WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.080 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church. 00:00:05.280 --> 00:00:09.519 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, 00:00:09.880 --> 00:00:15.280 redistribution, or any other use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church. 00:00:15.599 --> 00:00:22.080 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org. 00:00:22.079 --> 00:00:32.060 Hi, my name is Constance St. Clair, and I'm part of the Christ Church Youth Group. 00:00:32.619 --> 00:00:37.599 Today's reading is from the book of Judges, chapter 2, verses 6 to 19. 00:00:38.899 --> 00:00:40.859 A reading from the book of Judges. 00:00:41.299 --> 00:00:47.200 After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take possession of the land, each to their own inheritance. 00:00:47.200 --> 00:00:52.500 The people served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and the elders who outlived him 00:00:52.500 --> 00:00:56.219 and who had seen all the great things that the Lord had done for Israel. 00:00:57.080 --> 00:01:01.480 Joshua, son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110, 00:01:02.100 --> 00:01:09.500 and they buried him in the land of his inheritance at Timnath-Herez in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gash. 00:01:10.320 --> 00:01:13.500 After that, whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors. 00:01:13.500 --> 00:01:18.540 Another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel. 00:01:19.219 --> 00:01:23.159 Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals. 00:01:23.460 --> 00:01:27.640 They forsook the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. 00:01:28.340 --> 00:01:31.680 They followed and worshipped various gods of the peoples around them. 00:01:32.260 --> 00:01:36.700 They aroused the Lord's anger because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. 00:01:37.480 --> 00:01:42.200 In his anger against Israel, the Lord gave them into the hands of raiders who plundered them. 00:01:42.200 --> 00:01:47.859 He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist. 00:01:48.640 --> 00:01:54.460 Whenever Israel went out to fight, the hand of the Lord was against them to defeat them, just as he had sworn to them. 00:01:55.980 --> 00:01:57.900 They were in great distress. 00:01:58.460 --> 00:02:02.480 Then the Lord raised up judges who saved them out of the hands of these raiders. 00:02:03.159 --> 00:02:08.140 Yet they would not listen to their judges, but prostituted themselves to other gods and worshipped them. 00:02:08.139 --> 00:02:13.579 They quickly turned from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to the Lord's commands. 00:02:14.519 --> 00:02:21.399 Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived. 00:02:21.899 --> 00:02:26.619 For the Lord relented because of their groaning under those who oppressed and afflicted them. 00:02:26.620 --> 00:02:35.640 But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their ancestors, following other gods and serving and worshipping them. 00:02:36.020 --> 00:02:39.480 They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways. 00:02:40.420 --> 00:02:44.259 A reading from the book of Psalms, Psalm 145, verse 4. 00:02:44.960 --> 00:02:47.719 One generation commends your works to another. 00:02:48.099 --> 00:02:49.580 They tell of your mighty acts. 00:02:50.120 --> 00:02:51.960 The grass withers and the flowers fade. 00:02:52.680 --> 00:02:54.740 The word of our God stands forever. 00:02:54.740 --> 00:02:57.020 Good morning, Christ Church. 00:02:58.080 --> 00:03:04.640 This summer I was on the beach having and enjoying a great vacation. 00:03:05.159 --> 00:03:14.219 And I was reading a book by Professor Jean Twenge, who's a professor down at San Diego State University. 00:03:15.260 --> 00:03:19.120 And perhaps you've read or heard of some of these books that she's written. 00:03:19.200 --> 00:03:22.920 She has these fantastic, long, ridiculously long titles. 00:03:22.919 --> 00:03:26.639 In 2006, she wrote a book called Generation Me. 00:03:27.319 --> 00:03:32.399 Why today's young Americans are more confident, assertive, entitled, and more miserable than ever before. 00:03:33.119 --> 00:03:34.959 Now, that was about Pastor Andrew's generation. 00:03:36.599 --> 00:03:38.339 Then she did some more research. 00:03:38.459 --> 00:03:41.239 And in 2018, she wrote a book called iGen. 00:03:41.899 --> 00:03:47.000 Why today's super connected kids are growing up less rebellious, more tolerant, and less happy. 00:03:47.000 --> 00:03:49.340 And what that means for the rest of us. 00:03:50.039 --> 00:03:51.639 So, these are, I didn't read these books. 00:03:51.879 --> 00:03:53.400 Their titles have been intriguing to me. 00:03:53.460 --> 00:03:58.319 So, I did pick up her newest book that she wrote this past year called Generations. 00:03:58.699 --> 00:04:03.500 The Real Differences Between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silence. 00:04:03.780 --> 00:04:05.860 And what they mean for America's future. 00:04:05.860 --> 00:04:21.980 And I commend it to you because there's incredible insight in terms of the differences that we experience between the generations in our families, in our workplaces, in society at large, and even here in the church. 00:04:21.980 --> 00:04:24.780 Professor Twinge says this. 00:04:24.860 --> 00:04:29.520 She says, Millennials are the least religious generation of younger adults in American history. 00:04:30.460 --> 00:04:35.240 Gen Z is even more disconnected from religion than millennials were at the same age. 00:04:35.319 --> 00:04:37.660 So, I'm reading this book at the beach. 00:04:38.020 --> 00:04:39.860 And then I get a text from Pastor Andrew. 00:04:40.620 --> 00:04:43.600 And the text says, Hope you're having a good time away, bro. 00:04:44.580 --> 00:04:47.140 This is where I, this is where I'm a bro sort of level. 00:04:47.680 --> 00:04:49.120 Hope you're having a good time away, bro. 00:04:49.120 --> 00:04:57.199 Just wanted to share this word I came across today that hit me hard as our next generation ministries and our need to develop disciple makers has been on my heart. 00:04:57.280 --> 00:05:00.180 And the text that he sent was what we just read in Judges 2. 00:05:00.639 --> 00:05:03.800 So, I promptly texted him back and I said, Why are you interrupting my vacation? 00:05:05.379 --> 00:05:11.019 No, I texted him back and I said, Thank you so much for sharing those verses we're speaking to me this time last year. 00:05:11.519 --> 00:05:16.920 I'm eager to pray, read, and think together more about our next generation challenges and opportunities. 00:05:16.920 --> 00:05:19.860 And I promptly went back to reading at the beach. 00:05:21.439 --> 00:05:28.540 But the reason we're preaching this text today is because the Holy Spirit has put it on the hearts of both of your pastors. 00:05:29.960 --> 00:05:34.180 And for better or for worse, the Gen X pastor is preaching it today. 00:05:34.600 --> 00:05:38.520 And not our millennial pastor, but we're kind of doing this with the same heart and mind. 00:05:38.519 --> 00:05:45.519 If you're Gen Z or iGen, that means you were born from 1997 to 2012. 00:05:46.099 --> 00:05:47.959 And we're so delighted that you're here. 00:05:48.539 --> 00:05:53.539 If you're Gen Polar, that means like Walter, you were born 2013 or later. 00:05:53.680 --> 00:05:58.060 And they're calling it Gen Polar because you were born in a time of political polarization. 00:05:58.659 --> 00:06:01.339 And also in a time when the polar ice caps are melting. 00:06:01.519 --> 00:06:04.159 So, real positive things going on here. 00:06:04.160 --> 00:06:09.980 Some people are calling you Gen Alpha, which, you know, is a little more generic and sort of optimistic. 00:06:11.960 --> 00:06:13.520 But we're so glad that you're here. 00:06:13.960 --> 00:06:27.840 And what I want to do today is just I hope to help all of the generations in the room just sort of think together about how can we better engage people in their teens and 20s now. 00:06:27.839 --> 00:06:32.819 And people who are very quickly going to be in their teens and 20s in just a few years. 00:06:32.959 --> 00:06:34.959 How can we understand you? 00:06:35.079 --> 00:06:37.119 How can we address your questions? 00:06:37.319 --> 00:06:41.179 How can we invite you and your friends to explore God with us? 00:06:41.419 --> 00:06:49.319 How can we transmit the historic Christian faith successfully from one generation to the next generation? 00:06:49.759 --> 00:06:55.579 And Judges 2 is just such a great text to help us think with this lens of the generations. 00:06:55.579 --> 00:06:56.419 Okay? 00:06:56.639 --> 00:07:01.459 So, what I want to talk about from Judges 2 are three things. 00:07:02.199 --> 00:07:07.120 Conforming to culture, cherishing God's grace, and commending God's works. 00:07:07.699 --> 00:07:10.759 Conforming to culture, cherishing God's grace, commending God's works. 00:07:11.199 --> 00:07:13.539 Just a word about conforming to culture. 00:07:14.319 --> 00:07:15.879 Look again at verse 10. 00:07:17.039 --> 00:07:18.439 And I lost my place here. 00:07:18.500 --> 00:07:19.139 I've got to find this. 00:07:19.219 --> 00:07:22.159 This is a book in the Old Testament after Joshua. 00:07:22.279 --> 00:07:22.799 Here it is. 00:07:23.639 --> 00:07:24.579 Judges 2.10. 00:07:24.579 --> 00:07:34.379 And after that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel. 00:07:34.879 --> 00:07:38.959 That's one of the saddest and most sobering verses in the whole Bible. 00:07:39.800 --> 00:07:43.819 And in many ways, it's a wake-up call and a challenge to each new generation. 00:07:43.819 --> 00:07:51.899 Because it tells us that there are forces that are pulling us and pulling the next generation away from the Lord and from his people. 00:07:52.540 --> 00:07:55.180 It tells us that we're not living in a vacuum. 00:07:55.379 --> 00:07:57.500 We're not living on neutral ground. 00:07:57.759 --> 00:08:00.259 The Israelites had just entered into the promised land. 00:08:00.839 --> 00:08:04.579 And the dominant culture in the promised land was Canaanite culture. 00:08:04.579 --> 00:08:12.319 And what we're told in verse 11 is that then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals. 00:08:12.439 --> 00:08:16.379 They forsook the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out of Egypt. 00:08:16.519 --> 00:08:20.000 They followed and worshipped various gods of the peoples around them. 00:08:20.379 --> 00:08:26.079 They aroused the Lord's anger because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. 00:08:26.079 --> 00:08:30.259 Now, why did the next generation not follow the Lord? 00:08:31.219 --> 00:08:37.860 Because they, like us, lived in a pluralistic society and they saw what all the peoples around them were doing. 00:08:38.139 --> 00:08:44.720 And what they were doing was offering to the people of God something more attractive, something more alluring and enticing. 00:08:45.299 --> 00:08:49.779 And they began to assimilate and to conform to Canaanite culture. 00:08:50.019 --> 00:08:52.100 And where did they turn? 00:08:52.779 --> 00:08:54.519 We're told that they turned to Baal. 00:08:54.519 --> 00:08:58.279 Baal was the storm god of rain and fertility. 00:08:59.240 --> 00:09:05.480 And they also turned to Ashtoreth, who's sort of the counterpart to Baal, the goddess that goes along with Baal. 00:09:05.579 --> 00:09:08.639 She's the goddess of love and productivity. 