August 9, 2022

Judges 2: 7, 10 (NIV)

The people served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and the elders who outlived him and who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel. . . . After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel.

Jesus doesn't ask us to follow others; he asks us to follow him.*

The Israelites served the Lord throughout the lifetime of their dynamic leader, Joshua, but they began to drift away after Joshua’s death. As long as there was a remnant who remembered Joshua and who had seen what the Lord had done for them, there was some semblance of faithfulness among the people, but as soon as that generation was gone, the next generation had no memory and no motivation. 

There is a scary prediction that the church is just one generation away from extinction. That could be true if the church weren’t the Lord’s church. History proves that no matter how depraved the world becomes, a remnant of God’s people has always managed to survive. From the six people on the ark to the underground churches in the oppressed nations today, God has never not had a people. 

It is beautiful to behold a body of believers that is thriving due to a dynamic leader, but what happens when that leader tires or retires? Many congregations can’t survive the loss of their chief visionary. There are four measures every church should consider: 

1. Pursue strategies to prevent hero worship. A charismatic preacher is influential - even magnetic - but he should not be the reason people join the church. 

2. Develop a replacement strategy well in advance of the minister’s resignation. Sometimes people leave us without notice but it is still good to plan for a smooth transition. 

3. Train future leaders. You may not find your next preacher from among your current membership but you can prepare people to be the next elders and teachers and ministry team leaders. 

4. Keep the memory alive. Never let the new generation forget what God has done in the life of the generation before them. 

If you are not counted among the leaders of your church, you are still a person of influence. Pray for your ministers and your elders. Be a friend or an accountability partner. Do your part to remind others of the great things the Lord has done.

Christ’s church was designed to endure.*