Achieving a Giant Faith -1_25_2026

Teachers

Dave Rich Teacher

JM

John Mendiola

Lesson Summary

Dave Rich taught on how Christians can graduate from imitating faith—the foundational level where children replicate what they observe in parents and mentors. He established that the class would explore five levels of faith progression: imitating, affiliating, searching, solidifying, and mature faith. The teacher emphasized that while imitating faith is natural and important for children, parents have a critical responsibility to model genuine Christian faith rather than merely controlling behavior through discipline. By examining Deuteronomy 11:18-21, Rich demonstrated that God commands parents to keep His Word central in their hearts and to teach their children through everyday moments—sitting at home, walking along the road, lying down, and rising up. He illustrated this with the Jewish practice of wearing tefillin (small boxes containing Torah scrolls) as physical reminders to keep God's Word close. Rich then turned to Proverbs 3:1-6 to show that parenting involves instilling Christian values and moral understanding, not just enforcing compliance. He concluded that children will only maintain proper behavior if they understand the moral and spiritual reasons behind it, not merely to avoid punishment. The ultimate goal is for children to see their parents living with God at the forefront of their lives, enabling them to imitate authentic faith and pass it to future generations.

Key Scriptures