The next generation is going to war without swords. Some are going to the Philistines to sharpen their swords. They will self-destruct. If we don’t live our truth, but only speak it, they won’t catch the flame, much less sparking the fire of deep love and passion for Jesus. Churches and pastors must repent and come back to God in true repentance. The church must wake up and start talking and acting on how to make our children know and serve the true God.
“And there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord.” (Judges 2:10)
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They are in church but are not in Christ. They can organise but can rarely agonise. They can pay for anything but can rarely pray about anything. They can feast but can rarely fast. They can sow for anything but can rarely grow for anything. The present generation of matured believers and leaders must therefore begin to build bridges and collapse all walls between God and the next generation. We must go back to the truth of God’s words that’s devoid of greed, egocentrism, post-modernism and new age religions. We must come together to fulfil the prophecy given to David that, “One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts (Psalms 145:4). For by doing these shall we be able to put sharp swords in the hands of the next generation and when we are gone, they will be strong and bold enough to confront the philistines of our lands. They will grow strong and tall in God and succeed in passing the swords to the next generation after them and this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached to all nations for the end to come!
Susana Wesley had nineteen children for her husband, Samuel Wesley. John Wesley was the fifteenth of these children. For many years, Susanna would pray for each of her children. She birthed their vision on the wings of intercession. She lost many of them, but God rewarded her faithful intercession by sending the mantle of revival on her son, John Wesley, who later founded the great Methodist church in England. Godly mothers are priceless. Our generation is yet to appreciate the value and impact of godly mothers in the birth of great visions. To further bridge this gap, let me also tell you more about the exploits of godly mothers in shaping the history of the church. Morrow Graham, the mother of Billy Graham prayed for and inspired Evangelist Billy Graham into his calling. Katharina Luther inspired the great Martin Luther to prominence.
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Sometimes, we need to know the sacrifices that Christians in other nations and in other generations have made in following Christ to deepen our commitment and faithfulness to fighting for the future of our children.
Charles Colson, in his book, The God of Stones and Spiders, told the story of Armando Valladares, a Cuban poet who was arrested by Fidel Castro in 1960. Fidel Castro locked up Armando for 22 years. In the words of Charles Colson, “During one three-month period, Armando Valladares and some condemned Christian prisoners were given showers of human urine and excreta by sadistic prison guards. In the middle of the night, Armando would hear from his prison room, the footsteps of these condemned Christian men matched outside. Then he would hear the shouts of “Viva Cristo Rey”, meaning, “Long live Christ the King”, just before exploding rifles of soldiers shattered their defiant voices.
At that time, Armando was not a serious believer in Christ. But after witnessing the experience of unshakeable faith and trust in Christ that was demonstrated by these fearless Christian men, even in the face of death, he came out of Castro’s prison after 22 years with a renewed fire and commitment to be a passionate follower of Christ. Friends, you don’t want to know the prices that generations of Christians have paid in defending their faith to stay faithful to the Lord. Christianity is not a cost-less experience. Jesus himself said, “if anyone will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). You cannot be a follower of Christ and be reckless in the way you live your life.
This is why it’s extremely important that we all de-emphasise church membership and start promoting and living on the virtues and values of discipleship. This includes building spiritual stamina and capacity for the days that are ahead and emphasising intimacy, deep relationship, and spirituality above carnality in teaching and training our children are the platforms on which the next generation can stand.
Above all, let those that are stealing, steal no more. Let hypocrisy stop. The younger generation is at a crossroad of critical decisions. The next generation is going to war without swords. Some are going to the Philistines to sharpen their swords. They will self-destruct. If we don’t live our truth, but only speak it, they won’t catch the flame, much less sparking the fire of deep love and passion for Jesus. Churches and pastors must repent and come back to God in true repentance. The church must wake up and start talking and acting on how to make our children know and serve the true God.
Ayo Akerele is the senior pastor of Rhema Assembly and the founder of the Voice of the Watchmen Ministries in Ontario, Canada. He can be reached through [email protected]
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