The Future of the Lord’s Church

Spiritual Matters

The future of Lord’s Church is greatly dependent upon the present Lord’s Church.  While it is impossible to know where the Lord’s Church will be as a whole, years from now, the responsibility nonetheless is incumbent upon us to prepare our youth to be just that: the future of the Lord’s Church.  When considering this subject of great importance, it becomes apparent to me that:

I.  It Requires Urgency…

Procrastination has been aptly called “The Devil’s Chloroform”.  One thing that is pertinent for each of us to admit, is if we sit around and wait for someone else to do something, nothing will get done.  The Church needs to be concerned about its future and the time to be concerned is now!  Concerns need to be met with urgency.  It is imperative for all of us to understand that we have a responsibility.  In (Haggai 1:4-7) – God’s people are rebuked for procrastinating in the rebuilding of God’s house while they lived in nice homes. 4 “Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?” 5 Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways!

6 “You have sown much, and bring in little; You eat, but do not have enough; You drink, but you are not filled with drink; You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; And he who earns wages, Earns wages to put into a bag with holes.”

7 Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways!”

May we in the Lord’s Church stop for a moment and “consider our ways”…

II.  Consideration for The Young…

Young people have responsibilities and commands that are very clear in the Bible. (Ephesians 6:1-3) “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother,” which is the first commandment with promise: 3 “that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.” (Colossians 3:20) “20 Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord.”  The very consideration for our youth should begin with our very next point:

III.  Parents in the Lord’s Church

Parents have a great responsibility to their children and to the Lord concerning the raising of the children they are blessed with.

  1. In Instruction – Instruction is the responsibility of the parents. This is something that our society seems to have forgotten.  We cannot depend on schools alone to educate our children academically; and we certainly cannot depend on Bible class alone to instruct our kids in the Word of God.  (Proverbs 22:6) “Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.”  There are outstanding lessons in Moses’s instructions to the Israelites in Deuteronomy chapter 6. (Deuteronomy 6:6-9) “6 And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”  We as parents must give diligence to have God’s Word in front of our children as much as possible.  We must instruct them in the gospel and ensure that they are taught truth with the ultimate goal that they become a Christian.  It is becoming ever more apparent that this preparation has to include preparing these young people to serve in the offices defined in the scriptures.  We need men that are qualified and prepared to fill these roles, and the preparation should begin while they are young, in the home, by their parents.
  2. Discipline – Discipline of children is of vital importance.  While discipline is certainly not enjoyable for any party involved, it is however necessary according to scripture.  (Proverbs 13:24) “He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly.”  Discipline applied by parents, is able to teach that child to respect authority and is an aid in understanding our subjection to God.  (Hebrews 12:9-11) “9 Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. 11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”   Discipline is of absolute necessity for children to grow up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. (Ephesians 6:4)
  3. In Example – Parents are to be examples to our children as Christians.  What we teach them as children to be priority will likely be what they place emphasis upon as adults.  Children that are taught that secular education is most important, will likely place secular education above all else as an adult.  Children that are shown by example that sports are more important than Wednesday night Bible Study, will place sports above attendance at mid-week Bible Study as adults.  Children follow the example set by their parents.  

IV.  Older People of the Lord’s Church…

Older men and women have instructions in the Bible as well. (Titus 2:1-5) “But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: 2 that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; 3 the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things— 4 that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.”  It is pertinent to the future of the Lord’s Church for the older and mature members of the Lord’s Church to teach younger Christians, both men and women to seek God first in their lives.  It is imperative that the older generations teach the younger generations through experience.  The desire should be for future generations to be improving upon our mistakes.  This is one simple way to entrust the future of the Lord’s Church to the future generations:  to teach them to learn from our mistakes.

V.  The Teaching of The Lord’s Church

Preachers and bible class teachers have a responsibility to teach the truth.  Elders of the Lord’s Church have the responsibility of ensuring that this happens.  (Titus 1:9-11) 9 holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict. 10 For there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, 11 whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not, for the sake of dishonest gain.  We must teach our young Christians and children to be:

  1. Doctrinally Sound – Sound doctrine is an absolute necessity to the future of the Lord’s Church. (2 Timothy 4:1-5) “I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: 2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. 5 But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” The inspired apostle Paul wrote to Timothy concerning the need to preach the word, and adhere to sound doctrine. We cannot afford for our children and grandchildren to be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine. As we look throughout the churches of Christ we can see congregations who were once sound, but have strayed far off the narrow path. Paul writing to the Galatians stated in (Galatians 1:6-9) “6 I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, 7 which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.” We as the Lord’s Church cannot even greet folks that teach false doctrine. (2 John 1:9-11) “9 Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; 11 for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.”
  2. Morally Clean – It is absolute necessity to teach our children and grandchildren to remain morally clean.  Satan has the world in his grasp and is working daily to steal their attention and their minds… WE MUST TEACH THEM TO BE PURE IN:
    • Speech – (1 Peter 3:8-10) “8 Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; 9 not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing. 10 For “He who would love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit.”
    • Action – (1 John 2:15-17) “15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
    • Sexuality – (Ephesians 5:3-5) “3 But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; 4 neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. 5 For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.”
    • Modesty – (Galatians 5:19-21) “19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
    • Future Service – As stated previously, it is imperative to start preparing young men to fulfill the roles defined in the scriptures as Elders and Deacons (ref. 1 Timothy 3:1-13) and the young women to live in a manner in which they can serve as the wife of an Elder or Deacon (1 Timothy 3:11) 11 Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things. A wife can disqualify an Elder or Deacon, just as much as the man himself. 
  3. Diligent In Service – It is necessary for the Lord’s Church to continue to teach current Christians and our children and grandchildren to be diligent in service, bearing fruit! (John 15:4) “4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.” We need to teach the fact that we were created to serve God. (Ephesians 2:10) “10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

VI.  The Ultimate Future of the True Lord’s Church

We need to teach the Lord’s Church, present and future, that the ultimate future is defined in God’s Word. (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18) “13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.

15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.”

The future of the Lord’s Church depends on what we do in the present. Each member has a role in this. (Ephesians 4:11-16).  It must be urgent, truthful, intentional, and constant.  Let us all “consider our ways” and strive diligently to do our part.  The future of the Lord’s Church and our children and grandchildren’s souls depend on it…