De-Generation Gap? (part 1)

  “And the people served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the LORD, that he did for Israel.” Judges 2:7

We should greatly rejoice over the blessing of having leaders who stay close to God and inspire us by their lives and teaching to do the same. Their experiences, love for God and the anointing the Lord bestows upon them, touch us and affect us with positive and powerful impact, encouraging us to stay the course, walk the path and run the race. The unhappy truth is that with each subsequent generation of believers, there are fewer such leaders, and there are increasingly more changes and challenges which face Christians and the church.

The dilemma which plagues the human family as one generation fades and gives place to the next, is recounted in the verses of this chapter. In modern days we have coined the terminology ‘generation gap’, to describe the often sad lack of connection in many of the vital aspects of life, between contiguous generations. It is a term attempting to define the distance, dislike and disagreement, which exists between any present generation and the next. This ‘gap’ has been blamed for the breakdown of communication between children and their parents, the tearing and disapproval of the values of prior generations, by contemporary society, and the disagreements which reign whenever a task or situation is approached and either the ‘new’ way or the ‘old way’ of doing things, is being invoked! The distance between generations seems to be widening and attempts made to bridge ‘the gap’ are usually short lived, but they seem to nearly always be efforts by the older generation to accept and embrace the ways of the newer.

For Christians, this generational distance raises a concern by far greater than what is fashionable to wear or what may be acceptable social mores. Due to the eternal and absolute nature of the values taught in God’s Word, believers in each generation are faced with the ever increasingly difficult task of determining how to remain ‘in pace’ with the times, and yet avoid the compromise and weakening of the principles God. It seems that in the church, each new generation, will tend towards ‘making changes’ that the previous generation considers inappropriate and dangerous. Once the previous generation ‘dies off’ or becomes a minority, ageing and ‘irrelevant’ background voice, the changes made by the present generation become the new ‘norm’ , challenged only by the whispering memories of past legacies, or by the new, even more daring, liberal, bolder and even more widely disregarding proposals of the newly forming next generation.

At face value all this may not appear to be ‘such a big deal’, and that the problem is merely one of preferences between one generation and the next. It is by many considered normal, necessary and even healthy, to insist on generational change and identity, simply accepting that all change is automatically or overall,  ‘good’. While it is true that some things could be put down to generational preference, this modernising of thoughts and ways among believers is not without serious repercussions. It frequently promotes a departure from old, established and known ways, to what is more world-friendly, tolerant and accepting of the contemporary thinking and behaviour. There is a very strong influence, which the unsaved and sinful world exerts upon the members of the church. This impact has grown exponentially in the last 20 years with the advent of the internet, computers and the ready availability of mass media.

The lines of distinction between the godly and profane have become so marred and blurred, that the pressure Christians must resist, is not just the obvious avoidance of sin, but also, and more dangerous in the long run, the changes which overall lessen and lose our true Christian identity. This is so obvious a battle field, that in a self-deceiving effort to keep this identity, the nominal distinction is made, by attaching the word ‘Christian’ to whatever worldly activity or pursuit is undertaken by believers. So that for instance, when adopting the music of the world, known for its God-insulting themes and designed with beats and structures to pump those soul-damning ideals into the mind and heart of listeners, the church attaches ‘Christian’ in front of it, making it ‘Christian rock and roll’. Although with altered lyrics, the music remains unchanged from anything one can hear readily on a secular radio station, reducing the distinction between the secular and the sacred. Many Christians and their leaders justify the compromise and consider it so acceptable that anyone not subscribing to it, must clearly be 'out of touch'. They also refuse to acknowledge the reality of its influence and the effects and ungodly changes this is bringing into the church.

In other instances doctrines, concepts and practices which were denied by previous generations and considered ungodly and dangerous, are being remodelled, renamed, embellished and read into the Christian ‘frame’. Individuals of great influence and means, posing as ministers of the Gospel, present these adulterated and poisonous beliefs to eager and biblically ignorant minds, changing what they will think, feel and believe regarding God and His Word! This ‘new’ and re-defined Christianity then arrogantly stands in sharp contrast to the ‘old’ ways, belittling and victimising them as ‘narrow’, ‘bound’ and ‘irrelevant’!

The problem is that whilst seeking to reach to and be relevant in a modern society, unhappy and ungodly compromises are made. Note they are always made by the believers, not by the world! It is stated that it is done in an effort to reach the lost. This is in itself wrong. In reaching the lost, Jesus didn't direct us to adopt contemporary culture, in fact He himself flew in the face of many of the cultural dogmas of His day. Interestingly the practices then continue in the churches, this time the justification is that this helps to ‘keep’ the lost that were reached! In an attempt to ‘please everyone’, that is - trying to content the preferences of members of all generations, we can lose sight that we are first called to please God. Introducing and supporting worldliness in the church, because the new generation feels more comfortable and content with that approach,  seems to ignore the fact that God hates it, warns His people against it, and that the church happens to be His, not ours!  

These compromises by degrees, have led God’s people away from the absolutes of scripture, and often diminish the impact of God’s word in the life of believers. The damage is achieved by mixing down and diluting the message of the Bible in its application to life, lessening its authority and relevance, and reading into it the current, ungodly worldview, whilst at the same time upholding and magnifying the religious practices associated with it. This is not a new problem, and a careful study of the scriptures makes it clear, that as believers we ought to ‘err on the side of caution’, when it comes to change. Our text and many scriptures like it, describe aspects of this age-old predicament which faces God’s people. (continued in Part 2)



See also:
http://dailybiblefocus.blogspot.com.au/
http://www.pentecostalfamilychurch.com.au/devotion