00:09:09.019 --> 00:09:14.360 And every little town or village would reproduce these little idols of the Baals and the Ashtoreths. 00:09:14.360 --> 00:09:19.019 And so here are these gods of fertility and productivity. 00:09:20.139 --> 00:09:22.120 Gods of money, sex, and power. 00:09:22.120 --> 00:09:24.600 Gods of pleasure and plenty. 00:09:24.779 --> 00:09:27.240 Gods of success and security. 00:09:27.240 --> 00:09:35.159 And the people of God began to say, well, man, why do we need the Lord if we can get all that we need without him? 00:09:36.840 --> 00:09:39.039 And they knew the Ten Commandments. 00:09:39.180 --> 00:09:43.279 I'm the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 00:09:43.539 --> 00:09:45.600 You shall have no other gods before me. 00:09:45.659 --> 00:09:47.639 That's the first and greatest of all the commands. 00:09:47.759 --> 00:09:48.460 They knew that. 00:09:48.460 --> 00:09:54.480 And yet they saw this alternative system of beliefs and practices and they said, we want that instead. 00:09:55.820 --> 00:10:00.620 And our own situation is not too remote from the judges. 00:10:00.620 --> 00:10:09.179 The church today is living in the midst of a pluralist society that's full of people who don't worship God, but they worship God's substitutes. 00:10:09.879 --> 00:10:09.940 Right? 00:10:10.080 --> 00:10:20.539 Little things that are made ultimate things like work or your body or romance or, I don't know, leisure, comfort. 00:10:20.679 --> 00:10:25.019 Any number of things we can say, this is of ultimate value to me. 00:10:25.120 --> 00:10:27.799 This is functionally my God. 00:10:27.799 --> 00:10:27.839 God. 00:10:29.039 --> 00:10:37.740 And those gods that are surrounding us have a very strong pull to conform to that culture. 00:10:38.599 --> 00:10:42.819 And I want to be careful here because the United States is complex. 00:10:43.399 --> 00:10:43.599 Amen? 00:10:44.939 --> 00:10:57.500 And I want to be careful not to oversimplify things because on the one hand, our culture is actually becoming more religious and more Christian the more immigrants come to our country and the more people discover God. 00:10:57.500 --> 00:10:58.960 So that's going on. 00:10:59.000 --> 00:11:04.159 But simultaneously, what's also going on, on the other hand, is that we're becoming more and more secular. 00:11:04.740 --> 00:11:06.299 Both are happening at the same time. 00:11:07.059 --> 00:11:13.799 Over the past 200 years, we've seen an age come in that the philosophers call the secular age. 00:11:13.799 --> 00:11:22.799 And the emphasis is all on the saculum, on the here and now, without any concept of an eternal transcendent order. 00:11:23.599 --> 00:11:37.299 So that meaning in life and guidance and happiness, all these things are understood and sought in terms of present time economic prosperity, material comfort, emotional fulfillment. 00:11:37.299 --> 00:11:47.299 That's what the secular belief system claims to make the most sense of our complex world and of human experience. 00:11:48.039 --> 00:11:57.819 And that has become, for most of us in the places where we live, that's the default background belief system that permeates all of life. 00:11:57.820 --> 00:12:04.260 And what are some of the secular beliefs in the system that are taken by faith? 00:12:05.460 --> 00:12:08.140 Well, here's just a sampling, and there are many. 00:12:08.460 --> 00:12:13.840 But you don't need to believe in God to have a full life of meaning, hope, and satisfaction. 00:12:15.240 --> 00:12:19.260 You should be free to live as you see fit as long as you don't harm others. 00:12:19.259 --> 00:12:24.759 You become yourself when you are true to your deepest desires and dreams. 00:12:26.039 --> 00:12:31.100 You don't need to believe in God to have a basis for moral values and human rights. 00:12:32.340 --> 00:12:36.840 There's little to no evidence for the existence of God and the truth of Christianity. 00:12:37.980 --> 00:12:44.899 And wittingly or unwittingly, our cultural institutions inculcate these beliefs as inarguable, obvious truths. 00:12:44.899 --> 00:12:45.500 Right? 00:12:45.500 --> 00:12:46.139 Right? 00:12:46.220 --> 00:12:53.639 They immerse us in narratives all day long about meaning, satisfaction, identity, freedom, morality. 00:12:53.899 --> 00:13:03.079 And these come at us dozens of times a day, sometimes dozens of times an hour through ads and tweets and music and shows and op-ed pieces, 00:13:03.299 --> 00:13:06.679 all of which accumulate and say, this is the way things are. 00:13:07.600 --> 00:13:10.519 And this is unchallenged common sense. 00:13:10.519 --> 00:13:21.500 And because these narratives are so alluring and because our immersion in them is so pervasive, we're not even aware of them, 00:13:22.840 --> 00:13:30.379 verses 10 to 13 are really kind of just happening to Christians and to churches all over the Western world, 00:13:30.480 --> 00:13:31.799 particularly here in North America. 00:13:31.799 --> 00:13:41.099 And we find ourselves following the gods of the peoples around us, idols of consumerism, idols of individualism, idols of the self. 00:13:41.979 --> 00:13:46.319 And the result of that is that we know neither the Lord nor what he's done for us. 00:13:46.359 --> 00:13:52.419 And we could spend hours talking about how the next generation of the church is deconstructing in their faith. 00:13:52.620 --> 00:13:54.439 The next generation of the church is de-churching. 00:13:54.479 --> 00:13:57.799 The next generation of the church is becoming more and more secularized. 00:13:57.799 --> 00:14:04.779 And what I mean by that is not some culture warrior weird sort of thing, okay? 00:14:04.919 --> 00:14:06.620 Not a political sort of thing either. 00:14:07.179 --> 00:14:17.240 But what I mean by that is this, that even people who identify as Christian start to choose lovers, spouses, careers, friendships, financial options 00:14:17.240 --> 00:14:22.459 with no higher goal than our own present time personal happiness. 00:14:22.460 --> 00:14:32.879 Beyond that, sacrificing personal peace or affluence for transcendent causes is becoming more and more rare, 00:14:33.580 --> 00:14:37.420 even among people who say they believe in absolute values and eternity. 00:14:38.720 --> 00:14:45.100 The secular age, I think it's pretty clear that the secular age has begun to thin out our faith 00:14:45.100 --> 00:14:52.320 so that it's really just simply one more choice in life alongside our job, alongside our recreation, our hobbies, our politics, 00:14:52.860 --> 00:14:57.720 rather than our faith being this comprehensive framework that determines all of our life choices. 00:14:59.159 --> 00:15:00.480 And why am I telling you this? 00:15:00.779 --> 00:15:02.060 Is it because I'm paranoid? 00:15:05.000 --> 00:15:06.960 Okay, I feel your judgment right now. 00:15:06.960 --> 00:15:11.600 No, I just don't want you to be naive. 00:15:12.480 --> 00:15:13.940 I don't want you to be naive. 00:15:14.160 --> 00:15:22.060 And if Christian people don't get serious about this all-pervasive, immersive process of enculturation and assimilation 00:15:22.060 --> 00:15:28.460 that's conforming us in powerful ways to secularity and secularism, 00:15:28.900 --> 00:15:33.180 we should not be surprised that we ourselves or the next generation after us 00:15:33.179 --> 00:15:36.139 is running after these gods of the people around us, 00:15:36.279 --> 00:15:42.399 thinking that money or sex or power or anything else is an ultimate thing when it's not. 00:15:43.339 --> 00:15:48.959 It's not difficult to imagine this four-generational downward spiral in our own day 00:15:48.959 --> 00:15:53.319 from indifference to unbelief to rejection to opposition. 00:15:54.479 --> 00:15:56.539 Generation one is marked by apathy. 00:15:56.699 --> 00:15:57.859 I don't care what I believe. 00:15:58.759 --> 00:16:01.240 Therefore, generation two is marked by agnosticism. 00:16:01.359 --> 00:16:02.659 I don't know what I believe. 00:16:03.179 --> 00:16:05.759 Therefore, generation three is marked by atheism. 00:16:05.859 --> 00:16:07.219 I know what I don't believe. 00:16:08.019 --> 00:16:10.379 And therefore, generation four is marked by aggression. 00:16:10.539 --> 00:16:12.000 I don't want you to believe either. 00:16:15.279 --> 00:16:17.339 We just need eyes to see. 00:16:17.699 --> 00:16:18.939 We need ears to hear. 00:16:19.059 --> 00:16:24.000 We need minds that can discern these alternative secular beliefs and practices 00:16:24.000 --> 00:16:26.919 as they're showing up everywhere in our lives 00:16:26.919 --> 00:16:31.319 to conform us to the now dominant and default paradigm 00:16:31.320 --> 00:16:37.080 and to ask ourselves, how does this compare and contrast with Christian claims 00:16:37.080 --> 00:16:39.600 and Christian beliefs and Christian practices? 00:16:40.400 --> 00:16:45.520 We just finished this letter to the Romans where the Apostle Paul says in Romans 12, 00:16:45.640 --> 00:16:46.240 he says, 00:16:46.240 --> 00:16:48.779 do not be conformed to the pattern of this world. 00:16:49.899 --> 00:16:54.840 Do not let the world around you squeeze you into its mold. 00:16:55.560 --> 00:16:59.560 Rather, he says, be transformed by the renewing of your mind. 00:16:59.559 --> 00:17:04.579 Israel was very clearly called to be this counterculture. 00:17:05.119 --> 00:17:09.919 They were supposed to be this alternative, nonconformist society 00:17:09.919 --> 00:17:13.619 that bore witness to the light and the glory of God to all the nations. 00:17:14.899 --> 00:17:17.079 And that's what the church is called to be today. 00:17:17.079 --> 00:17:21.199 Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount to his disciple community, 00:17:21.359 --> 00:17:24.699 he says, you're the salt of the earth and you're the light of the world. 00:17:25.679 --> 00:17:30.039 And so he's saying, don't allow yourself to be conformed to the world and its decay 00:17:30.039 --> 00:17:31.339 and the world of its darkness. 00:17:31.460 --> 00:17:34.240 I want you to go out and be salt in the decay. 00:17:34.379 --> 00:17:36.559 I want you to be light in the darkness. 00:17:38.179 --> 00:17:42.939 And so that's, I just think, part of this word for us about conforming to culture 00:17:42.940 --> 00:17:51.460 and just thinking more critically about this very, very important dynamic in the scriptures 00:17:51.460 --> 00:17:54.380 and this dynamic in our lives and our own world. 00:17:54.799 --> 00:17:55.580 You with me so far? 00:17:56.580 --> 00:17:59.220 Okay, so second word is not just conforming to culture, 00:17:59.640 --> 00:18:01.220 but it's cherishing God's grace. 00:18:01.840 --> 00:18:02.940 Cherishing God's grace. 00:18:03.900 --> 00:18:08.759 It's kind of an understatement to say that things did not go well for Israel 00:18:08.759 --> 00:18:10.080 when they abandoned the Lord. 00:18:10.079 --> 00:18:14.579 We see it in this text, you know, in verse 14, it says, 00:18:14.759 --> 00:18:17.039 they couldn't resist their enemies and they were plundered. 00:18:17.839 --> 00:18:21.279 It says in verse 15, the hand of the Lord was heavy against them 00:18:21.279 --> 00:18:24.259 so that they were living lives that were defeated and distressed. 00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:27.179 And then we read in verse 16, it says, 00:18:27.359 --> 00:18:32.079 then the Lord raised up judges who saved them out of the hands of these raiders. 