Title - The Three Generations of Faith
Text - Judges 2:6-10; Psalm 78:1-8
Intro. - In the book Pentecostals in Crisis author Ron Auch says, and I quote, “Already we can see the first symptoms of the illness creeping through the body of the Pentecostal church: we still claim to believe in the supernatural manifestations of God’s power, but we rarely see it in our services anymore. ‘I believe God sets each church on a path (vision). Once they lose sight of that path, they perish. They may not cease to be; but they just no longer exist with God’s purposes in mind.’ "
It has been said that:
1. There was a generation that saw and experienced the move of God.
(First Generation)
2. Then there was a generation that saw the move of God but didn’t experience the move of God. (Second Generation)
3. Then there was a generation that neither saw nor experienced the move of God. (Third Generation)
Another way of saying the same thing is:
1. The first generation knew the Lord of the work.
2. The second generation knew the work of the Lord.
3. The third generation knew neither the Lord of the work or the work of the Lord.
The so-called Azusa Street revival has been recorded in history as a power encounter with God that was a hallmark for the Pentecostal church. The movements greatest distinction in its first generation was its adherents powerful encounters with God. God was there manifesting Himself without any kind of restrictions. That was enough to draw people. Holy Spirit wrought conviction drove the lost to the altars where they found God. No one knew what was going to happen next.
These powerful experiences, which set the Pentecostal church apart and made them the most radical element in Christianity, served as a reference point for the Pentecostal movement. Each new convert was reminded in a moment of great tribulation to look back to the day when he met Christ and was encouraged instantly as he was reminded of his purpose as a Christian. For the rest of his life, his purpose was to know his God in His power and to fellowship with Him.
The movement also had a collective purpose: to introduce the world to God as He is: real, conscious, and to a certain degree, quite tangible. They ran into conflict with the notion that God should be worshipped and recognized on man’s terms, as a God who was “somewhere up there,” but who (“perhaps fortunately”) didn’t intervene in the lives of men.
During this era it appeared to many that the old relic called “religion” was on its way out, while science was on its way in. Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution was catching on big in Europe and was just establishing a foothold in the scientific community in the United States. Many made the transition from passive Christianity to atheism and agnosticism because finally, it was supposed, science had proved that the Bible was a long-lived collection of myths. Man finally had a “rational” reason to do away with God.
At this time, most of the mainline denominations offered services that could be certified and approved by such “enlightened” skeptics. By this I mean that atheists could have attended these services without batting an eyelash. With one eyebrow smugly arched, they could have explained away those “primitive rituals” (and did!). They did this with ease and assurance because they observed nothing happening in a Christian “ritual.” People sang. People made speeches (which the Christians called “sermons”).
In the case of these many “rituals,” all was centered on a God who showed no signs of existing. As far as many learned scholars were concerned, one Christian church was pretty much like any other religious group. It was just a gathering of people doing things any atheist could have done: singing, speaking, and so forth. Such man-oriented, man-limited services were the norm -- until the Pentecostal movement surfaced.
The Pentecostal movement dared to invite God to become a very active participant in their services instead of just a dubious mute observer sitting in some kind of spiritual grandstand. Such divine involvement yielded frustration for skeptics who were left grasping at straws to explain such goings on. Some abandoned their skepticism to meet their eternal destiny, while only the most stubborn continued to grasp at their scientific straws.
The first years of the twentieth century were glorious days for those called “Pentecostals.” The flame and fire of the Holy Spirit blazed through their ranks and on into the hurting world. They introduced the world to a real God, laying waste to numerous religious ceremonies and the impersonal worship being carried out in the name of Christ.
Yet, these first generation Christians fell short of fulfilling one crucial obligation.
Deuteronomy 4:9 says, “Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons;”
Although they continued to live and breathe for the purposes of knowing God and making Him known, not forgetting the things they had seen, they did not truly make them known to their children and to their children after them. A breakdown in communication occurred. I’m afraid the same thing is happening today in Pentecost.
My goals are:
1. To take us back to the reference point of first generation Pentecost: prayer.
2. To help us see where we are.
3. To help us see where our church is, where our children are, and where we are in relation to the experience of that first generation.
4. To see what we need to do to go back to the experience of the first generation and transfer that experience to the second and third generation.
To help us better understand how this process works. I want to use as an example Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, three generations, and consider the natural decline that took place in each generation.
I. First Generation: Abraham
A. Allow me to define the term first generation as it relates to the message:
1. I will use the term first generation to refer to those who, not by order of birth in a family genealogy but to those who came into Pentecost through salvation.
