A Word to the Generations Following (cont'd)

Let me say to older generations, for the years you have remaining to influence young people, do yourself a favor and don't ask them to do what you are unwilling to do yourself. Hello and welcome to this Thursday edition of Destined for Victory with Pastor Paul Shepherd, Senior Pastor at Destiny Christian Fellowship in Fremont, California.

Thanks so much for joining us. Pastor Paul has a word of encouragement to the younger generations today, as well as an admonition for those who are a little older. It's a lesson about setting a Christ-like example to those in our sphere of influence, about modeling right behavior and about saying I'm sorry when we sometimes fail. Today's message is straight ahead, but remember you can stop by pastorpaul.net anytime to hear recent Destined for Victory messages on demand or download the podcast at Google Podcasts or wherever you go to get yours. Now, here's Pastor Paul with today's Destined for Victory message.

A word to the generations following. I remember when God was moving mightily among young people in the latter 60s. It was called the Jesus movement. At the same time that our nation was dealing with the Vietnam War, at the same time our nation was dealing with all kinds of stuff, God hit young folk. They were getting saved in droves. It was especially housed out here out west, but it impacted young people all around the country, but especially both in Southern California and in Northern California you had the Jesus movement.

Right at the same time hippies were doing their thing and having free love celebrations and all that stuff. During the same time God started saving young people, they were getting saved. The hippies, some of the hippies were getting saved and coming into traditional churches that weren't really prepared for them didn't necessarily want them because they weren't looking the way church folk, they thought church folk ought to look, but these young folk were getting saved and wherever a church would be open to them they were opening up and finding Jesus in a powerful way. The reason why you have such a strong movement known as Calvary Chapel of America is because Chuck Smith and others like him took these young people in and began to disciple them and teach them the word of God and as a result of that ministry and his faithfulness Chuck has gone on to be with the Lord, but as a result of his faithfulness you have Greg Laurie and you have so many others, I'm not going to start naming names, so many others are changing their world because of the powerful move of God among young people.

Well I want to believe for that again and I want to urge the saints, let's pray for revival, let's ask God to move again. Lord you did it before, do it again because America needs you and American youth needs you and so I want you to join me in helping to bring that to pass as a result of our prayers. So the first point young people is haters gonna hate, don't let them get you off your game, shake it off because God has a plan for your life and I want to tell older folk don't be mad at young folk because they got the strength you used to have, don't be mad at young folk because they got the energy you used to have, don't be mad at young folk because they got good looks and they got vitality and they got vigor and vim and all that, we used to have it, don't get mad at them because they have it now, just thank God for what you used to have and bless it in these children that have it now. You heard me say it perhaps before, I don't like to see people beating up on young people, young folk need our support and our applause and so don't get mad at them, just support them all you can.

If you will be a positive force in their lives then when they really need you they'll know they can trust you and they'll come to you when they need some advice or some counsel and so don't be one of those who are gonna hate, haters gonna hate young folks but don't let it break your stride, shake it off and keep on doing things God's way. Here let me give you the second point and young folk listen to me very carefully, on behalf of some of the older generations, I've told you there are a few remaining greatest generation, there are some silent generations that are many of your grandparents, great grandparents and there are those of us who are the baby boomers and even because I'm talking to the last three generations I want to say older than you are also Gen X. I want to say on behalf of those four generations, on behalf of some of them because I can't speak for all of them because some of them will not agree with what I'm about to say but on behalf of those whose hearts are right and whose attitude is right I want to apologize to you young people for a number of things. I want to apologize to you on behalf of myself and some who would be humble enough to join in on this apology.

I want to apologize to you first for the ways in which we did not set a proper example for you. Fact of the matter is sometimes we older generations just flat out blew it in terms of our responsibility to set a good example because as you see what Paul was saying to his spiritual son Timothy here is I want you not to let people despise you but to set an example and that's what I'm asking you to do but before I challenge you to set an example young folk let me just be honest with you. We have to own up to the fact that some of us did not set a proper example that you could follow and we just need to own it. I hope there's some older folk in your life who when they hear me say this they will say to the young people in this sphere of influence you know pastor was right there's some things I should have done differently some things I should have done better and I was not the example I should have been for you and I want you to please forgive me. That would be so helpful older people for us to just own it that's all you got to do just own it that we didn't always set a proper example.

