Passing on the batton to the next generation …..

I have been reading a book by Bill Johnson of Bethel Church and found this exerpt which I have burning on my heart to share.

As I studied the Old Testament, I have been amazed to see how one generation serves God, removes the idols from their lives and then dies, leaving a new generation who turns back to worshipping idols.  There is a vicious cycle in the Old Testament and the children of Israel never seem to have learned from their mistakes.

Sadly, we see the same cycle in the Church today.

How does one break this cycle in order to live out the promise of God from Isaiah that says “all your children will be taught by the Lord” (Isaiah 54:13)

WHAT IS THE KEY?

Bill Johnson makes it so clear in his book “Releasing the Spirit of Prophecy:  The Supernatural Power of Testimony.”

“I believe the model for biblical government is found in the family.  When the fathers and mothers have a tendency toward a form of religion without power, their descendants seldom have the motivation to pay the price necessary to carry on their family’s legacy of righteousness.

But when the model of purpose, passion and power form the nature of that home or church, the next generation is more likely to rise in the midst of the darkness of the world circumstances with a torch declaring the purposes of God on the earth.  Mothers and fathers, both natural and spiritual, must arise with purpose, passion and courage that they might partner in the wonder of His supernatural activities on the earth.

The fault for Israel’s lack of the supernatural manifestations lies not only with the generation who were unexposed to miracles.  It actually rests squarely on the shoulders of the parents who had seen the miracles for themselves but didn’t pay the price necessary for them to continue.

Joshua received a supernatural lifestyles from Moses as an inheritance.  An inheritance is something we get for free that someone else paid a price for.  But if we don’t pay the price to increase what we got for free, there’ll be nothing to leave to the next generation.

It is ironic that the Joshua generation had enough influence to perpetuate righeousness without the ongoing experience of miracles.  But the generations could not sustain righeousness without stepping into the realm of power that the testimony was calling them into.  This reveals responsibility to do more than memorize stories for stories’ sake.  They must launch us into greater personal encounters with the God of wonders until those wonders happen around us.  The testimony is to make us hungry for more, giving us the license to pursue supernatural breakthroughs.

A life without power has results that are disastrous.  In the absence of the supernatural invasions of God there arose a generation that had no compass.  Their wandering and eventual rebellion exploded in the absence of exposure to the God of wonders.  It is required of each of us to live in such a way that God has to show up to sustain us.  Reducing Christianity to what is humanly possible is responsible for the cold-hearted condition of many generations throughout history.  Moral teaching, while absolutely necessary, seldom lights a fire in the hearts of generation that was born to “take a bullet” for an eternal pupose.  People by nature thrive on cause and purpose.  The Church was never meant to be known for its disciplines.  We are to be known for our passions.  We must burn with renewed passion for Him and Him alone!”

We need to teach our children more than just mere Bible stories, we need to do more than just lead them to the cross.  Jesus died and rose again.  We need to introduce them to Holy Spirit, the One who raised Christ from the dead and now lives in our hearts.  We need to not only model, but also teach our children to use their spiritual senses to see, hear, feel, taste and smell in the spirit so that they can go beyond where we are and accomplish great things for His Kingdom.