00:18:32.259 --> 00:18:34.299 The Lord is so gracious, right? 00:18:34.319 --> 00:18:35.299 He's the Lord of grace. 00:18:35.639 --> 00:18:36.879 He wants to help his people. 00:18:36.980 --> 00:18:38.819 He wants to save his people. 00:18:38.819 --> 00:18:40.220 And he does that over and over. 00:18:40.299 --> 00:18:42.279 But we're told in verses 17 to 19, 00:18:42.859 --> 00:18:45.700 they just, even after they experienced God's grace, 00:18:45.779 --> 00:18:46.460 they didn't listen. 00:18:46.599 --> 00:18:47.119 They didn't obey. 00:18:48.059 --> 00:18:51.240 And because of that, they became more and more oppressed and afflicted. 00:18:51.980 --> 00:18:55.000 God then again would have compassion and he would save his people. 00:18:55.500 --> 00:18:57.819 But even still, they become more and more corrupt 00:18:57.819 --> 00:19:01.119 and more and more evil in this decline from bad to worse. 00:19:01.359 --> 00:19:02.399 You read the book of Judges? 00:19:02.919 --> 00:19:04.460 It gets really gnarly. 00:19:04.460 --> 00:19:10.620 This downward spiral in this book happens over the course of the next 450 years. 00:19:11.420 --> 00:19:16.000 The next generations just repeat this cycle of idolatry and immorality. 00:19:16.660 --> 00:19:21.799 Horrible and heinous things are done that are just completely cringe-worthy. 00:19:21.920 --> 00:19:25.440 In fact, I would say, parents, there's R-rated stuff at the end of this book 00:19:25.440 --> 00:19:27.420 that you shouldn't even let your kids read yet. 00:19:28.300 --> 00:19:29.800 And some of you, I know, because I said that, 00:19:29.840 --> 00:19:31.279 you're going to go home this afternoon and be like, 00:19:31.400 --> 00:19:32.580 what in the world is in there? 00:19:33.779 --> 00:19:34.740 And that's a good thing. 00:19:36.320 --> 00:19:38.400 But this book, in a nutshell, is about, 00:19:38.740 --> 00:19:40.380 it's really about the grace of God. 00:19:41.440 --> 00:19:45.060 It's about this God who gives grace to people who don't deserve it. 00:19:45.420 --> 00:19:47.740 This God who gives grace to people who aren't seeking it. 00:19:47.820 --> 00:19:51.080 This God who gives grace to people who don't even appreciate it 00:19:51.080 --> 00:19:52.160 after they've gotten it. 00:19:52.160 --> 00:19:57.140 And it's also a book about our need for a savior, right? 00:19:57.220 --> 00:19:59.120 Because when you read the book, you're like, 00:19:59.240 --> 00:20:04.140 man, despite all the ways that God is forgiving and helping and delivering 00:20:04.140 --> 00:20:06.060 and sending leaders to his people, 00:20:06.160 --> 00:20:10.680 in the end, nothing's really able to overcome their selfishness 00:20:10.680 --> 00:20:12.860 and their pride and their rebellion. 00:20:13.100 --> 00:20:16.380 And at the end of the book, the very last line of this book says this. 00:20:16.380 --> 00:20:16.779 It says, 00:20:16.779 --> 00:20:26.299 So Judges shows us that, you know, 00:20:26.379 --> 00:20:28.319 not only are we prone to sin, 00:20:28.720 --> 00:20:32.319 but it shows us our need for a savior and a king. 00:20:33.059 --> 00:20:35.980 And it shows us that if salvation is going to come to us, 00:20:36.019 --> 00:20:38.039 it's not coming from among us, right? 00:20:38.039 --> 00:20:39.940 It's got to come from God. 00:20:40.180 --> 00:20:42.420 It's got to come from God and his grace. 00:20:43.660 --> 00:20:45.119 And by the end of this book, 00:20:45.160 --> 00:20:46.599 if you really sit down and read it, 00:20:46.779 --> 00:20:52.420 you're just longing for someone who can come and break the cycle of sin. 00:20:53.240 --> 00:20:55.759 You're longing for someone who has no sin, 00:20:56.119 --> 00:21:00.319 someone who could come and deliver God's people from sin. 00:21:00.899 --> 00:21:03.440 You're just crying out to God by the end of this book and saying, 00:21:03.519 --> 00:21:07.160 God, you continually come and intervene and save your people, 00:21:07.160 --> 00:21:10.740 but would you come and do that in a climactic way? 00:21:10.819 --> 00:21:12.079 Would you come do that finally? 00:21:12.259 --> 00:21:14.319 Would you come and do that once and for all? 00:21:14.319 --> 00:21:16.039 And of course, 00:21:16.099 --> 00:21:22.019 the good news that we find in the New Testament is that eventually God answers that prayer. 00:21:23.019 --> 00:21:26.179 And this God of grace sends Jesus Christ, right? 00:21:26.179 --> 00:21:31.639 He sends his sinless son to be the savior and king that his people need. 00:21:32.200 --> 00:21:35.200 He sends his son to live the life that we're meant to live, 00:21:35.200 --> 00:21:37.460 but that none of us are really able to live. 00:21:38.160 --> 00:21:41.840 He sends his son to die this death that we deserve to die. 00:21:42.920 --> 00:21:49.220 And Jesus comes and we see powerfully in the gospels that Jesus is setting people free from their idols. 00:21:50.480 --> 00:21:55.960 He's setting people free from their cycles of addiction and this downward spiral of sin. 00:21:55.960 --> 00:22:00.779 Because Jesus is this God of grace in the flesh. 00:22:00.920 --> 00:22:03.460 Jesus is this God of grace embodied. 00:22:04.539 --> 00:22:10.380 And when Jesus is calling disciples, not only in that first generation of his disciples, 00:22:10.519 --> 00:22:16.720 but when he's calling disciples in each new generation to follow him and to learn from him, 00:22:17.000 --> 00:22:19.019 what does Jesus want for us? 00:22:19.019 --> 00:22:21.480 What's his vision for us? 00:22:21.480 --> 00:22:27.799 Jesus' vision for us for each new generation is so clearly, beautifully stated in verse 10. 00:22:29.139 --> 00:22:35.859 His desire for us is simply that we would know the Lord and what he's done for Israel. 