Don't Fear the Uncomfortable Passages of Scripture, Embrace Them

Because we at The Next Generation Ministries are proponents of having children read the Bible at a very early age (beginning in 3rd grade), many parents when they see our plan get worried over the content that their children will read.  We do not gloss over hard or inconvenient passages.  Many parents fear having to cover subjects like sex or rape at an early age. 

To be honest, if you are reading through our blueprint (Discipleship Beings @ Home Blueprint:  Discipleship for Life) your children will read through a number of uncomfortable passages that may raise questions from their inquisitive minds on these sensitive subjects at an early age.  

John 8:1-11 recounts a woman caught in the act of adultery.

1 Corinthians 5 deals with a man who has taken is father's wife (his step mother) as his own.

In Revelation 2:20-25 Jesus warns the church in Thyatira not to tolerate the teaching of Jezebel who was having sexual immorality as a part of her "ministry" as a prophetess.  

In Genesis 38:8-10 we read of the sordid account of Onan who spilled his semen on the ground to prevent pregnancy of his dead brother's wife.

In 2 Samuel 11, we are privy to the adulterous relationship King David had with Bathsheba and the ungodly way which he tried to cover up the affair.

Just two chapters later, we read of Amnon's plotting and rape of Tamar.

As my children read these Scriptures for the first time, I wondered if they were going to ask me about them.  

I had good reason to be concerned.  I happen to be blessed with a daughter who, growing up, would always seem to grab onto the one questionable phrase in a movie that was most awkward to answer.  You know, that phrase that is really meant for adults and supposed to go over the heads of children or the one cuss word in a movie that is otherwise clean.  My youngest daughter was the only one of my children to latch on to seemingly EVERY SINGLE ONE of those words or phrases.

We even had to stop watching The Nativity because my daughter was infatuated with the birth scene of Mary.  She would ask my wife to pretend to pull on the ropes to spread her legs apart so she could get the baby out.  My daughter was 4.  Admittedly, it was a little too much for me.

Some of you have those sons and daughters, as well.  It scares you as it comes to these Scriptures.  They will be the ones who latch onto those passages and force you to talk about something that you are not ready for.  So below, I am including some points of comfort and help for parents worried about these uncomfortable passages of Scripture.

1.  Most of your children will not ask you about the specific details of these accounts.

Most children will read these passages in the context of a larger portion of Scripture.  Usually what stands out in their minds are the things that they do understand, not the things that they don't.

2.  When they do ask about these passages, answer in a manner that they understand, not the full detailed account that you understand.

For example, David's adultery should be answered by explaining that David did something with Bathsheba that was only meant for a husband and wife to do.  Bathsheba wasn't David's wife at the time, therefore, what they did was wrong.  God saw it as wrong and would confront David on his sin (2 Samuel 12).  You can then talk about sin affects more than just our own lives but every life it touches.

Every one of the passages above can be explained without being inappropriate.  Yet, it is important to answer them to set a foundation of understanding of the proper role, in these cases, of sex.

As your children grow older, they will understand more of the details and it will provide you with an opportunity to also give further explanation.

3.  Don't give into the temptation to simply skip over these passages, embrace the challenge.

Sean McDowell has said that it isn't a matter of if our children and teenagers will be confronted with the reality of pornography, but rather a matter of when.  The same could be said of any other uncomfortable subject that may be found in the Scriptures or in society.  In our technological, smart phone driven age, inappropriate material is only a finger tap away.  Many are getting exposed to this material at younger and younger ages because of its prevalence.  

By stepping forward in these uncomfortable passages of Scripture, we help lay a foundation of understanding concerning things like sex and porn before our children have ever been exposed to it.  Having your children read the Bible is the best way to make sure that your children hear about sex, and other hard subjects, first from God's point of view rather than the world's.

Therefore, embrace the challenge because it is the very essence of disciple making, both you and your children will be better for it.