Dad and Mom carry Junior to the front of church to be baptized by the minister. But it is God who through the minister takes the action. He personally promis­es the cleansing blood of Christ by sprinkling water on the baby's little head, and writes, as it were with His own finger, His name there too, the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. God claims children of believers for His own by right of pur­chase (Ez. 18:4; 1 John 1:12). He appoints and anoints par­ents (Deut. 6:7) and church (John 21:15) to teach them.

Just as faithful parents respond to God's claim on their children by bringing them forward for baptism, so too they may respond to God's commandment to instruct them by believing God's promise: "And all your children shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children" (Is. 54:13). As home and church try to work out the job of faithfully instructing the Lord's children with trem­bling, it is God Himself, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who promises to will and to work in them according to His good pleasure.

With faith in Almighty God, like pioneers of old, each year again we must grab the plow handles, lay bare the furrow and plant the seed. Let us not be daunted by the untamed wilderness of our children's hearts, neither be dismayed by the weeds that spring up in their lives. And let us not be fearful of the arrows of a sav­age world. "If God is for us, who can be against us" (Rom. 8:31).

Remember love which is the basic ingredient of the cate­chism teacher's recipe. In 1 Corinthians 13 Paul listed many things we could have or do, but without love, he said, we're making an empty noise. So teacher, father, mother, this is the royal law of catechism: love God and love your stu­dent (neighbor).

Love God because He is your subject matter. The Bible is the revelation of God in Jesus Christ. You are teaching the One you love, the Word made flesh. Love what you teach for the God you teach is the heritage of children. This Jehovah who is your God, is their God as well.

Children are rarely fooled. If you do not show a deep love for the Word your teach, and if you do not throw yourself into the task of inscribing that Word in their hearts, they will see you are putting in time at the treadmill and the best they will do is plod the required number of steps too.

Love your neighbor — love your students; love these chil­dren. They can be so eager, so open, so honest, so simple, so beautiful. Of course original sin and Satan warp and twist, but even that presupposes an original creation of flawless and varied wonder. Jesus said, "Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones" (Matt. 18:10). John, called "the disciple whom Jesus loved", evidently could find no greater term of endearment for Christians than, "My little children...". But above all else your love for the children you teach must be by faith. Believe God when He says that children are His heritage.

So then, the simple meaning of catechism is this: to bring children, who are the heritage of the Lord, to the Lord, who is the heritage of our children. The children then will love catechism, the subject and the teacher. And one of the finer joys grace affords us in this vale of tears is the love of a lit­tle child.