00:22:37.059 --> 00:22:40.400 That we would know the Lord and what he's done for Israel. 00:22:40.480 --> 00:22:46.639 That we would know this God of grace and all his gracious acts to save us. 00:22:46.640 --> 00:22:57.759 Now, some knowledge is generic, you know, theoretical, academic sort of awareness about basic information and basic facts. 00:22:57.840 --> 00:22:59.860 And we would call that knowledge about. 00:23:00.840 --> 00:23:05.840 But knowledge about is something other than a knowledge of. 00:23:06.820 --> 00:23:07.000 Right? 00:23:07.080 --> 00:23:09.940 A knowledge of is something quite different. 00:23:09.940 --> 00:23:13.759 A knowledge of is a personal and relational knowing. 00:23:13.920 --> 00:23:17.259 So that what you know, you come to cherish what you know. 00:23:20.340 --> 00:23:23.820 And that's what Jesus wants for each new generation. 00:23:23.980 --> 00:23:28.019 That we would not just know the Lord, we would cherish the Lord. 00:23:28.840 --> 00:23:33.160 That we would cherish his person, his character, his attributes. 00:23:33.620 --> 00:23:36.840 That we would have a living experience with the living God. 00:23:36.839 --> 00:23:36.879 God. 00:23:37.480 --> 00:23:41.500 He wants us to know the life and the power and the grace of God. 00:23:41.659 --> 00:23:44.919 Not just in our heads, but in our hearts. 00:23:44.959 --> 00:23:48.740 Not just in a theoretical way, but in a personal and real way. 00:23:49.839 --> 00:23:55.039 And beyond that, more than that, he wants us to not just cherish the Lord himself. 00:23:55.159 --> 00:23:57.319 But he wants us to cherish what the Lord has done. 00:23:58.000 --> 00:23:58.919 All of his works. 00:23:59.039 --> 00:24:01.399 All of his gracious acts to save. 00:24:01.400 --> 00:24:10.519 And that means that he wants you to be regularly learning about what God and his grace has done in history. 00:24:11.259 --> 00:24:19.480 And he wants you to be expanding and increasing your reading and your understanding of God's own self-revelation. 00:24:19.620 --> 00:24:23.440 His own revelation of himself in the story of scripture. 00:24:23.440 --> 00:24:27.420 And here's my word, if you're starting to fall asleep at this point. 00:24:27.500 --> 00:24:31.880 Here's my word for Gen X, millennials, Gen Z, and polars. 00:24:32.000 --> 00:24:34.779 And if you're a boomer or silent, we're delighted you're here too. 00:24:35.400 --> 00:24:38.100 And you can just listen into this word. 00:24:38.259 --> 00:24:47.400 But what this means to me is that each new generation needs its own experience of the reviving life of God. 00:24:47.400 --> 00:24:50.980 So that we can say, we know the Lord. 00:24:51.040 --> 00:24:55.200 Not they knew the Lord and they talked to us about the Lord, but we know the Lord. 00:24:55.900 --> 00:25:02.759 And each generation also beyond that needs a deep understanding of God's words and God's ways. 00:25:02.759 --> 00:25:06.920 So that we also can say, we know what the Lord has done. 00:25:07.500 --> 00:25:11.000 Not they knew what the Lord has done and they tried to tell us what the Lord has done. 00:25:11.040 --> 00:25:14.080 But we know what the Lord has done. 00:25:14.079 --> 00:25:20.000 And that's my prayer is that our next generations would know the Lord and what he's done. 00:25:20.619 --> 00:25:26.319 They would know this God of grace and all of his gracious actions to save his people. 00:25:26.720 --> 00:25:32.519 And the reason I pray that is because we won't commend what we don't cherish. 00:25:34.099 --> 00:25:37.939 We just won't commend to other people what we don't cherish ourselves. 00:25:37.940 --> 00:25:44.840 But the thing that we cherish the most, that is what we're going to commend to other people without even thinking about it. 00:25:44.860 --> 00:25:47.320 We're going to do it just with ease and with joy. 00:25:48.039 --> 00:25:50.740 Tell other people what we most cherish, right? 00:25:51.519 --> 00:25:56.259 So that's my word about conforming to culture, cherishing God's grace. 00:25:56.320 --> 00:26:01.279 And a final word, a short word about commending God's works. 00:26:02.519 --> 00:26:03.600 Commending God's works. 00:26:03.599 --> 00:26:08.500 Here's the question as I've been reading this text for the past year plus. 00:26:09.319 --> 00:26:11.240 Here's the question that really troubles me. 00:26:12.959 --> 00:26:15.039 What went wrong? 00:26:16.859 --> 00:26:17.839 What went wrong? 00:26:18.679 --> 00:26:26.279 Like how do we go from this Joshua generation that says we had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel. 00:26:26.279 --> 00:26:31.779 How do we get from that to the next generation in verse 10 who knew neither the Lord nor what he'd done for Israel. 00:26:31.779 --> 00:26:42.680 How do we go from the Joshua generation that served the Lord for a lifetime to this next generation in verse 12 that forsook the Lord and followed and worshiped the various gods of the peoples around them. 00:26:43.940 --> 00:26:49.240 We sent this text over to our retreat speaker next weekend, Bob, who you're going to love. 00:26:50.119 --> 00:26:55.019 And Bob wrote back and he said, wow, this is such a cautionary story for the church, isn't it? 00:26:55.019 --> 00:27:04.839 He said, for all the good the Joshua generation did, they failed to make disciples and their legacy died with them and the result was that evil flourished. 00:27:05.700 --> 00:27:09.519 But contrast that, he says, to a new Joshua and a better Joshua. 00:27:09.680 --> 00:27:11.740 Yeshua of Nazareth, Jesus Christ. 00:27:11.960 --> 00:27:17.639 He pursued and he invested in the next generation of teenagers and 20-somethings. 