Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons; Specially the day that thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the LORD said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.
Deuteronomy 4:9-10
Because It Helps Us Understand the Present
One of the reasons why I chose geography over history as my humanities subject in secondary school was because I found it hard to be interested in what had happened in the past, and memorise all the people, dates, and events that I could not seem to relate to. A couple of years down the road when I moved on to university, I decided to major in political science – what I assumed to be mostly the study of foreign and current affairs. However, it was not long before I realised that I was at a big disadvantage not having studied history before, as it became evident that my lack of understanding of the past limited to a large degree, my understanding of the present.
This is perhaps a similar sentiment for some of us when confronted with facts of church history such as the Reformation which we commemorate today. Martin Luther, John Hus, the Anabaptists, the Diet of Worms – all seem so foreign and long ago…488 years long ago to be exact! Yet history matters. Ancient cultures have devoted much time and effort teaching their children family history, and we can even see this in Jewish holidays such as the Passover where it is a yearly tradition to retell the story of the Jews’ exodus from Egypt and the first Passover, which took place when God ‘passed over’ each Jewish household painted with blood. Church history is no different. It is important in showing us where we came from, and thus in defining where we are to continue to go.
Because It Reminds Us How God Works
God instructed the Israelites to be vigilant and keep their souls diligently, “lest they forget the things which their eyes have seen and lest [these things] depart from their heart all the days of their lives” (v.9). Keeping God’s faithfulness and sovereignty ever before our eyes is key in the preservation and promotion of biblical faith. Being reminded that our God is constantly at work, not just in our personal lives, but also in world events such as the Reformation, helps us be mindful that the God we serve is in control of everything that takes place in the world. He used the Reformation, and men and women of great faith to bring back into perspective the primacy of Scripture as the only sure foundation of truth and belief, and as well as the personal nature of Christianity in knowing and trusting in the person of Christ and allowing ourselves to be transformed by Him.
We believe that all this did not happen by chance, but is unmistakable evidence of the hand of God moving to accomplish His purposes in and through all things. We need to be aware of our tendency to forget as humans, and apply the discipline of diligently remembering our heritage as an exercise of faith.
Because Our Children Need To Be Taught
Another area that is sadly overlooked more often than not is probably the huge significance of passing down a spiritual legacy, especially within the family. When children fall away from the faith, one of the chief factors is they have forgotten the mighty works of God or that they simply were not told. It is one of the most beautiful things to witness the passing on of a strong spiritual heritage from one generation to another, perhaps as best exemplified in the four generations of faithfulness and commitment to reaching the Chinese people that began with James Hudson Taylor 150 years ago.
In this passage in Deuteronomy, Christian parents are commanded by God to “teach their children”, and even their grandchildren, the fear and reverence of the Lord all the days of their lives. The task given is to educate and train up a generation which will trust and obey the Living God, and this job cannot be accomplished, or at least, it will not be accomplished well, if the children do not know the transforming work God has done and continues to do in their parents’ lives, as well as the mighty acts God has accomplished since the day of creation. This is the place of history.
With the wealth of knowledge available to us today, our ignorance of the past is not the result of a lack of information, but that of indifference. History matters, how much of it do we yearn to know?
