The Next Generation

Sarah, my oldest daughter becomes a college student today. Now just to be honest that is special in many different ways. First, I am proud of her, she is finishing her senior year of High School and taking a college class at the same time. I secondly am proud that she has chosen very early in her life to submit herself to the Lordship and calling of Christ. She has always said she would be a missionary and as she now plans for her third foreign mission trip, she begins the academic preparation that she will need. Finally, she gets to go to school with me. I am proud of her for that, I should have been finished many years ago, but that is another story. I think that is quite an accomplishment for a 16 year old.

I thank God daily for all of my kids, he blessed my wife and me with three. I anticipate seeing the two younger children as God leads and directs in their lives over the coming years. They are already so active and dedicated to the work of the Lord. I am blessed and I take it for granted; I know.

But this reality that is beginning to set in and a blog post I read this morning from Dr. Russell Moore at Southern Seminary has really began my thinking about that generation that is coming up.

I tremble when I read from the Word of God that in Judges 2:10 that "when all of the generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the LORD, nor the works which He had done."

What is troubling is how many times the Lord directed the Hebrew people as they traveled and then entered the Promised Land to make sure that their children DID know the Lord and His works.

Deuteronomy 6:7 is of course the classic text commanding the people of God to teach the children diligently the ways of God. But this is by no means the only text from the OT Law and history. At least two more times in Deuteronomy as Moses is giving the Law to a new generation he specifically mentions teaching the children who God is and what God has done. (Deut. 4:9-10; 11:19) Furthermore, Moses prays in Psalm 90:16 that God would "let Your (God's) work appear to Your servants, and Your glory to their children"

Moses was about ensuring that the generations to come knew God and knew His work. Joshua must have gotten the message, at least early in his leadership of the Children of Israel. When they had passed through the swollen waters of Jordan, Joshua commanded that the every tribe take a stone from the middle of the dry river bed and build a memorial. The reason for the memorial was so that "when your children ask in time to come saying, "What do these stones mean to you?" Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord..." (Joshua 4:1-9)

But somewhere between building a "memorial to the children of Israel forever" and the death of Joshua and his generation, "a generation arose [that] did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done."

I was excited to see the incoming class at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and the College as Southeastern this semester. There is a large number of young men and women beginning a pursuit of theological education and many if not most of them will be in ministry is some capacity in the very near future if they are not already there. I praise the Lord for this and pray that there are similar reasons to praise God at our other SBC seminaries and indeed at all evangelical, Bible teaching colleges and seminaries.

This being said I still fear for our young people.

There are many exciting things happening in youth groups and children's ministry across our nation and probably world. But are we short changing our young people by not teaching them who God is and what He has done? Though I am pastoring now, I have spent many years in youth and children's ministry. It is difficult to find curriculum that teaching young people more that just the moral stories about how to be good and that the Bible is a good story book. I really believe that our young people especially our youth are able to go deep in the Word of God and discern from it God's person and the great work of grace He has worked through Jesus Christ for us.

My desire is not to post a doom and gloom, "our next generation is in the toilet" piece. Me desire is to say there is hope. The prophet Joel speaks of a day when our sons and daughters will prophesy and our old men will dream dreams and our young men will see visions. (Joel 2:28) Jesus quotes Psalm 8:2 that out of the mouths of babes the Lord will be praised.(Matt. 21:16) Paul admonishes his young pastor protégé Timothy that even as a young man be an example in "word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity." (I Tim. 4:12)

No, the future is not dim, it is very, very bright. We do not have to live in a world were the next generation does not know the Lord. We very much can live in a world were our next generation is leading the charge against the gates of hell, and by the power of Christ, they are winning.

I read once of John Dewey, probably the most significant force in the philosophy of education this nation has ever seen. The comment, and I do not remember the source or I would gladly cite it, said that He was atheist. That is a common know fact. But the author's question was something akin to "I wonder what he would have turned out to be if a Sunday School teacher or someone had invested in his life as a child to share with him the love and knowlede of Christ?"

We do not know how many lives we influence when we influence the life of one child. We can never know the road they will travel or could have traveled. Church, Christian leaders, pastors, youth and children ministers, and parents, especially parents let me encourage all of us to "Go make disciples." ...Of all nations, YES, but also of all generations.

blessings
II Cor. 13:14