00:27:17.640 --> 00:27:20.460 That's Peter, Andrew, James, John. 00:27:20.580 --> 00:27:23.180 They were teenagers and early 20-somethings. 00:27:23.840 --> 00:27:26.480 And he welcomed them into his spiritual family. 00:27:27.020 --> 00:27:28.660 He trained them to do what he did. 00:27:28.740 --> 00:27:30.320 He empowered them with the Holy Spirit. 00:27:30.440 --> 00:27:31.520 He sent them out on mission. 00:27:31.900 --> 00:27:33.620 And the world has never been the same. 00:27:34.900 --> 00:27:40.300 So I want to think together in my final few minutes here about making disciples of the next generation. 00:27:41.280 --> 00:27:44.620 And I want to talk about the who, what, how, when, where, and why. 00:27:44.619 --> 00:27:45.019 Okay? 00:27:45.559 --> 00:27:50.079 So first of all, the who, I love this verse in Psalm 145, 4. 00:27:50.179 --> 00:27:55.679 It says, one generation will commend your works to another and declare your mighty acts. 00:27:56.479 --> 00:28:09.119 One generation, collectively, corporately, in solidarity and in unity with one another, all of us, whether we're single or married without kids or parents or grandparents, 00:28:09.619 --> 00:28:13.959 one generation will commend your works to another. 00:28:13.960 --> 00:28:19.620 And our hope and our prayer is that when you come to Christchurch, that you would look out in our church and you wouldn't say, 00:28:19.779 --> 00:28:22.079 oh, there's so-and-so's kid or there's so-and-so's youth. 00:28:22.120 --> 00:28:23.920 You would say, no, that's my kid. 00:28:24.759 --> 00:28:25.880 That's my youth. 00:28:26.720 --> 00:28:30.960 And I want to extend that out to our Cal students and our 20-somethings. 00:28:32.039 --> 00:28:38.120 And for us to say, man, how can I come to Christchurch with eyes for the next generation today? 00:28:38.759 --> 00:28:40.160 What can I give to them? 00:28:40.160 --> 00:28:43.500 Who's the middle schooler or high schooler God's calling me to encourage? 00:28:43.740 --> 00:28:50.519 Who's the college student or the 20-something who needs lunch today and who needs to come do their laundry at my house today? 00:28:51.540 --> 00:28:56.640 That's the who is one generation commending your works to another. 00:28:57.060 --> 00:28:58.019 Then the what. 00:28:59.100 --> 00:29:02.640 One generation commending your works to the next generation. 00:29:02.640 --> 00:29:13.160 Research tells us, social scientists tell us that the next generation on the receiving end, they need a five-to-one ratio. 00:29:14.740 --> 00:29:22.280 That is, they need a team of five adults investing in every one person in the next generation for their faith to become sticky. 00:29:22.420 --> 00:29:27.780 For them to move into adulthood with a robust and a resilient faith that's going to last. 00:29:28.320 --> 00:29:29.300 Five-to-one. 00:29:29.299 --> 00:29:39.279 And so we want to encourage you to take spiritual responsibility for one person in the next generation in our church. 00:29:40.359 --> 00:29:46.000 And someone that doesn't belong to you biologically, but does belong to you spiritually. 00:29:46.799 --> 00:29:50.419 And we want to encourage you to start intentionally praying for them. 00:29:50.420 --> 00:29:52.880 And then talking to them. 00:29:53.320 --> 00:29:56.800 And then pursuing them and investing in them. 00:29:57.320 --> 00:30:02.140 Because disciple making is not, it's not something that just happens by accident. 00:30:02.279 --> 00:30:03.740 It's not something you drift into. 00:30:03.980 --> 00:30:08.580 You don't wake up, you know, and say, wow, we discipled a bunch of people who weren't even trying. 00:30:09.259 --> 00:30:10.920 That's not how it works, you know. 00:30:11.019 --> 00:30:11.900 It's intentional. 00:30:12.100 --> 00:30:12.580 It's deliberate. 00:30:13.120 --> 00:30:13.880 So that's the who. 00:30:14.039 --> 00:30:14.660 That's the what. 00:30:14.660 --> 00:30:17.600 But let me say something about the how, the when, and the where. 00:30:19.580 --> 00:30:22.640 I read one of the scholars of the Old Testament. 00:30:22.980 --> 00:30:24.680 He said this about this text this week. 00:30:24.759 --> 00:30:35.900 He said, this text in Judges 2 is a witness to the apparent failure of the community to keep alive its memory of Yahweh's gracious saving acts. 00:30:35.900 --> 00:30:42.780 The priests, the priests failed in their instructional duties. 00:30:43.580 --> 00:30:54.340 And the elaborate system of festivals, memorials, gatherings, other customs designed to pass on the rich spiritual tradition had either lapsed or become reduced to formality. 00:30:54.460 --> 00:30:56.700 That means people were showing up like once or twice a month. 00:30:56.700 --> 00:31:04.259 He says, if the Shema, that is, hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. 00:31:04.259 --> 00:31:16.759 If the Shema was being recited at all, the following injunctions to the community to instruct the children and the fundamentals of covenant faith were obviously regarded more in the breach than in the observance. 00:31:16.759 --> 00:31:26.379 And then he says, when people lose sight of God's grace, they lose sight of God in the sense that they have any obligation to God. 00:31:27.200 --> 00:31:32.279 And all that follows in this book is a consequence of Israel's loss of memory. 00:31:33.680 --> 00:31:44.400 And Daniel Block is giving us something very important, a principle that's very important for us, and that is this, compounding spiritual interest. 00:31:44.400 --> 00:31:51.980 What we're doing right now doesn't seem like much today. 