Now the second part of this is I want to apologize for the fact that not only didn't we always set a proper example but even worse sometimes we were actually hypocrites. The reason I'm doing this is because young people can't be asked to respect folk who are hypocrites. Don't ask them to respect you if you say one thing do another thing you talk a good game but your actual life defies and denies what you talk and so we might as well we older people might as well say not only did we always get it right but in some cases we tried to get you to go in a way that we were not ourselves going. Let me say to older generations for the years you have remaining to influence young people do yourself a favor and don't ask them to do what you are unwilling to do yourself. Don't be one of them kind of people you do what I say don't worry about what I do because young folk don't play that if you're gonna try to tell me what to do I better see you doing it better than I'm doing it. Fact of the matter is if you gonna say you just do what I say don't worry about my life then you're gonna be written off by these younger generations the Millennials Z and Alpha will all say forget you if all you gonna do is bark orders at me but your life defies and denies what you're saying to me I'm not interested at all. And so let me on behalf of the older people who are willing to join me in this apology let me apologize to you younger generations for the fact that we didn't always set a good example we sometimes preach one thing while practicing another thing and here's one that really pains me and I'm so glad that in my life this one is not true but I see it so often in the lives of others that I can't help but point it out to you young folk as I exhort you to set an example here is the thing that is sad to me that many of the older generation people in your life are too prideful and too full of themselves and too arrogant to acknowledge any of their wrongdoing. There are too many folks in Gen X baby boomers silent generation there are too many who have not apologized to the people in their lives for anything because they don't own that they do stuff wrong and I want to say to the older people listening to this message here's one thing I've learned about the younger generations they cannot hear what you're saying for watching what you do and when they watch what you do and they themselves know it's wrong you don't stand a chance of getting their ear and having their respect if you won't admit when there is clear to everybody who will look but you won't admit that you're wrong. I'm sorry I didn't say at the beginning of this this isn't a preaching hooping message so okay you see that by now I'm not trying to preach anybody happy I'm trying to talk to young folks from my heart because if we want to see God do amazing things through them if we want to see God move in their generations we got to give them the benefit of the best knowledge we can and I'm here to say young folk I get it you have seen a whole lot of not only hypocrites you have seen people who when they're wrong don't own that they're wrong. I've certainly had times of major failure in my life I've had times where I didn't know Lord what where do we go from here but I learned from the scriptures I'm so glad my dad and the Saints that raised me my mom and dad and the Saints that I grew up around they taught and modeled very clearly when you're wrong the way you get God to bless you is you admit you're wrong you humble yourself you ask for forgiveness and then you see what God will do in response.

What we're seeing instead is a whole lot of older people who the older they get the more prideful they get the more arrogant they get the more unwilling to own their stuff they get. Now stay with us the second half of Pastor Paul Shepherd's message is coming right up but we want to thank all of you who support Destined for Victory with your prayers and financial support those gifts help Pastor Paul share the gospel of Jesus Christ with a growing audience. Destined for Victory is of course a listener supportive ministry and today as we continue to face some tough challenges your support can be more helpful than ever. Please prayerfully consider making a gift to Destined for Victory today. Give online safely and securely from our website pastorpaul.net or give us a call at 855-339-5500 again that number is 855-339-5500. As the old saying goes people don't care what you know until they know that you care.

