The Rise of a Godless Generation - Pastor Stacey Shiflett
The Rise of a Godless Generation
Judges 2:10 And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.
Intro: I have great concerns as a dad, a grandpa, and a pastor.
I’m concerned about the next generation.
I. The Loss of Influence – all that generation were gathered unto their fathers
It all started to go downhill when Joshua and all the other elders died.
When there is a loss of leadership, the next generation is in serious trouble.
Joshua died.
· 8 And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being an hundred and ten years old.
Notice the impact Joshua had on the people.
There are several important things that Joshua’s leadership provided that was missing when he died.
A. They were Influenced to be Sensitive – vs. 1-3
· 1 And an angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you.
· 2 And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall throw down their altars: but ye have not obeyed my voice: why have ye done this?
· 3 Wherefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you.
· 4 And it came to pass, when the angel of the LORD spake these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.
· 5 And they called the name of that place Bochim: (weeping)
B. They were Influenced to be Sacrificial
· 5 …and they sacrificed there unto the LORD.
I watched people of God live sacrificially when I was a boy, and it greatly impacted me.
Giving of themselves.
Giving of their time and talents.
Giving of their money.
Nothing was too good for their God.
Everything they had was His and they gave it with joy.
They were not obsessed with convenience.
They were not worried about losing out.
C. They were Influenced to Serve
· 6 And when Joshua had let the people go, the children of Israel went every man unto his inheritance to possess the land.
· 7 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.
Joshua was the one that lingered in the tabernacle as a young man. He was gone.
Joshua was the one that fought the battles for Moses without complaint and with great success.
Joshua was the one that spied out the land, saw the walled cities and giants, and still believed they could go in.
Joshua was the one that stepped up when Moses died and carried on the will of God for the people of God.
Joshua was the one that was still going strong at the age of 110 in Joshua 24:15.
The leaders were gone.
The one craving God was gone.
The fighters and warriors were gone.
The preachers were gone.
And the next generation suffered because of it.
II. The Lack of Interest
Nobody in the new generation seemed to ask: “How did we get here?”
· 7 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.
· 10 And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.
There was a pile of rocks on the banks of the Jordan River to commemorate the crossing in Joshua 4
· 20 And those twelve stones, which they took out of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal.
· 21 And he spake unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones?
· 22 Then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land.
· 23 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over:
· 24 That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the LORD your God for ever.
Did they stop asking about what they meant?
We can blame the older generation for failing to tell the stories, but were they interested?
Not many young people are interested in history.
There are not very many questions being asked today by the younger generation.
They are fascinated by science fiction and cartoons.
They know more about Iron Man, Spiderman and Superman than they do our founding fathers.
They’ve watched every Marvel movie but know nothing about how we got our Bible.
They know everything about Star Wars but nothing about how we got our church.
Animated movies are more appealing than a life-changing message.
How many young people are interested in:
· Learning how to win souls?
· Having a prayer life?
· Reading their Bible through in a year?
· Taking a mission’s trip?
· Understanding our Statement of Faith?
· Being a preacher or a preacher’s wife and preparing NOW for it?
· Being a deacon or a deacon’s wife and learning what they involves?
III. The Lure of Independence
· 11 And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim:
· 12 And they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the LORD to anger.
· 13 And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.
A. The Leaving that Convinced them
They thought that walking away from God would give them freedom.
They thought that forsaking God would give them a new-found independence.
The only thing they knew about God was probably the laws; they didn’t know the love.
They knew about the rules; but they never formed a relationship.
They’d probably heard about His commandments; but they never recognized the covenants.
They see an escape from authority, but they also walk away from the
B. The Lost that Corrupted them
· 12 …and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the LORD to anger.
They allowed the heathens and pagans around about them dictate their new religion.
C. The Life that Consumed them
Twice the Bible says they SERVED Baal and Ashtaroth.
That’s why Joshua said, “Choose you this day WHOM you will serve..”
They were going to serve SOMETHING or SOMEONE.
The question is who?
They still bowed down themselves – just not to God.
Conclusion: There are several takeaways from this message tonight.
1. If you are a leader, lead!
2. If you’ve seen God work, tell it!
3. If you’ve known God, show it!
4. If you are a younger generation, ask questions!
5. Understand that you will either serve God or the gods of the world.
Either way – you will serve.