2. For example, by order of natural birth you may be third generation. However, if you were the first one in your family to come into Pentecost then you are a first generation Pentecostal. Any children that are born to you then fall into second generation and their children will fall into third generation. If you fall into that category you are crucial to breaking the cycle in your family.
B. At age 75 (Sarah his wife was 65), Abraham received from God the sevenfold features of the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 12:2-3).
a. “I will make of thee a great nation” (12:2).
b. “I will bless thee” (12:2).
c. “I will... make thy name great” (12:2).
d. “Thou shalt be a blessing” (12:2).
e. “I will bless them that bless thee” (12:3).
f. “I will... curse him that curseth thee” (12:3).
g. “In thee shall all families of the earth be blessed” (12:3).
C. It was during the generation of Abraham that God began to do something new. Abraham was in the first generation of this new covenant relationship with God. In Genesis 15 and Genesis 17 you can read about that covenant. There were several things that God did to establish that covenant with Abraham. One of the significant things that God did is found in Genesis 17:1-6 which says, “And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. 2And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. 3And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, 4As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. 5Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. 6And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.”
1. It is significant to note that God changed his name. He had been changed by God. This is always a characteristic of first generation believers. They are in need of a complete change. When they meet God and his power God establishes a covenant with them and completely changes them.
D. By studying Abraham, we can see certain characteristics that are shared universally by first generation believers. There are two specifically that I want to bring to your attention.
a. The thing we notice about Abraham is that he was an altar builder. Notice the following scriptures:
1. Genesis 12:7-8 - “And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him. 8And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD.”
2. Genesis 13:18 - “Then Abram removed his tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the LORD.”
3. Genesis 22:9-10 - “And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. 10And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.”
a. Altar building is symbolic of prayer, or perhaps we could say that prayer is symbolic of building. In either case, there is a direct relationship. Abraham built the numerous altars he built so that he could worship God and sacrifice to Him.
b. Prayer was the catalyst that caused the remarkable manifestations of the Holy Spirit at Azusa Street. It was prayer that fanned into flame all those power encounters subsequent to salvation. Without prayer, none of these Pentecostal distinctions would have ever bloomed.
c. It is very important for us to realize why first generation Christians prayed if we are ever to understand why most Christians today do not pray.
1. You see, first generation Christians had a ravenous hunger to spiritually experience their God. That’s how they first met Jesus, and they never wanted to lose sight of that. Furthermore they knew that a power encounter with God was subsequent to prayer, so they prayed.
2. Their children, the second generation, however, were at a disadvantage in the area of prayer because they grew up in the midst of revival.
3. They didn’t have the motivation to pray that their parents did. Unlike their parents, these second generation Christians did not have a power encounter at salvation. They grew up in a Christian home, living under Biblical standards of morality. Then, at some point, they got saved. However, they did not experience the Lord’s power as their parents had because they grew up in this atmosphere in the home of being surrounded by a godly influence and encouragement in the home to serve God. They did however, experience His redemptive grace through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, but not His power as their parents. The first generation experienced it because they required that power to change their lives. Their children and grandchildren, however, were already living by Biblical morals and so were not required to change. Therefore, they didn’t experience God’s power as their predecessors did.
4. The second generation Christians who accepted Christ were saved, but that’s about all. They didn’t hunger after an experience with God which can be seen only in prayer. How could they? You can’t hunger after something you’ve never tasted. Therefore, they had neither the motivation to pray, nor an understanding of how important prayer is.
5. An excellent example of the domino theory, the series of chain reactions continues. Because so many in the second generation prayed infrequently, they did not have the awesome power and person of the Holy Spirit manifested as their parents did. They didn’t witness remarkable signs and wonders with the frequency or intensity that their parents did. The extent to which the power of the Holy Spirit was manifested was proportional to the extent that they prayed.
6. So we can safely say that Abraham possessed the spirit of a prayer warrior, manifesting that spirit everywhere he went as he built altar after altar to sacrifice to God.
b. The second characteristic that we notice about Abraham is that he dug wells. His wells were a reflection of his desire to bless others. His wells also symbolized a great deal of hard work and self denial. Notice the following scriptures:
1. Genesis 21:25-30 - “And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech’s servants had violently taken away. 26And Abimelech said, I wot not who hath done this thing: neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to day. 27And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant. 28And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. 29And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves? 30And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.”
