Passing It On

The Bible has much to say about our responsibility to pass on our spiritual gains to those who will be here when we are gone. This is more than a parent’s responsibility to teach their kids the Bible. It is much broader and much deeper than simply communicating biblical data to children. In Scripture, the call usually comes from those who never had kids. It is, more fully, an urgent exhortation that has younger non-familial adults in view.

By “spiritual gains” I mean the kind of sage counsel and practical insight that comes from successfully implementing and applying the truths of God’s word. If the goal was simply “passing on truth,” we could just hand out Bibles, but the objective of spiritual reproduction is to functionally train and instruct those younger in Christ to know how to do what God has said. Paul shows the breath of this task when he wrote, “Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me or seen in me – put it into practice” (Phil.4:9). To his spiritual protégé Paul writes, “You know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions and sufferings… continue in what you have learned” (2Tim.3:10, 14).

It won’t happen without being intentional. You and I must purpose to “pass on” our spiritual gains. At whatever stage we may be in the Christian life, we must meet with younger Christians, talk with younger Christians and share our insight with younger Christians. We must purpose to train others up in truth who will advance the cause of Christ for years after we have finished our work and gone on to be with the Lord.