A recent article crossed my desk that I found interesting. It contained a list of things that babies born in 2011 will never know. Because of the rapid advancement of technology, there are many things that have been an integral part of everyday life for decades that are swiftly becoming obsolete. For example, babies born in 2011 will likely never know of things like video tape, movie rental stores, encyclopedias, CD’s, film cameras or fax machines.
This prompts us to wonder just what other things might babies born today not know. Will there be fundamental truths about the Lord’s church that will become obsolete among the next generation?
Will the next generation know about the establishment of the church? Will they know that Christ is the Builder of the church (Matthew 16:18)? Will they know that the church is built upon Christ as the one Foundation of the church? “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:11). Will it be understood that Christ is the Authority of the church (Matthew 28:18) and is governed by His Word (Colossians 3:17)? If the distinctiveness of the New Testament church is not boldly preached today, then we should not be surprised that it would fade into obscurity in the generation to come.
Will the next generation know about the exclusiveness of the church? There are hundreds of different denominations of churches in existence today, and a popular attitude that one is as good as another. However, those who have studied the Bible know that the Lord has only one church. Christ promised to build just one church (Matthew 16:18). Paul declared that “there is one body” (Ephesians 4:4) and condemned any division in that body (1 Corinthians 1:10). The Lord built only one church. All others are manmade. “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it…” (Psalm 127:1). Are we doing all that we can to make sure that the next generation knows that the Lord has but one church?
Will the next generation know about the entrance of the church? The world is very confused about how one enters the church because of all of the false doctrines that are heralded. Tragically, many preachers have forsaken the truth on this important matter. The masses are being told simply to believe in Jesus to be saved, and then they will be voted into the church. Yet, the Bible teaches no such thing. Jesus told Nicodemus that “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). On Pentecost, “Peter said to them, Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins…” (Acts 2:38). Then verse 47 states “…And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” Our children must know that baptism is essential to entering the church.
There are some things that babies born in 2011 will never know and never miss, but severe consequences are in store if the fundamentals of the Lord’s church are not preserved for them. Diligence must be given to impress upon our posterity the need to preserve the foundational principles concerning the Lord’s church. Failure to do so would be catastrophic to future generations. “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do” (Psalm 11:3)?
