“WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THIS SERVICE?’

Raymond Elliott

“And it shall be, when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service’” (Exodus 12:26)?  Because of the hardness of the heart of Pharaoh the children of Israel were still held captive in the land of Egypt.  Now the Lord God was to bring yet one more plague upon the Egyptians and that was the death of the firstborn of both man and beast.  Moses and Israel were instructed as to the details of their duties in this, the beginning of a great annual feast which was to be observed throughout their generations.  God was to spare His children from the awful fate that awaited Egypt.  They were to observe the Lord’s Passover and remember the night when death passed through the land and they were spared from the last plague God sent among the Egyptians.  In the new land which God would give to the Israelites they were to teach their children the real meaning of the Passover when asked the question, “What do you mean by this service?”  Later when God gave the law to Israel through His servant Moses on Mount Sinai the people were to learn His commandments and then to teach the same to their children.  In Deuteronomy 6:4-9 we read, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!  “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.  “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.  “You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.”  The parents were to be able to answer properly the question raised by their sons “What is the meaning of the testimonies, the statutes, and the judgments which the Lord our God has commanded you” (Deuteronomy 6:20)?

The responsibility of teaching children the ways of the Lord belongs to the parents.  The apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:4, “And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.”  The church and Christians schools can assist in this matter; and, the parents should utilize such organizations in the fulfilling of their responsibilities.  Fathers, mothers, are you able to answer intelligently and scripturally the questions raised by your sons and daughters regarding the existence of God, the deity of Jesus Christ, the inspiration of the Holy Scriptures, the Lord’s Supper, baptism, instrumental music, acceptable worship and the need to keep oneself unspotted from the world when they ask, “What do you mean by this service?” Are you carrying those children to the periods of Bible study on Sunday morning and Wednesday night?  Are your children in attendance for all the period of worship?  Do you encourage them to read the Bible, religious periodicals and books written by our brethren that would strengthen their faith in God?  If you cannot answer their questions today you should not expect them to be able to answer your grandchildren tomorrow.