A ROOTLESS GENERATION

After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel. Judges 2:10 (NLT)

The rejection of God by the Nation of Israel doesn’t make any sense. After all, look at all that God had done for Israel. God reminds Israel exactly what he had done for them. He says, “I brought you out of Egypt, I delivered you from slavery.” Not only did God deliver them from Egypt, but he provided for them in the wilderness for 40 years. Everyday manna came down from heaven. He provided them water and meat and in all those years their sandals and clothes did not wear out and their feet never got sore. God delivered them, provided for them, protected them from their enemies, leading them in battle. The Israelites settled in a land flowing with milk and honey, and they lived in houses they did not build, they drank from wells they did not dig and ate from vineyards and olive groves that they did not plant. The One true God, the Creator of the universe, made a covenant with them that they were His people and were to worship the Lord God and Him only.

Yet, despite all that God had done, Israel did not listen. They rejected God’s love, God’s provisions and God’s protection -- they rejected and shattered their covenant with God, by worshipping idols that they made. They committed spiritual adultery against their God and King.

This moment of biblical reflection reminds me of the present generation which has been characterized as “the inward generation.” They have an absolute priority to the personal. They are convinced that there is nothing “out there” or “up there” on which to depend and pull them out of their uncertainty and confusion. Therefore the only way is the inward way. If there is nothing “out there” or “up there”, perhaps there is something meaningful “in there.” Perhaps something deep in the most personal self holds the key to the mystery of meaning, freedom and unity.

We are facing a generation that has parents but no fathers, a generation in which everyone who claims authority---because he is older, more mature, more intelligent, more powerful---is suspect from the very beginning. As adult authority disintegrates, the young are more and more captives of each other. When adult control disappears, the young’s control of each other intensifies. (David Riesman, Psychology Today) Instead of the father, the peer becomes the standard.

There is a divine call upon fathers, families and the church to provide strong, stable and stout leadership. God ordered the community to be led by men who are faithful to God. We have sat at the table of brotherhood long enough discussing the social ills and the systemic problems. In many ways we have exhausted the discussion regarding male statistics and our falling short. The time has come when we can no longer stand on the sidelines watching as spectators and allow the present generation to continuously and carelessly sow to the wind. There must be living examples of what it means to be moral, ethical and spiritual in a day when the voice of reason and wisdom is being drowned out.

Let us make God our Priority by becoming and remaining faithful to His Word and Pray for Him to order our steps as we provide ministry to this generation.