3 ways to reach the next generation
“But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.”
Matthew 9:36
It’s no secret that the enemy is after the next generation—from the abortion epidemic to gender confusion, school shootings, mental health and anxiety issues, and the like. He’s going after their identity, destiny, and mentality. The fact is, today’s youth are tomorrow's leaders. If we, as the church of Jesus, don’t reach them, someone else will. And the results will affect the future condition of the world we’re living in. God loves the next generation and wants to use you to reach them!
I’ve been seeing God move a lot in the youth. At a youth camp I ministered at recently, one young girl prophetically saw the throne room of God BEFORE I began to speak on it. At another youth event, I had youth and adults praying with me and we saw God grow arches on three people’s flat feet! At a recent young adult event, a college student got healed from a knee problem and said she was able to walk straight for the first time in 19 years!
As much as I am grateful for what God has done, I realize there is much more work to be done.
This is where I believe Jesus was in Matthew 9. He had massive momentum in the Spirit after teaching, preaching, and healing every sickness and disease—but then looked out and saw the multitudes. He had compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. Which, at minimum means they were lost, wandering, and vulnerable to the wolves—the enemy.
There were multitudes of people and only 13 of them. He said to pray that the Lord of the harvest would send out more laborers into His harvest.
In other words, we need more people on mission.
The amount of laborers needs to be sufficient for the amount of harvest.
Jesus looked and had compassion at their condition and told His disciples—
“There is A LOT of work to be done; we need to pray for help. We need more people to harvest the harvest!”
Aside from simply sharing the powerful gospel of Jesus, here are a few ways you can help reach the next generation:
1. Stand for righteousness
Paul said this in 1 Timothy 4:1—”Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons”
I had a dream recently where a large group of friends and I went to a huge Chinese restaurant to eat. When we got our food and sat down to eat, a scorpion jumped out of my food. I was surprised and wasn’t going to eat it. I wanted to get my money back.
But the more surprising thing was that there were people there who seemed ok with it.
I had read that scripture in 1 Timothy 4:1 right before going to sleep, and I realized that the dream was a manifestation of it.
Dreams are metaphorical. Food represents teaching (scripture speaks of the meat of the Word) and scorpions represent demons (Luke 10:19).
I realized that the world was feeding us teaching that was tainted by demons. I rejected it, but there were some that seemed ok with ingesting teaching that was tainted by demons!
Quick reminder: demons have the worst in mind for you, God has the best in mind for you (John 10:10, Jer. 29:11). Much like you’re going to give your dog medicine wrapped in peanut butter so they’ll actually eat it, the devil wants to give you deception in a package that appeals to you. It’s cloaked in seeming compassion, helpful benefits, and inclusivity. But according to God it’s right-ish, not righteous.
Righteousness is doing right by God. Just because the world is trying to redefine sexuality, gender, and when life really begins, it doesn’t mean we have to ingest it! We need to reject the deceptions of the enemy and stand for righteousness. God has revealed truth to us in the scriptures regarding all of the important things in life.
Contrary to popular opinion, you can stand for righteousness and still walk in love.
If I were a ship sailing to shore at night on turbulent waters, I’d be really grateful to see a lighthouse shining brightly and guiding me to firm ground.
When we stand for righteousness, we hold up the standard of truth for the next generation as a beacon of hope and light in a turbulent world of compromise.
If we don’t stand for truth, who will?
2. Share the testimony
The psalmist said, “One generation shall praise Your works to another, And shall declare Your mighty acts.” (Psalm 145:4)
Israel lived with the next generation in mind. They had intentional ways of sending the testimony down through the generations.
When God split the Jordan River and Israel walked through on dry land, they were commanded to take stones as a memorial, in order to share the testimony of what God had done for their people. Why? So that the next generation would have reverence for God. (see Joshua 4:19-24)
They carried the responsibility to tell the testimony to the next generation.
When I come home from a ministry trip, I show pictures to my family and tell the testimony of what God did.
Every time I do that, I am raising the bar of normal. I am setting the standard. I am showing them what is possible through God—that way they know what to expect in their walk with Jesus.
After all, if He did it for us, He’ll do it for them.
3. Demonstrate His power
Paul said, “And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:4-5)
Faith should rest—not in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God!
If we’re not demonstrating the power of God, we’re not giving people the opportunity to have faith the way God wants them to have faith.
People wonder, “Is God real?” “How do I know if God is real?”
When the power of God shows up and they get healed, or you tell them information about them that you could only know supernaturally—God is answering them with a big “I AM!” I told one lady that God was touching her because He loves her and was showing her that He’s real.
The next generation needs to see the power of God manifest.
When people encounter the power of God, it gives them confidence to trust the scriptures, to open their hearts to God, and to ultimately, follow Jesus. (see 2 Peter 1:16-19).
In this, we’re not trying to convince people with clever arguments. God is literally revealing Himself and people are getting to meet Him personally.
Let me close with this:
“What one generation tolerates, the next generation will embrace” —John Wesley
And if I may add to that, the next generation thinks is normal.
If we settle for a powerless Christianity, then we pass a dead religion on to the next generation.
If we settle for the standards of this world, especially in regard to abortion and gender, we pass on compromise to the next generation.
And as the saying goes, “what one generation does in moderation, the next does in excess.”
We must hold to the standard of God’s truth, tell the testimony of God’s mighty works, and demonstrate the power and love of Jesus.
Question: How else can we reach the next generation? Comment below!
Here are some links to when I preached this at local ministries: