Everywhere people live and work together, the group values are set what by is most consistently communicated, demonstrated and celebrated…this is true for families, businesses, governments, armies…churches.
This happens in various ways in different cultures…through songs, stories, technology, live examples…everything is shaping the culture, and it happens either by accident or on purpose…but it happens.
God has called us, as his people to be intentional about holding onto and passing on his values…we must do this on purpose…with great intention.
What God says is valuable and important…absolutely is.
As a church, we have not just communicated our next generation priority, but we have demonstrated it in our actions over the years.
And once a year we set aside a Sunday to celebrate our great privilege of being a part of a multi-generational church family and in our celebrating this privilege, we also remember our great responsibility.
Two weeks ago, when my 6-year-old grandson, Ellis, said in response to me telling him why I trust God…”I believe you G.”
-It was both a heartwarming reminder of my great privilege to be a grandfather.
AND
-It was a sobering reminder of my great responsibility as a grandfather.
Today I pray all of us here are reminded of both the privilege and responsibility that being a part of our church family is.
Here’s what today’s celebration will look like:
- First up, the youngest generation: We will celebrate them through a Parent/Child dedication ceremony.
- Then Super church and Next: Erin and Kelly will share
- Celebrate the Youth and College generation: Highlight graduating seniors and hear from a couple of our students.
-CHILD DEDICATION
-The title, “child dedication” might give the impression that this ceremony of commitment is more about the children than the adults today.
-But in fact, it is about us today, but it is for them in the days to come.
-It is about us today, because we…the parents, and the church family…are making the commitment, we are the ones “doing the dedicating.”
-It is for the children in the days to come…we are making this formal commitment today because we want them to thrive…spiritually, mentally, relationally, and physically…into the future.
-We don’t baptize children before the age in which they are able to make their own commitment to Christ…Biblical baptism is by immersion, after conversion.
-We do, however, hold these dedication services to communicate and celebrate…what we plan to demonstrate in the years to come.
That is a commitment to invest in the next generation for their good and for the glory of God.
-This ceremony would be empty if it were only a ritual…what makes it meaningful is that it is a symbol of community commitment…we are committed to do day to day, year by year…what this ceremony symbolizes.
And we have, a decades long track record as a church, of faithfulness in commitment to the next generation.
So, the symbol of a ceremony today…points forward to our continued commitment to ongoing generational investment.
-These kind of commitments are rare: In my life I they have been limited to…
-The vows of my Marriage ceremony
-Baptism
-My Military oath of office
-When we dedicated our children
*They have been times of Making, Marking…commitments
*Followed by years of maturing those commitments…and all three parts are important.
What these rare and important commitments have in common: They are about a willingness to lay down our lives for something bigger than ourselves.
-Today, we are pledging to offer our lives as living sacrifices for these little ones.
*We, not just the parents.
…we are making and marking a commitment to the future…to these children…that we must and we will…mature in the years to come.
–Here how we will proceed:
- Parents: Shortly, I will ask you to come forward and stand at the front, the walking forward is a physical symbol of your commitment…you could this at home, or sit in your seat…but physical action helps embedes this in your memory.
When it gets tough in the years to come…your mind and body and soul…will remember…I walked forward in front of God and witnesses and made a commitment…I will keep it today…right now.
- I will verbalize a prayer for you and your child.
- You will take your children to childcare area and then return
- Give you a charge when you return without a squirmy child in hand.
*why we don’t have small children in here on normal sundays….because our commitment to you and your children.
-I don’t speak to children in here…you must be able to focus, this is grownup stuff that takes full effort
-We do speak to your children out there…they must hear the gospel in language they can understand.
- Church, I will ask you to stand and pray with me as we commit ourselves to these families.
DEDICATION:
*Parents come forward:
-Dedication: I am going to give you a semi-precious stone, it holds beauty, but it is unpolished:
*How does this rough stone reveal its true beauty to the world. It is there, how do you get it out?
- Skill—know what you are doing.
- Faithfulness—takes time
- Challenge—abrasive polishing.
*Your child has beauty, value, and incredible potential.
*You are tasked with helping reveal that to the world—so they will be blessed and a blessing (a delight to God and others.
*This stone is a reminder…keep showing up…embrace challenge, embrace faith and faithfulness.
PRAYER: Ask them to pray
- Give yourself to the Lord
- Commit to one another
- Lay your child on the altar(symbolically), pick your child up with the knowledge that you have a stewardship.
PARENTS CHARGE:
-This commitment you made today…does not negate the reality that your child must choose for him or herself someday…it is about your commitment to be found faithful…and our commitment to you and your child.
-You must follow through on the commitment…this will mean leaning fully on God’s resources for your life: His Word, His Spirit, His People.
Josh. 24 Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel and he said to all the people, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your forefathers… lived beyond the River and worshiped other gods. But I took your father Abraham from the land beyond the River and led him throughout Canaan and gave him many descendants
On and on it goes…and as they reflected on their lives…God is clearly the hero of the story…he did what they could not have done on their own…it was vitally important that they see this reality.
24:14-15 “Now (God has been faithful, you be faithful) fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
*See the balance?
God was the hero of the story…it all depended on him…God’s grace was the key.
AND
They were to live the decided life…in a sense, to live as if it depended on them…Their grit was essential.
That is the biblical balance: Fully trust God’s grace AND fully make the gritty choices you need make to live faithful lives.
Three Challenges I want to give you as parents from this passage:
- Make Jesus Lord. Boss of your life.
- Throw away idols that can drag you down.
Jesus alone is the master who sets captives free…all other masters will enslave you.
- Then Lived decided, not deciding…don’t get up and decide “if”…lived decided.
*God is your only hope
*God is your child’s only hope
*You must choose and keep choosing to trust him…even when things are tough, or dark…stay faithful.
If you child wanders away like the prodigal…you stay faithful…when that child repents and wants to return home…there will be a place of God’s good life to return to..
*Live like a parent who has chosen God…lived the decided, not the deciding life.
CHURCH STAND PRAY WITH ME:
TERRY: For every generation there is the ongoing need to live with both passion and pace.
Often, for the younger generations, life becomes all passion, and less of the pace that wisdom and age can bring.
And you can tell yourself…”I’m passionate…you are just old and have lost your zeal…I don’t need to listen to you. I know exactly what I am doing.”
-They may be true…or it could be that what you call passion is mostly emotion and it has run off the leash of wisdom…this never ends well.
For the older generations life can become all pace, and less of the passion …the passion has given way to cynicism or boredom or just fatigue.
-We can tell ourselves, “We are older and wiser, were not given to those youthful emotions…just you wait and see, you will be like me someday.”
That also, maybe true that we are wiser and not just older…
But it may also be true that we have become old and cynical, old and grumpy…this is not wisdom, it is its own form of folly.
I don’t want the next generation to lose passion and gain apathy…that is a terrible trade.
But I don’t want them to shipwreck because passion is untethered from wisdom.
Our church has a spectrum of generations and the opportunity for all of us together to maintain the beautiful balance of passion and pace.
-Pace is the daily “what” of being faithful in the field where God has placed you.
-Passion is the big “Why”…the gospel has changed us…we don’t just toil in the dirt until we return to dirt…we see God even in the day of small things.
*Everything we do has meaning…every single act of faithfulness matters eternally.
Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. Gal. 6:9,10
*As we continue to celebrate what God is doing in the generations of our church…listen to this song that aptly describes how we are all to live faithful lives behind the plow that God has given us.