00:31:52.640 --> 00:31:56.100 What we're going to do over the next month doesn't seem like a lot. 00:31:56.180 --> 00:31:57.720 Even this next year, it doesn't seem like a lot. 00:31:58.040 --> 00:32:08.480 But 10 years from now, any of you into finance, compounding interest, 10 years from now, 20 years from now, 30 years from now, that stuff adds up. 00:32:08.480 --> 00:32:19.700 You know, when you get your people around the elders teaching God's word, when you get your people into these gatherings where we're passing on the spiritual tradition that we have, 00:32:19.839 --> 00:32:30.200 when you're gathering as a family around meals and devotions and commuting, and you're trying to talk to your kids about what it means to be a Christian and what the scriptures teach, 00:32:30.380 --> 00:32:32.680 all of that really adds up. 00:32:32.680 --> 00:32:39.680 And what the psalmist tells us is that one generation commends your works to another. 00:32:39.820 --> 00:32:42.400 One generation declares your mighty acts. 00:32:42.519 --> 00:32:46.799 To commend means to praise, not to talk boringly. 00:32:47.799 --> 00:32:51.640 To declare means to boast and not to talk theoretically. 00:32:52.539 --> 00:32:54.460 That psalm goes on in the next few verses. 00:32:54.600 --> 00:32:54.840 It says, 00:32:54.839 --> 00:32:59.879 One generation will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty to the next. 00:33:00.639 --> 00:33:05.139 One generation will proclaim the power of your awesome works to the next. 00:33:05.619 --> 00:33:09.720 One generation will celebrate your abundant goodness to the next. 00:33:10.179 --> 00:33:14.419 One generation will joyfully sing of your righteousness to the next. 00:33:14.480 --> 00:33:16.619 And friends, at least Gen Xers. 00:33:16.759 --> 00:33:19.259 I'll just single out my cynical people. 00:33:19.399 --> 00:33:19.959 Gen Xers. 00:33:19.960 --> 00:33:35.340 What the next generation needs from us is they need to hear us commend and declare and proclaim and celebrate and joyfully sing about our God. 00:33:35.779 --> 00:33:38.740 Our God whom we cherish above all else. 00:33:39.799 --> 00:33:41.360 Our God of whom we say, 00:33:42.039 --> 00:33:44.000 Life isn't worth living without this God. 00:33:45.019 --> 00:33:45.420 Right? 00:33:46.039 --> 00:33:48.519 You, Lord, are better than life itself. 00:33:48.519 --> 00:33:51.200 They need to hear us talking about that. 00:33:52.799 --> 00:33:54.500 And my last thing is the why. 00:33:54.819 --> 00:33:55.799 And we're ready to go. 00:33:55.960 --> 00:33:57.859 We got a great lunch prepared for us. 00:33:58.559 --> 00:33:59.339 100 people. 00:33:59.740 --> 00:34:00.379 100 seats. 00:34:00.440 --> 00:34:01.160 It's going to be awesome. 00:34:02.119 --> 00:34:03.799 But here's my final why. 00:34:03.879 --> 00:34:04.879 And it's just a scripture reading. 00:34:05.480 --> 00:34:07.879 And it's very similar to Psalm 145. 00:34:07.960 --> 00:34:09.019 It's from Psalm 78. 00:34:09.280 --> 00:34:12.259 And I'm just going to read it to you in hopes that you'll meditate on it this week. 00:34:13.460 --> 00:34:14.719 Psalm 78 says, 00:34:14.719 --> 00:34:18.799 Things we have heard and known. 00:34:20.000 --> 00:34:22.539 Things our ancestors have told us. 00:34:24.139 --> 00:34:27.339 We will not hide them from their children. 00:34:28.439 --> 00:34:35.019 But tell to the coming generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power, and the wonders He has done. 00:34:35.019 --> 00:34:43.199 He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel which He commanded our ancestors to teach their children. 00:34:43.539 --> 00:34:47.380 So the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born. 00:34:47.519 --> 00:34:50.019 And they in turn would arise and tell them to their children. 00:34:50.679 --> 00:34:51.579 That's four generations. 00:34:52.820 --> 00:34:57.320 And now the psalmist tells us, he comes to the answer of why should we disciple the next generation? 00:34:57.320 --> 00:34:57.800 He says, 00:34:57.800 --> 00:35:02.640 So that, so that they should put their trust in God. 00:35:03.160 --> 00:35:06.340 And would not forget the works of God, but would keep His commands. 00:35:06.920 --> 00:35:11.559 And that they would not be like their ancestors, a stubborn and rebellious generation. 00:35:11.660 --> 00:35:16.840 A generation whose heart was not loyal to God, whose spirit was not faithful to God. 00:35:16.840 --> 00:35:27.579 Friends, if you know, love, worship, or follow Jesus Christ, I want to encourage you to thank God today for whoever passed the gospel on to you. 00:35:28.059 --> 00:35:30.620 Maybe even call them or write to them and say thank you. 00:35:31.700 --> 00:35:35.960 Try to imagine where you'd be today if they hadn't prayed for you, pursued you, and invested in you. 00:35:37.900 --> 00:35:42.820 And then I want you to find one person as fast as you can in the next generation behind you. 00:35:42.820 --> 00:35:48.440 And begin to take spiritual responsibility for passing the faith on to them. 00:35:49.660 --> 00:35:50.100 Why? 00:35:51.039 --> 00:35:52.760 So that they might know the Lord. 00:35:53.420 --> 00:35:55.180 So that they might fear the Lord. 00:35:55.660 --> 00:36:05.240 So that they might love and worship and follow and trust and surrender their lives and be loyal and faithful and spend the rest of the time that they have on this earth. 00:36:05.420 --> 00:36:08.960 Making the glory of God known among their neighbors. 00:36:10.120 --> 00:36:11.559 And among the nations. 00:36:11.559 --> 00:36:14.519 And among the next generation. 00:36:15.900 --> 00:36:18.480 That's what God wants for his people. 00:36:18.759 --> 00:36:20.559 That's what he wants for us. 00:36:21.239 --> 00:36:22.679 So may he give it to us. 00:36:22.940 --> 00:36:24.860 In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 00:36:25.539 --> 00:36:25.759 Amen. 00:36:25.759 --> 00:36:25.900 Amen.