The Tension Between Generations...

This past weekend, we paused as a church to celebrate the accomplishments of students who are graduating High School and beginning the next chapter of their lives. Actually, these students are not simply receiving a piece of paper that that tells them that they have completed their High School education. You see, the issue that these students face is not simply one of graduation; for these students, the issue that they face is one of transition. A transition from living at home to living away from home.

A transition from attending High School to attending college, trade school, or no school. A transition from working on homework for a grade to working on a job for a paycheck. A transition from being dependent to being independent. And for many, this time of transition is an emotional rollercoaster that combines the joy that comes with freedom and independence mixed with a fear and uncertainty that comes from moving forward away from the certainty that they have previously experienced.

This is a time of transition where these young men and women must wrestle with the tension of moving from adolescence to adulthood. A tension where, on the one hand they are expected to assume a greater level of responsibility while, on the other hand, they are not given the opportunity to assume that responsibility. A tension where, on the one hand, they are filled with a vision and a passion to make a difference in the world while, on the other hand, they are told that they are too young to make a difference in the world. A tension where they are young enough to be still have a belief that they can make a difference in the world and are not old enough to have been infected with the skepticism that cannot make a difference.

A tension that results in frustration when they are told that they need to grow up, but are not given the opportunity to show that they have grown up. A tension that results in frustration when the bar of expectations is low and the skepticism that they can reach those expectations is high. A tension that results in frustration when they are viewed as the church of the future instead of the church of the present.

So this week, I would like for us to engage the younger generation and answer a question that flows from this tension. And that question is this: How should the younger generation respond to those around them who tell them that they are too young to make a difference? How should the younger generation respond when the older generation looks at them with skepticism? How should the younger generation respond when they believe that they are devalued and discounted by the older generation?

What is so interesting is that this tension, this frustration, and this question is not a new question. This tension between generations and the frustration that arises from this tension has been around for 2,000 years. And in a letter that is recorded for us in the Bible, we see a member of the older generation named Paul write a letter to a member of the younger generation named Timothy. And it is in this letter that Paul makes a statement that provides for us a timeless principle for the next generation; a timeless principle that enables the younger generation to navigate through this tension and frustration as they transition to a new stage of life.

Before we look at this statement, which is found in a letter in the New Testament of our Bibles called 1 Timothy, we first need to understand the context in which this statement was made.  The letter of 1 Timothy was written to a first century church that was located in a city in modern day Turkey named Ephesus. The church at Ephesus had been planted by a man named Paul, who had traveled to this region around 55 A.D. Nine years after planting the church of Ephesus, Paul decided to write a letter to Timothy, who was the Senior Pastor at the church of Ephesus. Paul provides the reason for his letter in 1 Timothy 1:3-5:

As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith. But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy in order to command him to make sure to confront any doctrine, or what we teach about God, that is contrary to the message and teachings of Jesus and the Bible. The motivation that was to drive such a confrontation was to be from a devotion to God and was to reflect the devotion that the church at Ephesus had for God and one another.

The problem that Timothy faced, however, was that people were not being very loving to Timothy. You see, Timothy was much younger than Paul and many of the members at the church of Ephesus. In the very beginning of this letter, Paul refers to Timothy as his true child in the faith. In the opening verses of another letter that Paul wrote to Timothy, called 2 Timothy, Paul refers to Timothy as my beloved son.

And what was happening to Timothy was that the members of the church of Ephesus viewed Paul in a much different light than they viewed Timothy. Paul, who most scholars believe was in his mid 50’s, was viewed as a respected leader and elder statesman in this new movement called Christianity, while Timothy, who most scholars believe was in his mid 30’s, was the new kid on the block. The Apostle Paul was viewed as the teacher, while Timothy was viewed as the student. The Apostle Paul was viewed as the master, while Timothy was viewed as the apprentice.

As a result of how the members of the church viewed Timothy, Paul was concerned that he would face increasing resistance and opposition to his leadership and his direction as he confronted those who were teaching what was contrary to the message and teachings of Jesus. Paul was concerned that those at the church at Ephesus would be unloving towards Timothy because of his age.

Has anything changed? You see, this tension and frustration between generations is not a new problem; this tension between generations is a human nature problem. So often, it seems that our default mode apart from Jesus and the Holy Spirits activity in our lives is for the older generation to discount the younger generation’s passion and view their desire to change the world with skepticism. And so often, it seems that our default mode apart from Jesus and the Holy Spirits activity in our lives is for the younger generation to discount the older generation as being “out of touch with reality” and view their desire to share their life’s experiences with skepticism.

And it is this discounting, disrespect, and skepticism that Paul feared Timothy would become engaged in and would result in dissension, division, and a loss of credibility for Timothy. If Timothy did not handle this situation correctly, he would lose his ability to be the vehicle that God used to reveal His Son Jesus and advance His kingdom mission in his area of influence. And it is in this context that Paul makes this statement to Timothy.

Tomorrow, we will take a look at this statement…