Conservative Post

There is always within the culture and even in our churches the conflict between older and younger generations. The younger are always looking for the newer, faster, and the better. There can be no doubt that they are, in so many cases, discontent with methods and ways of doing things they saw growing up. The older generation often is working to maintain what they have known for many years, and have seen work hundreds of times over. I have a concern that in so many cases where this conflict of generation’s pops up the older congregants get the short end of the stick, and often without legitimate cause. The fact that the older generations have been serving God faithfully for many years, and have spent more time in scripture than far too many pastors is overlooked.

Just because differences arise between the generations does not mean the core problem or conflict is a “generational gap”. It just may in fact, at times, be that the new thing being presented is in error and needs to be carefully looked at with older eyes and wisdom. Attaching catch words to new ideas, such as “cultural context”, “progress”, or any number of other words should not immediately give the idea credibility as the right thing to do. I am greatly disturbed at the growing disrespect to our older generation. As of late it seems the younger generations cannot wait for them to go home to heaven so as not to be hindered by them.

When the church loses its respect for our older members because we cannot get our agenda through then we have lost sight of what a church is as a whole and the church is now a reproach. We need to remember that the word of God speaks favorably of our older generations (Pro 16:31). Maybe we need to spend as much time if not more trying to understand the older generation as we do running out and trying to understand the lost culture. If nowhere else, understanding ought to begin in the church first and foremost even if we “think” the older generation is not trying to understand anyone else.

We need to recognize that there is a vast difference between a generational gap and carnal minded Christians. The latter come in all sorts of stripes and colors and it is in error to assume the older generation is being carnal minded just because they do not immediately buy into what is new and presented as “culturally relevant”. This “cultural relevance” does more to divide people in our churches than anything else these days. We need to honor our older congregants just as much if not more than the world’s culture. Let’s get back to treating our older congregants with the love and respect they deserve.

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There is growing concern among Christians about the removal of “Christ” from the word Christmas which is often replaced with the “X”. There is also a growing concern for the removal of the word Christmas altogether from personal greetings to customers in retail stores and in titles of events, during Christmas time, like parades.  It is clear that there are those who are intentionally working to remove Christ from the public square. But we want to be careful not to see boogy men under every nook and cranny. Even the use of the word Christmas means nothing more to many Americans than just a title only connected to a holiday that gives one an opportunity to give and get presents and have a day or two off of work.

While it is important to remember the reason for the season we want to be sure that we handle concerns with all credibility. If we see every instance of the lack of Christ in our greetings ad titles during this season as an attempt to pull Christ from the season itself then we will lack credibility. We need to be measured in our response to this and not easily offended in every instance. Often we cannot know the intent or motivation behind the lack of using Christ. But what we can do is make His message plain and abundant. As Ecclesiastes tells us there is a time for everything under the sun. And there is a time for offense but not in every instance.

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