Are we going to lose the gospel in the next generation?
Doom and gloom seems to be a favorite pastime for many today: sitting around and complaining about how everything is going wrong and how the next generation doesn’t have the same values. It’s easy to join in the chorus of naysayers. Yet, whatever comfort we have in complaining, there is not much hope generated from pessimism.
Jesus told His followers that He was going to build His Church and the gates of hell wouldn’t prevail against it. Jesus’ words, however, do not promise that the Church won’t fall on hard times, and hard times seem to be on the horizon. Are we going to lose the gospel in the next generation?
J. Mack Stiles, in his book, “Marks of the Messenger,” describes how a culture loses the central teaching of Scripture. “Losing the gospel doesn’t happen all at once; it’s much more like a four generation process: The gospel is accepted → The gospel is assumed → The gospel is confused → The gospel is lost.”
If we were to examine our culture today, we might be able to conclude that we are living in the third stage. The next generation is confused about a lot of things, but the central problem is confusion about God and the gospel.
But it’s not too late to do something about it. The statistics are not a predetermined destiny. We shouldn’t write off the next generation for their confusion while we are still around and able to influence them. We must accept and acknowledge our own error in assuming the gospel.
Acknowledging God
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” - Deuteronomy 6:4
When faced with a challenge, most people want to get to the solution. Nobody likes a long board meeting where it seems that too much time is spent sitting around discussing the problem and expounding on the contributing factors. People want to get to work at fixing the problem.
Attacking our problems without perspective is dangerous. Sometimes the best thing to do when faced with an obstacle is to step back and keep stepping back until we get the big picture. Until we see God’s hand at work, we haven’t stepped back far enough.
Acknowledging God is the most important component when facing troubles. Once we see how God is working and what He is doing through the circumstances, then we will begin to see the path forward.
Acknowledging God means that we are aware of His power over every circumstance. But acknowledging God is also about being aware of the fact that He is always with us. He hasn’t abandoned us in difficult times.
Loving God
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.” - Deuteronomy 6:5-6
Now we can get started on the problems. Right? We’ve acknowledged God, now let’s get to work. With God on our side, we are assured the victory.
Well, hold up for a minute. If we are really stepping back far enough to get a true perspective on the problem, what we are actually going to see along with the awe inducing power of God are His tender, loving mercies. God’s ways are not our ways and despite His omnipotent power to bring about judgment with just a word, God’s strength is always constrained by His love.
As we are stepping back and gaining perspective to acknowledge God, we also have to see ourselves in the picture. We tend to think that we love God more than we actually do until we compare it to the love that God has demonstrated to us through Christ. The fact that we haven’t been struck dead while reading this article is a testimony of God’s love.
How can we say that we love God with our whole heart when our heart is far from Him? How can we say we worship God with our souls when we sing with a whisper? I’ve always found it rather humorous that we can sing about standing on the promises of God while sitting or about making a joyful noise while frowning. How can we say we worship God with all of our might if we are too tired to read our Bibles, pray, or lead family devotions. If we cannot love God the way that we are supposed to, how are we going to love the next generation as Christ has loved us?
Passion is not taught, it’s caught. Before we can teach the next generation anything about valuing the gospel, we have to understand the full weight of God’s glory and grace. If we don’t acknowledge God and treasure Him in our heart, we’re not going to be able to pass our convictions on to the next generation.
Displaying God
“You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” - Deuteronomy 6:7-9
When we acknowledge God and love Him with all of our heart, it becomes self evident. But that is not where we draw the line. We must be diligent to teach the next generation the implications of the gospel. This is where discipleship gets difficult. It’s not enough to simply love God in our hearts, we must display Him in our lives.
We must make a concerted effort to set aside a specific time to teach the Word of God. Family devotions are the starting point to discipleship, but if anyone has ever asked a kid what they’ve learned in school that day, they’re likely to respond by saying, “Nothin’.” Discipleship has to bring the lessons of God’s Word into the real world. They need to see the principles of the gospel acted out in our interactions with our spouses, our neighbors, and with them. We need to explain how the gospel is applied while disciplining them. They need to know that we treasure God above everything else. Most importantly, they need to be surrounded by Scripture. More than just pillows with needlework and Thomas Kinkade paintings, we need to help them memorize Scripture so that they can hide God’s Word in their hearts.
Throughout the Word of God we find a resounding principle that the Scriptures need to be taught and practiced. It is not one or the other, it is one and the same. God has raised up parents to be the primary teachers of the next generation. They are perfectly positioned to have the greatest influence over their children. There are no spiritually sanctioned substitute teachers. Discipleship starts and thrives in the home.