January 4, 2009
America's finest fought and won a world war in Europe and the South Pacific simultaneously. Perhaps some of your relatives were involved in this massive undertaking. Tom Brokaw calls them "The Greatest Generation" and he was right.
Fast forward 70 plus years to present day America. Could you give the present day generation a fitting name?
Try the TV ads. They are geared to the various demographics for the sole purpose of selling their wares.
Do you recognize this? "It's my money and I want it now." Or "I want it all and I want it now."
Did you see the guy who is at the drive thru window paying for his order? A vehicle right behind him stomps his gas pedal and proceeds to push the guy past the window so he can take his place.
With tires squealing and smoke bellowing, he gets to the window and his line is "I just had to have my Arby's.
Maybe you heard the sad and shocking news of the man who was trampled to death by Wal-Mart shoppers on Black Friday.
And now there is an insurance advertisement stating that a certain company sponsors the NFL and Sundays. Since when did the Lord sell the sponsorship of Sunday? I must have missed the news.
I think I can give the present generation a name. I call it the "Me Generation." It's fitting because this comes straight from the word of God.
I) "The Me Generation." II Timothy 3:1-4
In this particular section of Scripture the Apostle Paul uses two (2) Greek words that appear no where else in the Greek New Testament The first is found in verse 2 "men shall be lovers of their own selves".
The second comes in verse 4 speaking of the same generation that Paul describes as "lovers of pleasure."
Some speculate that Paul coins these two words himself and applies them to a generation of men that would someday exemplify and typlify all that the apostle describes here.
An interpretative rule of Scripture states that whenever a word is used only one time, it is almost without exception worthy of our utmost attention. It is used to emphasize a point of truth and not to be passed by lightly.
I propose to you that the words are bookends. If you omit all that appears between those two words you arrive at a simply conclusion.
What Paul sees prophetically is one generation, above all past generations, that will be characterized as a race of people that are "lovers of their own selves" and "lovers of pleasure."
The Scripture says it would come for notice verse 1 "This know also, that in the last days, perilous (or dangerous) times shall come. These dangerous times will come because mankind has only one lover: Himself.
In the movie "The Longest Day", the apex of the movie occurs in a German bunker along the Atlantic Wall at Normandy. An officer is aroused by a phone call from headquarters about possible enemy activity during the night. He dresses and proceeds to the bunker just before dawn. He peers out from the bunker. The fog and darkness has decreased his visibility. He sees nothing.
Convinced there is no danger, he spends a few minutes and prepares to return to his quarters.He takes one more look and through the fog and the fleeting darkness he spots a ship. And then another, and then, he sees the whole Allied armada awaiting off shore. The invasion has come.
Before our very eyes, the "Me Generation" has emerged. It started with the idea that man's self worth and esteem are too low. It must be corrected. It must be elevated. The psychological prescription was man must love himself more. And he has!!!!!
Verse 1 pinpoints the time, Verse 2-4 describes the traits of that generation. Is it on the horizon? Is it in the near future? No and No. It is here.
II) The We Generation. I Thessalonians 4:13-18
This particular passage is familiar to most Christians. It describes for us an event that is often called "The Rapture of the Church."
I personally believe the Rapture will take place once the "Me Generation" has taken center stage. It is a logical fit.
When Jesus came the first time, there was a small group of Jews (very small by all accounts) that anticipated His coming. William Barclay referred to these as the "Quiet Ones." We meet two of them in Dr. Luke's account of Joseph and Mary bringing the babe Jesus into the temple on the 8th day after his birth. (See Luke 2). One is Simeon, the other is Anna.
Just as with His first coming, When Jesus returns for the church, there will be a group of believers who are anticipating His coming.
Note the whole of Paul's writing to the Thessalonians in chapter 4 verses 13-18. While it is not our intent to explore the passage in detail it is striking to notice the term "we". While Paul so anticipated His Lord's return, it did not occur in his lifetime.
However, Paul prophetically is writing to people not yet even born. They are the "We" Generation.
Look to verse 15 "That we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord" and again in verse 17 "Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up"
Clearly there is a "We Generation". The generation of believers that will be eye witnesses too and participants in the Rapture of the Church.
As Paul writes to the Corinthians "Behold, I show you a mystery ; We shall not all sleep (there is the mention again of the "We Generation") but we shall all be changed" (includes those who died in Christ and will be resurrected along side the living ones) I Corinthians 15:51
So in the midst of the "Me Generation".....the lovers of self and the lovers of pleasure there will be a "We Generation". A group awaiting the next great event on the prophetic calendar.
