Parents and serving ones from throughout Southern California and from as far away as Texas attended a Children’s Work Perfecting Conference on October 15, 2011 in Diamond Bar, California. Although the children’s work may seem only peripherally related to young working saints (since some of us are parents and/or serving ones), according to the conference messages, which were based on Lessons 10—12 of the recently published Raising Up the Next Generation for the Church Life, every saint should be involved with caring for the children.
This is part 3 of a 3-part installment on the messages given at this conference. Each post includes a brief summary followed by the link to each audio message. Click here for part 1 and here for part 2.
Is it possible for the children to preach the gospel and even contribute to the growth of the church?
The children in the church life not only are potential fruits themselves but are also an efficient and easy means of multiplication. Children whom are properly cared for and led to salvation become “gospel seeds” on their junior high, high school, and college campuses, where they can bring their classmates to the Lord. Even before the children are saved themselves, while they are still in elementary school or earlier, they can serve as a way to contact their friends and their friends’ parents and siblings. For example, a child can invite a friend or two from the neighborhood to come over for a snack and brief singing time. This requires minimal labor on the part of the hosting parents, but the visiting children will quickly learn the songs and make a strong, positive impression on their families when they return home.
What can I do to cooperate with the Lord in this crucial work?
Even if we do not have children of our own and cannot serve in the children’s meetings regularly, we can still meet some of the children or at least learn their names and begin to pray for them in a consistent way. In this way, every saint can and should be involved in raising up the next generation for the church life and the Lord’s return. Ultimately, each child’s spiritual welfare is a matter of the Lord’s mercy, but for this reason we must pray all the more.
Audio of Message 3 (Click to play or right-click and “Save-link as…” to download)
Thirdly What is it to preach the gospel It is to tell the truth about God and man, and it is to tell the truth about Jesus Christ.