating volume of the felt experiences of God.
Unfortunately the stories are too often kept light and fun and within the confines of scripture. Picture, if you will, the light-filled paintings of Jesus with the little children on his lap. Pleasant and welcoming, to be sure, but such one-sided representations keep Emmanuel (God with us) too far from us. Yes, every parent should read and teach scripture to their children, but they should read it all. They should witness daily to God's present power in their lives. In this way children will learn to seek God's power in their own life experiences.
To the tried and true list of dos and don'ts it is important to add the "dark sayings of old" that come from the depths of our own souls as we struggle, wrestle, and walk through life with a wonderful and incredibly present God.