And the truly blessed part, when the me generation emerges and it has, the event of the rapture can not be very far behind. Let us be looking up, "for our redemption draweth nigh." Luke 21:28
III) Conclusion:
You and I will find ourselves in one or the other. We belong either to the "Me Generation" or to the "We Generation." There are no other options.
As is always the case, Jesus is the dividing line in the sand, the decision of all decisions.
You do nothing to remain a member of the "Me Generation." You were born into the human race. You must be born again to be a member of the "We Generation". I trust you belong to Him.
Till next time.
Glenn Bentley
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3 comments:
That's very good, no doubt God used this to speak to me. Of course, as you know since you helped "birth" me the first time, I'm a bi-product of the 70's, which I believe is the time period that added the biggest majority of the "Me" population, although that's debatable.
I base that on my own life. Kids, including myself, that grew up around me were in hot pursuit of the latest toy, fashion, gadget,electronic device and anything else that "engaged" and "appealed". I was programmed early on to want "stuff" because that's what society teaches: commercials, magazine advertisements, billboards, they all provide the education needed to form a "Me" generation that focuses on individual wants and needs. Fast forward 34 years and I believe what we're seeing is the "Me" generation coming to fruition, almost reaching a pinnacle. Once again, young adults my age and even younger, want and have the nicest and the best of everything this world offers no matter the cost. The word and concept of sacrifice is seemingly obsolete in this era, which makes our current economic situation a lot worse because of the unwillingness to "let go" and "give up" the pursuit of wealth. Material possessions, extensive educational backgrounds, technological advancements and the pursuit of health and wealth defines my generation.
I, however, do not want to be a part of this generation and want to strive to be more in tune with the "We" generation. Worldly pursuit always equals eternal damnation. It's a trap so many, including myself, fall into because culture sets the pace for society, really paving the way for selfishness to grow and flourish.
Anyways, thanks for that post and thanks for raising me to know there's an alternate way to live my life and that stuff is just stuff; it may be nice and new for a few days, but then the new wears off leaving an emptiness that is never satisfied. I'm thankful God sent Jesus to fill this void, but so few find it and the search continues......
Finally someone stands and speaks the truth to my generation! Finally someone in my generation recognizes our greatest weakness or dare I say our greatest sin!
America finds itself in the dangerous territory of biblical prophecy. How did arrive at this abode? What is the process that has navigated us to these dire straits?
We have arrived at this abode on the teaching of humanism and through the infiltration of humanistic teaching within the church.
"The Greatest Generation" was great because of the intense adversity they endured. There has never been another that survived more than they. However, the very training that built their formidable muscles has become the very substance that allow them to produce the "Me" generation.
They simply tried to give away what made them great instead of allowing their children to struggle, strain, and scratch their way in this life. It is impossible to replicate something without allowing the replicatee to go through same process of replication. Ease makes a person weak but pressure makes a person strong.
Church leaders are really the ones to blame for the current plight of America. I can say this because I belong to their fraternity.
Leaders for far too long ignored the imperative teaching of Paul in 1 Timothy 6:17, 18. The church by in large takes two approaches to wealth. They either refuse to teach on it for fear of repercussion or they teach it as something God wants them to be. Both of the stances are sinful and sickening. I believe that these two paths have had the greatest effect on American society.
When you eliminate teaching on the responsibility of wealth you eliminate 27% of New Testament Scripture.
Leaders not only refuse to teach on wealth but they eagerly lead their churches into great debt. Where in Scripture did our Heavenly Father call us to build buildings that we have to go in debt to build? The Southern Baptist Convention, of which I'm a member, is the most indebted denomination in the world. There is only one word to describe this plight; sinful! This is sinful due to the fact that there are missionaries awaiting commissioning but remain stateside until the finances are available. The finances would be available if the debt didn't exist. The church has taken the bait hook, line, and sinker. What's the bait? The bait is that polished programs, magnificent music, slick sermons, and state of the art sanctuaries are what a church needs to reach people for Christ. The last time I check it was the Holy Spirit who did the saving and our responsibility was to provide an environment for discipleship.
We must return to the teaching of scripture on wealth. We must return to the teaching of Philippians 2:1-11. We must eliminate and eradicate "me" from our vocabulary. We must add words such as: we, us, and others. We must return to passages such as Acts 2:42-47. We must think of others better than we do ourselves.
I believe the Sovereign Lord of Heaven has allowed this recession to wake the church up and to give her an opportunity to shine. I believe the Lord is chastening His Bride. What will we do? How will we respond?
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