“Over and over again, when the generation that had known and obeyed the Lord passed away, the next one would forget him and seek the peculiar power of some other god” Walter Wangerin on the book of Judges.
“Over and over again, when the generation that had known and obeyed the Lord passed away, the next one would forget him and seek the peculiar power of some other god” Walter Wangerin on the book of Judges.
As I read the book of Judges, I see the old truth of the law of entropy at work time and again – that is, everything winds down over time and becomes more scattered. Spiritually speaking, a generation meets God in power. Their children are respectful of God and have a mediocre relationship with Him. Their children don’t know God and become pagan.
Surely this is different for us in the age of the Holy Spirit? Sadly, this is often as true for us as it was for Israel. How often the grandchildren of godly people don’t know – or care about the Lord – they go off and worship at shrines of money, status and self-indulgence – and the church of Christ is impotent.
J.B. Phillips said: “The trouble with many people today is that they have not found a God big enough for modern needs. While their experience of life has grown in a score of directions…their ideas of God have remained largely static. It is obviously impossible for an adult to worship the conception of God that exists in the mind of a child of Sunday School age, unless he is prepared to deny his own experience of life. If, by a great effort of will, he does do this he will always be secretly afraid lest some new truth may expose the juvenility of his faith. And it will always be by such an effort that he either worships or serves a God who is really too small to command his adult loyalty and cooperation.”
How dangerous to vital faith when God is put in a box – he appears when we open the lid – He knows his place as one slice of the pie of our life. The creator and sustainer of the universe is at our beck and call – He is too small!
I believe that every generation needs to see a move of God among them. To see a great big God – to understand the need for personal repentance – to really listen to the Holy Spirit. In 1972 a visitation of the Spirit swept through Western Canada, starting in Saskatoon, and moving to the Pacific. Messy, powerful, refreshing, irresistible. Tens of thousands of Christians came back to their first love – they were imprinted for life. I had the privilege of being one of those people – a teen at the time. I have looked for it ever since. We have not had a movement of the Spirit like that for 45 years – a generation. I talk with Christians these days who have never experienced the Holy Spirit assuming the chair and I wish they could see it. Our former Alliance president, Arnold Cook, said: “Revivals aren’t intended to last. They come and go. Their transitory nature is inherent in the term revival – to resuscitate, relive, renew, recommit, return again to God. Revival is God’s tender provision for His people who are prone to wander.”
Carol and I were recently on a trip that took us to Egypt. Our Muslim guide was teaching us about that religion, and she said – ‘we Muslims are human just like you (western Christianized people) – some are devout and many are nominal.’ I thought about that – is MY faith alive? Am I revived? After all, revival is not for culture at large – it is for the people of God – you and me. Certainly we need to walk in the Spirit every day – the ‘normal’ Christian life – but we also need times of refreshing – Encounters with a great big God!
A few years ago I woke up to heavy rain and the sound of water splashing on the driveway – a blockage of some kind. Later I got on a ladder and undid the downspout – I stuck a screwdriver inside – it unplugged the blockage and water poured everywhere – including on me – as it poured down the drain! This happens every once in a while in our spiritual lives. We get a blockage that restricts what God can do in our life. When we remove the blockage, blessing can pour freely again. Maybe you are plugged up with something. Maybe your God has become too small. It’s time to repent and ask for a fresh vision of who He is. Do that today!
Have a listen to this great song by Brian Doerksen.
Pastor Leon Throness
Set aside the evening of December 1 for a wonderful Encounter service in the Chapel called “Come to Bethlehem and see.” We will spend some time on ‘advent’ – preparing our hearts for the coming birth of the Saviour.