2 Abraham was generous and he was fighting for that which he was to leave to the second generation. Unfortunately, both of these traits began to fade in the subsequent generations. I believe that this is a natural declining process that takes place unless it is stopped. And it is up to us to stop the erosion of Pentecostal power.
c. First generation pentecostals were a people of hard work. There places of worship left a lot to be desired by today’s standards. There was no central heat and air conditioning. They did not have P.A. systems, carpet, padded pews, or padded altars. But they had the anointing and power of God in their life and services. They worked hard to bless their children with the things they did not have. Through prayer and hard work they blessed their children with everything they did not have.
d. They were a people of self-denial. They had convictions that came to them from God. They recognized the danger in flirting with things that appeared to be harmless. They felt the way they did because God had delivered them from a life of hard sin and they did not want to go back to that. So they cut off the world and any connection to it at all. Luxury was not a necessity if it meant the sacrifice of the power of God. All they had was the presence of God and his power in their life. They had to trust God because they had nothing else to sustain them.
E. For the first generation of any movement, the prayer and self-sacrifice Abraham practiced with such fervor are musts. They pray, and pray, and pray, and pray. They have no blessings initially. The only thing they can offer to God at the altar is themselves. But as time marches on, and as God is faithful, blessings come to them as surely as for Abraham. Then like Abraham, they begin to dig wells of blessings for their children as their churches become more organized and better equipped. But the second generation walks in next, and that’s where the trouble starts.
II. Second Generation: Isaac
A. In the patriarchal case we’ve been studying, Isaac was the second generation. Because his father, Abraham, was a man who diligently sought after God, Isaac was the recipient of that blessing. His father, a well digger of the first order, had invested his life establishing something for Isaac to move into, freeing him from the weighty burden of starting from scratch.
1. Isaac’s inherited blessing. Genesis 26:1-5, 12-16 - “And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar. 2And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: 3Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; 4And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; 5Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. 12Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him. 13And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great: 14For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him. 15For all the wells which his father’s servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth. 16And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we.”
a. God’s nature is to pass onto the next generation the blessing of the first generation. But that blessing must be maintained by the second and third generation in the same way that the first generation received it to start with.
B. However, this freedom is not entirely beneficial. It carries with it some drawbacks. For example, the second generation doesn’t place the same priority on “altar building” and “well digging” that the first generation did. The ideas of sacrifice and self denial are not a must for them. Similarly, prayer is not held in the high esteem that it was a generation before. This is due, at least in part, to the comfortable setting they’ve stepped into. There’s no struggling to build a church in their case. Everything is pretty much downhill. At least for them it is, but their children will not receive any blessings because you cannot establish blessing for the next generation without prayer. If you try, the “wells” you dig will hold no water.
C. It is without prayer that the second generation tries to improve upon what the first generation accomplished. When prayerless Isaac did this he ran into trouble. Notice:
1. Isaac runs into trouble. Genesis 26:19-20 - “And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water. 20And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac’s herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well Esek; because they strove with him. 21And they digged another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah.”
a. This is a textbook case of a man trying to improve upon a plan God established in a people of prayer. Isaac, not a prayer warrior like his father, tried to improve upon his dad’s work and collided with envy and strife. Yet there is more to the story for just in the previous verse we find Isaac did reopened the wells of his Father Abraham. That was where Isaac found the blessings. Later when he dug the new wells he received only envy and strife. It wa then that Isaac did something the most second generationers don’t do: he realized that his father’s ways were the only ways. He went back to his father’s wells.
2. Isaac’s renewal of his father’s ways. Genesis 26:18,22, 24-25 - “And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them. 22And he removed from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not: and he called the name of it Rehoboth; and he said, For now the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land. 24And the LORD appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake. 25And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac’s servants digged a well.”
D. Not very many second generation believers do what Isaac did because their spiritual circumstances are nothing like what their parents were. It’s difficult for these young people who have received so many blessings to grasp what their parents went through. They were never the victims of egg-hurling scorners, as their parents were. They can’t relate to that. Neither can they relate to having nothing but God. No, because of the blessings they have received, they do not face the same circumstances which helped to shape their parents faith. It’s because they don’t improve upon what their elders held most important that they try to “improve” upon things.
E. The problem with the first generation is that they assume that their descendants will automatically understand why they feel as strongly as they do about certain issues, but their children will never just automatically know. They can’t. Their world and their spiritual environment in which they grow up is so different that they can’t just somehow end up walking the same path. Sadly enough, though, because the first generation assumes they understand, they never take the time to explain it to their children, and from here, the problem snowballs.
F. It is interesting to note that Isaac’s name was never changed. This is a characteristic of the second generation believer. Because they grew up in the midst of blessing they feel no real need to change.
III. Third Generation: Jacob
A. The result of the difference between the first and second generation is a movement which has changed in all but name from what it was at its inception. By the time the third generation rolls around we have a movement who for the most part have no idea what the roots of our fellowship are. What was a must for the first generation and a convenience for the second generation, becomes nonsense to the third generation.
