Child dedications like we've the one we had last Sunday are quite powerful moments in
the life of our church community. But they may not be that well understood by us - this is just the second one we've done in 5 years of church life. This is despite our Church being full of young children - a number of whom have been born since we started here.
This caused me to think - I need to do some work here, getting clear on what this dedication moment is all about.
And having grappled with this question before we joined together for the dedication service this week perhaps it is time for us to ground what this all in the word of God.
Before we look to scripture let me ask you a question:
Have you had a significant person, say a parent, speak some very powerful words over your life. Words that have stuck with you - words of wisdom, words of personal encouragement, words of significant value that have helped you, and shaped you?
I remember the moment My dad gave his blessing to my desire to marry Beth. I could have gone ahead with it without his words of blessing. But his words of encouragement, advice, and affirmation were hugely comforting, encouraging, and strengthening of my decision.
They have remained so in my memory to this day. There were words that have had a staying power in me since their moment. I have never for once doubted my dads conviction around our marriage, and his support of it. Such were these words. And he has been true to his words of blessing in various concrete ways, both small and great, ever since that conversation took place.
Conversations like this - moments like I had with my Father give something that stays with another person. They leave something behind that helps, forms, guides our destiny. God has so ordained it in His world that there are moments, there are comments, there are words, there are insights, that people give to us that have this kind of disproportionate effect on us.
These moments are blessings. They are, whether those who give them intend it or not, gifts from the Lord to us.
Moments like these are not confined to interactions we have with other people - God delights to bless us directly, Himself!
In the gospels we see Jesus doing this in many different ways:
In His healings - the blessing of health in place of sickness. Restored bodies, restored abilities, restored health.
In His teaching - the blessing of words of great help. Encouragement. Wisdom for life. That guided and shaped those who took his teachings to heart.
In His loving favour…
Whenever God blesses in scripture, He gives of His life, His nature, His self, in words and deeds that have power to bring about what He declares in such moments.
Whenever you read of God's blessing in scripture, don't simply read words on the page. Read the power of His life, captured in specific words of promise, flowing to those whom He blesses.
In the Gospel of Mark we can read a famous account of Jesus blessing the young children. Here Jesus is taking the opportunity to speak blessing over the many children brought to Him. Imagine being there, in this moment. You would have heard Jesus:
• Speaking words of personal insight over these little lives. What we would call prophetic words. • Speaking words of life giving strength over their futures. Destiny defining words. • Speaking the life of Himself, God, into these precious little people.
Jesus blessed little children that were brought to Him. And it is on this basis that we can see the practice of child dedications rests well.
Our dedication services are public moments of clear acknowledgement of the gift of our children as humans, as a child in our families, and as a gift to our Church community - and we are seeking to ask for, and declare, the Lord's blessing over their lives in this community.
And as a community, our many prayers and words of encouragement are to be words of blessing just like Jesus speaks here in Mark 10.
So what is a dedication service like the one we held this week? The answer is that this is moment for parents to acknowledge the gift of God that their child is, a moment for them to commit to raising them in the ways of Jesus, and a moment to commit to doing so in this church community of relationships until such a time that Jesus calls them to another church. Now to our church parents - if you haven't done a dedication moment like this, it's not bad. We haven't. But we HAVE lived the principles I've taught today out - seeking to raise our two kids in this community with your help.
And for our church as a whole - don't miss the encouragement of this moment. You are to be part of the blessing of Jesus to every child we have here. Be a source of the blessing of Jesus to our precious little humans!
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