March 17

March 17, 2012

 

Judges 2:10  After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel.

 

What do you fear? One of the greatest fears I have as a father is of being greeted in heaven by the many people I have led to the Lord but failing to find my own children or grandchildren there. When I think about that possibility, it causes me sleepless nights. Now I know that God in his sovereignty is working everything out, but it is difficult from a human position to contemplate the reality. Over the centuries there have been many famous Christians whose children have not followed in their footsteps. D.L. Moody, A.W. Tozar and Charles H. Spurgeon were men who faced this issue. This was also true for the first generation after the death of Joshua.

 

So what is the best strategy for passing along the faith to the next generation? There is not a guarantee never to have a speed bump in your child's life, but we can give them the best opportunity to develop a strong faith when they become adults.

 

Here is a picture of the spiritual slide in the generations: 

1^st Generation: See the miracles and workings of God. They choose to live to please God and not people. They pray, read the word and are concerned with reaching unchurched people. They are radically generous, boldly loving and have great joy in their walk with the Lord.

2^nd Generation: They are carried to church and do not see any radical change in their lives.  Most of them are "saved" as children. They don't have the personal stories of God working mighty miracles in their lives. They never take a risk with God. They play it safe and live in their comfort zone. This generation then subtly places materialism in the place of God.  Comfort and the dollar occupy the center of their hearts.

3^rd Generation: They come to church but question WHY? It's boring; it is hopelessly out of touch. The second generation says, "I know, but come to church anyhow." The 3^rd generation watches their parents and sees the inconsistencies and cries out "hypocrite." When these families come to me for counseling the 2^nd generation parents say, "Didn't I give you everything?" "I did it all for you." But the third generation says, "I didn't want your money; I wanted your love."

 

So what is the plan to move our children back to a first generation experience with God?

 

As parents we must "burn out" for Jesus. There is no place for lukewarm, comfortable Christianity in this world. When we think of the cross and the commitment Jesus made for us, this gives us the fuel necessary to make the radical commitment. "Yawning Christianity" is extremely dangerous. If we want the next generation to catch the Christian virus, we must be contagious.

 

I don't know what this contagious Christianity will look like in your life and your family, but it is the only hope for your children. We can turn the tide, but it will only occur one life at a time.

 

I have attached two files that deal with two of the most frequent objections to the ethics of the Old Testament. One deals with slavery and the other with the genocide of the Canaanites. These are not exhaustive in any respect but they will give you some perspective of how to answer these objections.