B. All this talk about doing things the old way makes no sense to the average third generation believer. The old ways, it is said, are for the old days, and the new days require new ways. The average third generation believer claims that in this area we are dealing with cultural issues when we are not. Prayer is never a cultural issue. It transcends all cultures, societies, and ages. It should be basic to every generation everywhere.
C. In addition the third generation becomes a group of schemers, like Jacob, their equivalent in Genesis. They scheme to cover a lack of holiness under the guise of cultural differences, personal tastes, individual backgrounds, and individual pasts. Like Jacob, they become deceivers and supplanters. They are always scouting out new ways, while ignoring the old way, the way of prayer.
D. Anyone who has gone to Sunday School as a child knows the story of how Jacob conned his brother Esau into giving him his birthright. Eventually Jacob was brought face to face again with the brother he deceived so many years earlier. The last thing Jacob heard his brother say was something about how he was going to kill him. It was something everyone, including Jacob, took seriously for that was when his mother sent him away to marry one of Laban’s daughters. In Genesis 32, Jacob was about to come face to face not just with his brother, but also with his won deceit.
E. At this point Jacob was fearing for his life. He doubted that his chicanery had slipped Esau’s mind over the years. He had to do something. As was natural for him, he did things his way instead of God’s way. He tried to buy his brother off. He sent his family and all his possessions on ahead of him and he waited for Esau to come. While he was waiting something unusual happened to him. Let’s pick up the story in:
1. Genesis 32:24-32 - “And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. 25And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. 26And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. 27And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. 28And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. 29And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. 30And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. 31And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh. 32Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew that shrank.”
a. I believe the phrase “Jacob was left alone” is significant. There was nobody else around, no one to talk to, and nothing in particular to do. It’s at those moments that we are left with no choice but to confront ourselves for who we really are. For Jacob, as for many of us, it was no easy task. The scripture tells us that an angel wrestled with Jacob all night. I’m sure that Jacob was not just wrestling with an angel that night. He was also wrestling with himself. He looked deep inside himself and didn’t like what he saw. He wanted to change. The hope of the third generation will be when they look deep inside their heart of hearts dislike like what they see and they want to change.
b. Notice what happens to Jacob at this point. Consequently, he would not let go of the angel for fear that he would come out of the ordeal the same old Jacob. He politely informed the angel of this, to which the angel finally responded, “What is your name?” At this point, Jacob had to humble his pride and admit, “I am Jacob.” It was humbling because his name was synonymous with “supplanter.” At that moment, he was changed, and to bear witness to this, the angel declared, :You will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel.” The same thing happened to him that happened to his grandfather Abraham. A characteristic of third generation believers is that they have the same kind of encounter with God that the first generation had and it results in a change in their life.
c. What changed Jacob was admitting who and what he was. It was a moment of admittance and repentance, and it was his own decision to return to the wells of his grandfather, Abraham. After this, he knew the true blessings from above. These blessings were already established, but he could not receive them until he admitted the error of his ways and returned to the old, true ways.
d. The story concludes by telling how Jacob was no longer afraid of Esau and telling how Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him, throwing his arms around his neck and kissing him as they wept together. What a reunion they had!
Conclusion
What I have described so far is a cycle.
If we examine Abraham carefully, we will see that he needed a drastic change in his life. God needed to do some work on him before this man would be able to be the earthly head of a brand new plan of God. He needed to be a man of power and strength. He needed a power encounter with God to bring this about, and he had it. Then, symbolic as a new beginning and a new destiny as “the father of many nations,” God changed his name to “Abraham.”
Isaac, on the other hand, had no real need to change. He grew up in the midst of a revival, of sorts. He had all the blessings handed down to him from Abraham, the first generation. All he had to do was sustain revival through prayer, but he failed to do this.
It was because Isaac failed to sustain the revival through prayer that his descendant, Jacob, was in need of a power encounter. Therefore, the third generation becomes most crucial because these people will usher in the next generation, the generation which will begin the cycle all over again.
There remains in this issue one last significant matter for us to consider. Joseph, the fourth generation, the generation of revival. I believe God wants us to shake off the dust of our feet and get back to concerning ourselves with the salvation of our neighbors and the world. That would build our dependency on prayer once again.
God knows how to bring his church back to the place where we depend on Him again. He knows how to force to our knees in prayer. He longs for a people who will spend time with Him once again in the place of prayer.
I believe the world is looking for something different. However, if we do not again become a people who zealously go after God, we will never have that something different to offer them.
(Some of the content of this sermon came from personal experience and from the book Pentecostals in Crisis by author Ron Auch).
