“And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.” Isaiah 58:12
Due to recent events in my own life, I have arrived at a place of reflection. My wife and I have just completed our third year in full-time Evangelism and it has opened our eyes to some things we had not given much consideration. And now, we have become even more burdened about the condition of the local churches of our generation.
While serving as a pastor from 1995-2012 my focus was always on the particular church I was pastoring. That burden is always a heavy one to bear. Each pastor concerns himself with the people that he is shepherding, the finances of the church, maintaining the building, and reaching his community for Christ. These things and everything else that goes along with pastoring a church is overwhelming and we tend to stay focused on OUR PLACE. This certainly described Pastor K.R. Senn!
My vision and my focus have certainly changed. Having traveled the world preaching, my view has broadened and I have witnessed things that concern me. These are things that should concern us all because we are losing our generation.
Our attention seems to center upon just a few ministries that are making a difference. I am very thankful that there are still great ministries in our generation. But a growing number of our fundamental churches are struggling and dying.
Having spent three years ministering in some of these struggling churches, I have come to the conclusion that it is they who are on the front lines of this battle. The success or failure in reaching our generation will be determined by the success or failure of the thousands of churches that are scattered throughout our nation.
But what is success?
Too often we judge success by the size of the church. I reject that standard. I have preached in too many churches that have been planted in communities that will never be able to support a full-time pastor. Nevertheless, they thrive and consistently reach the people of their community. I challenge you to take a drive through northern Wisconsin, Minnesota, and North Dakota. Look at the tiny isolated communities along the highway. Visit the small towns that are scattered in the Mojave Desert where the population may only be 100 people. By some standards any church located in these places will never be successful. Nevertheless, they have continued to reach people and make an impact for Christ!
My concern is for churches who once had an impact and have chosen a different path. And I am also concerned for churches who were once busy and have become idle.
Recently in my personal devotions God spoke to my heart while reading Isaiah 58:12 “And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: …”
In this chapter Isaiah is commanded to “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.” (v1). As we read further, these people were religious people and even boasted about their religious lifestyle. But the truth is, they were hypocrites! They were quick to observe the outward appearance of religion, but they had no concern for the condition of their heart. In fact they thought that their outward observance would ensure that their prayers would be answered. When God didn’t answer those prayers they placed the blame at the feet of God! “Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not?” (Isaiah 58:3). God rebukes them for their attitude … “Behold, ye fast for strife and debate …”
I can see our generation in these verses. We know how to act religious, but we are unwilling to let God have our heart. We practice our outward religion “for strife and debate” with no desire to actually be what God wants us to be inside. Many seem to be saying, “Look at me … I’m more religious than you!”
But I also notice that in verse 9 there is a turning back to God and it results in God blessing them again. It is here we find the promise … “And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places.”
Our generation certainly has our share of waste places, but we also have a great future. If we repent, our WASTE places can become GREAT places again!
Raise the Foundations
The young people who have spent the first 18 years of their lives in our churches are leaving in record numbers. They are fleeing to liberal churches. This is a disturbing trend and something that needs to be addressed. Unfortunately, many churches have responded by becoming more like these liberal churches hoping that their young people will stay. Churches that were once stalwarts of the faith have transformed themselves into contemporary churches. They have changed their doctrine and dropped their standards. The very things that their church once stood upon have been destroyed.
The foundation of any building is the most critical part. Yet, the foundations of our local churches are being destroyed by our own hands! For several years we have stood by and watched this take place. Our churches are still dying and our young people are still leaving. Destroying the foundations has been a failed experiment and its time we admit it and raise the foundations of fundamentalism once again!
There are a number of reasons people leave a church. It is not always the attraction of the world that drives them away. It is always convenient to blame the world, their friends, or even the church that they eventually join. But sometimes it is our fault! Across this country I have preached in churches where children have grown up, become adults, stayed and became a vital part of that local church. The church didn’t change its doctrine and they are still conservative. IT CAN BE DONE and in many churches it is being done without destroying the foundation!
Repair the Breach
Sometimes I enjoy watching shows that restore old homes. It seems that in every episode there is an unexpected problem. Perhaps they are remodeling a bathroom and find a pipe had been leaking behind a wall, or a carpenter finds termites in the attic. They always repair the problem they have discovered. If the problem is ignored or covered up it always leads to a much larger problem in the future. If we are to “build up the old waste places”, we must repair the breaches.
Many of our churches still have a great foundation, but there are some breaches that must be addressed. Sometimes it is a breach of morality. God doesn’t bless a church or a people that harbor sin. You will notice in Isaiah 58 that God didn’t answer their prayers until their heart was repentant.
Sometimes there is a breach of perspective. Perhaps we are losing our young people because we no longer minister to their needs. Ministering and reaching young adults is different today. Their struggles are different and their needs are different. For example, they don’t find a church by looking through the phone book, they search the internet for a church to visit. This generation is connected through social media. If we are going to reach them, perhaps we should consider using the technology they are so connected to. Before they ever step foot into our church, they will already have an opinion formed by what they have gathered from the internet. They are starving for a message from God’s Word to help them handle the problems they currently face. They will probably listen to (or watch) a sermon on the church’s website before they ever visit. And when they do visit, they want to see people of their age group that are excited about serving God. I’ve preached in many churches that have exceled in this. They are proving that we can absolutely be relative without compromise!
Restore the Paths
Most of us have, at some time, returned to the place we once lived and found that great changes had taken place over the years. The path we once walked on through the field is no longer visible. People just stopped using the path and now it looks like the rest of the field.
There is a path that great Christians walked before us. The path of Bible preaching, soulwinning, and the genuine Christian life. It is now a path that is rarely traveled and it has become overgrown. We must restore that path. This will take time and effort. It will take men and women of our generation to walk that path again.
If we want to reach our generation they must see God’s blessing on our lives and churches. If we want people to join us on our journey they must see us walking the path that leads to the place of God’s blessings! Paul wrote something interesting to the church in Thessalonica, “Not because we have not power, but to make ourselves an ensample unto you to follow us.” (2 Thessalonians 3:9). Paul is simply saying that he had Spiritual authority that he could exercise over them, but his example was what they ultimately followed. Paul was a great leader because he was a great follower of our Lord. He had a great impact on his generation and many others that followed
Can we reach our generation? Absolutely! But we must engage in the work before it is too late! We MUST restore the foundation again, repair the breaches, and return to the path we once walked as Bible believing Christians.