How to talk to your kids about Jesus
Me: “Family, tonight while we eat we’re going to talk about the Trilemma of God.”
My son immediately leaves the room.
Me: “Where ya headed, kid?”
Him: “To get a game.”
End scene.
What is the Trilemma?
Been there? We’ll get back to the Trilemma in just a minute but before we do, I’d like to point out that even in my “familiar with Jesus, church, and faith conversations” family the idea of sitting down and talking about the theology of CS Lewis while munching on burritos isn’t exactly first on our list of things to do. Next time I’ll dive in while the kids are trapped in the car. Nothing says love like theology at 60 miles an hour. *wink*
In a world where we have the ability to be internet educated on just about any topic and silo into our own little worlds held captive behind our screens, it seems vital to make space for good conversation and family fun. Whether we’re honing our skills at Uno, debating whether Superman could best Ironman in a head-to-head competition, or diving into theology over dinner, I’d like my kids to be able to think and engage well on a variety of topics, including what we believe and why we believe it. In our home, we seek to make a safe place to ask questions, disagree, and explore ideas all with the intention of raising kids who know they can talk to us about anything. For us, this means having honest conversations about any topic. This week, we just happened to be talking about the Trilemma and why it may or may not work as an argument for Jesus as Lord.
True to form, our family had a great time working through this conversation once we pushed past our initial hesitation. Want to give it a try in your home? Here’s a copy of CS Lewis’ take on this argument and few follow-up questions for your family to use as you think through this idea yourself.
The Trilemma of Jesus according to CS Lewis:
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronising nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to. . . . Now it seems to me obvious that He was neither a lunatic nor a fiend: and consequently, however strange or terrifying or unlikely it may seem, I have to accept the view that He was and is God.” (Mere Christianity, 55-56)
Questions to help your family talk about Jesus:
If this is true, what does it mean for how we live our lives?
What other arguments could be offered to explain who Jesus is?
What do your friends think about Jesus? How could you share this argument with them?
What might someone say to refute this argument?
What might Jesus’ disciples or people who encountered him have thought about these arguments?
When is this an appropriate argument to bring up?
What questions do you have about what CS Lewis wrote?
My kids are 10 and 13 and this one conversation led to us talking about how a clear understanding of the Bible shows us Jesus wasn’t a lunatic, why the Bible is trustworthy, how the Bible works as a unified story, and what other faith practices believe about the person of Jesus. Our kids asked some great questions and really engaged, then they beat us at Uno.
Here’s to making your dinner table a place where your kids build fun and meaningful memories. We’d love to hear how your conversations go!
– Andrea, andream@vintagegrace.org