Becoming A Generation That Knows God

Becoming A Generation That Knows God

For over 400 years the Israelites endured the burdens and bondage of Egypt. Then came a man named Moses and a miracle known as Passover. And God’s people were free to move to their Promised Land. But because of disobedience and doubt, the Israelites were forced to endure forty years of barrenness as they wandered in the wilderness. Then a new generation, under the leadership of Joshua, victoriously conquered Canaan, a land filled with blessing. And then, as always happens, that generation died. That passing generation “served the Lord” and “had seen all the great works of the Lord” (Jud. 2:7 KJV ). Tragically, the Bible tells us that there arose another generation after them “which knew not the Lord, nor yet the works which He had done” (Jud. 2:10). It is no surprise that the next verse says that the children of Israel “did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim.” In the time that it took one generation to pass, and another to come, the nation lost touch with God and turned to idols.

What occurred several thousand years ago was certainly not a rare exception. Frankly, it is my strong belief that the same thing is being repeated in the 21st century. As an itinerant preacher, I visit between thirty and forty churches each year. In recent months I have made an interesting observation: the younger generation is not in church. Generally speaking, churches are filled with a generation of “senior saints” while children and teenagers are becoming the missing generation. Could it be that we have one of the symptoms of the declining spiritual health of our nation?

It is a simple fact: As the family goes, so goes the Church; and as the Church goes, so goes the nation. The nation will experience significant spiritual decline when the Church fails. The Church will experience significant spiritual decline when the family fails. Children and teenagers represent the next generation that must know and live for God. If we fail with this generation, we can only expect failure in future generations. What will happen in the next twenty to thirty years when the current generation of “senior saints” goes to be with the Lord? The answer comes from the days of Joshua – another generation will arise which knows not the Lord!

There is no doubt that the family is experiencing a tremendous pull away from the things of God. We live in a society overdosed with wickedness, saturated with materialism, and obsessed with pleasure. The family that is consumed with a passion for the things of God is a dying breed. Men, women and young people who walk with God are few and far between. The home and the Church must begin an aggressive campaign to rescue the next generation from this coming spiritual disaster. Without a significant turnabout, there is little or no hope for our nation in the next fifty years.

I suggest five ways we can help our children and teenagers become part of the generation that knows God.

1. Dedication to the WORD of God (2 Tim. 3:16). The Bible must become the foundation of what we believe and how we behave.
2. Dedication to the WAYS of God (Prov. 3:6). We must eliminate personal opinions or political correctness as we seek to please God.
3. Dedication to the WISDOM of God (Prov. 2:6). We must learn to think the way God thinks, allowing His mind to be our controlling influence.
4. Dedication to the WILL of God (Rom. 12:2). We must set aside our own desires so that God can have the final word in every decision we make.
5. Dedication to the WORK of God (1 Cor. 15:58). Our lives must be dedicated to the Father’s business as we seek to reach the world for Christ.

We are blessed by the generation of men and woman who have faithfully lived their lives for God. But history will only repeat itself if we do not learn this tragic lesson from history. Without a generation who knows God a spiritual catastrophe will occur.

By Tom Palmer