It's true. Let's explore that thought a little further in the rest of today's message a word to the generations following. Once again here's Pastor Paul. Now I'm a conservative gospel preacher I preach the book I don't pull punches I rightly divide the word but once I rightly divide the word I'm gonna preach the word and the word is sometimes gonna be very unpopular. Paul said to Timothy in his second letter to him he said the time is coming when people won't want to endure sound doctrine the times coming when people are gonna have itching ears King James calls it and what that means is they want to hear certain messages they want to hear something positive and something that affirms them and they don't want to hear about sin they don't want to hear about you got to change your life they don't want to hear about moral stuff and all of that and Paul said that day is coming and he told Timothy but you preach the word anyhow in other words don't change the message to suit people. Now young people let me tell you something I'm one of those older generation preachers who's committed to truth and I can't change the truth to make you happy but here's what I've learned that I can get the ear of people who don't even like the truth I'm preaching if they at least don't have to stumble over my unwillingness to admit wrong and to humble myself and we have a generation I'm scared of I'm scared of some of my colleagues in the Christian ministry who will always rail against cultural sin abortions abortion is not God's will clearly plain and simple it is not God's will under no circumstances is it God's will but God is a God who forgives people who sin and who confess and who go low before him and so we don't have to just push the agenda of morality without also pushing the grace of God that will help people get up from their sins and go in a different and better direction here's the problem you got a lot of young people though hearing you rail against their sins but they don't see you acknowledging yours we got a generation that's watching leaders talk about what's wrong in the world in terms of their moral pet peeves and they won't even admit that they're supporting people who lie unapologetically and they won't even admit yes they're lying to you and I'm here to say to you it is right for us to stand up for biblical morality it is wrong for us to not call out sin at the highest offices of leadership in our country and in our churches when those sins refused to be acknowledged much less repented of you know what I say it I didn't pull that punch and some of my colleagues aren't gonna like that I said it and that is gonna be on the radio my answer is oh well I'm all for standing for righteousness I'm also for calling out pride the Bible says God rejects the proud and so when we practice pride that refuses to admit wrong we have to own it and we have to ask God's forgiveness and we have to ask the young people's forgiveness I'm so glad that in my history I can say at times of gross failure in my own life I was able to sit down with my children who are Millennials and say please forgive me and they readily gave me that forgiveness because they knew dad's heart was to please God and where he has come short he has gone low before God and my children will have the knowledge the rest of their lives one day when I'm in my grave they'll say wasn't a perfect man but it was a man who wanted to please God and he knew how to humble himself in order to do it and let me tell you something that needs to be the resolve of all of us older people if you want to leave a legacy don't leave a legacy of hypocrisy and pride leave a legacy where young folk will say yeah mom wasn't she she had her issues but she was humble and she was honest and she didn't try to act like she was something that she was not so I want to apologize for those things because young people I want to admit that a lot of the older generation has spent too much time railing against your sins without owning their own and that is wrong and for that I want you to forgive all of us who should have set a better example for you and did not and I want to ask older people before I close this message I want to ask older people please have a time where you let this truth sink in say Holy Spirit reveal to me where there are things I need to say to people in my life I need to settle some accounts I need to own some wrongdoing and help me to do it there's no statute of limitation on acts of humility no statute of limitations at the end of the day if you need to humble yourself to your kids your grandkids your nieces nephews whoever it is your spouse your siblings your parents anybody in your life you need to humble yourself to do it because that's the way you get God to bless you let me say this final point and that is this even if you have had the wrong example set for you which I've talked about many of us did Paul's challenge to you young people is even if the wrong example was set for you please set the right example for those you're going to influence in other words Paul is saying Timothy I'm not giving you a pass because other folk didn't necessarily set a good example for you he's saying you young man set the right example and he tells him how to do it set the example in what you say clean up your mouth young people I don't care how popular how normative it is clean up your mouth some of y'all just say all kinds of trash out your mouth it does not please God read your Bible God tells you to talk like you have some sense and have some home training set the right example in your words set the right example in your conduct just cause other folk are doing it doesn't mean God says you can do it sin is still sin wrong is still wrong God will not give you a pass because everybody around you is doing it if you've got to be the one person standing while everybody else is bowing you've got to be like one of the Hebrew boys in the book of Daniel everybody else is bowing to the idol you got to stand tall on what you know to be right set an example in what you say set an example in your conduct set an example in the way you love you love God and you love people make sure you do it in a way that pleases the Lord set an example in your spirit your inner person make sure that you have a good inner life don't just be a person who is everything is about the outside don't be bold on the outside and vague on the inside let your spirit grow up and become a mature young man or woman in this world set an example in spirit set an example in faith learn how to walk by faith and not by sight learn how to believe God learn how to do his will learn how to believe him for answered prayer set an example in faith and finally set an example in purity I don't care how normative it is sin sexual sin is always going to be sexual sin or verbal sin such as lying and cursing and all of that stuff all verbal sin is still gonna be verbal sin if you commit it just say oops sorry shouldn't have said that please forgive me and keep it moving but don't justify sin sin is always wrong be pure in your actions be pure in your relationships be pure in your words be pure in the development of your habits so that God can get glory out of your life set an example don't just bellyache that there was a wrong one set for you by all means make sure you set a right example for the other people in your life God has called each of us to set an example of faith to those around us an example of loving God and loving people and when we fail sometimes we will let's learn to set an example of humility by saying the words I'm sorry you know every day here at destined for victory we ask people to stand with us financially that's because we're a listener supportive ministry that means the only way we exist is through the prayers and financial support of people just like you and in 2021 our prayers that you might consider if you haven't done so already becoming a 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