Someone I Can Work With
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+11%3A27-32&version=NLT
Our church will always have an important stage in reaching the youngest generations for Christ. I don’t think any of you would argue with that. But, in addition to reaching the young, we need to focus on the oldest generation as well. We need to challenge senior adults to play an active role in the God’s work, by listening to the ways he calls us into ministry. We also need to present the gospel to senior adults. This demographic will soon the be the largest group in need of hearing the gospel and being given the opportunity to respond.
Head/Mind – Helpful Information
One of the central ideas of the Biblical story is that God’s plans for this world focus on us playing an active role. God intends to exercise and expand his reign through human partners. That is what the Bible means by humans being created in the image of God and exercising dominion over the world.
We are meant to reflect the character of God into the world through the way we live, work, play, and relate to the world around us. This has always been the way God intends for his work to get done in this world. That means, that at times, when God cannot find faithful and willing partners, his work lies dormant, or comes to a bit of a standstill. God will not simply overwhelm us or force his will upon us. That means that there are large sweeps of history in which the world, or parts of the world, languish in spiritual darkness.
Yet, in every age, God looks for people through whom he can work and advance his will on earth. Sadly, in some ages, no one can be found. So, for example, we read in Ezekiel 22 “I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one.”
When Jesus puts the work of God back on track, he restates the purpose of Genesis. In Matthew 5 we read: “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.
“You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”
This is Genesis 1 language. Again, we read in Romans 8 – where Paul links the work of salvation in us to God’s work of redeeming the world:
“Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us.”
The earliest stories of Genesis record God’s work among the earliest humans. And, at each step along the way, God’s invites people to join him in his work. And for most of early human history, most of the human race breaks God’s heart by refusing to live out the human vocation of reflecting his character into the world through the way that they live. They choose to live in ways contrary to God’s will, that breaking and fracturing the world.
But something changes with Abraham’s family. In Abraham and Sarah, God finds a family he can work with. They are not perfect – far from it. They have dysfunction and sin and their lives are like all of the other human families. But they have a heart after God’s heart. There is something about them, a quality of character that wants to please God. And that is enough for God to work with. In Abraham and Sarah, God finds human partners through whom he can advance the story and expand his reign on earth.
Questions for Thought: If you were looking for a business partner, what qualities would you look for? What if your were given the opportunity to choose you next door neighbor? What would you want them to be like? What about a new roommate? #godspartner #partner
In the last part of Genesis 11, an important theme comes into focus: God is looking for a partner. God is looking to share his work of developing and reigning over all the earth. He is looking for someone with whom he can work. We have seen this theme already, but now it takes on a particular importance, because this is Israel’s story. It is our story.
Genesis 1-11 is the prelude to the bigger story Genesis is telling, which is about how God chooses a people to be his partner, in the work of salvation – the redemption of God’s good world. Genesis 1-11 uses the genre of folk story to communicate with us. This does not mean that there is no historical basis for these stories. In fact, each story is grounded in a historical even. Here, we only speak of the way/genre the stories are told in. These stories are more vague and harder to place in a specific time/place. That, however, does not mean that we can determine nothing about their historical context, it just means that the focus is not on that kind of information.
Starting with Genesis 11:27, we are telling historical stories that are rooted in specific times and places. Again, this does not mean that these stories are more accurate or reliable than the earlier stories in Genesis. And we don’t mean that they are told the way a modern historian would tell history. We are talking about the way these stories are told, the historical stories have a setting in places and times we can identify.
This story starts with a man named Terah, who has three sons, Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Haran is married and has a son named Lot. When Terah dies, it leaves Abram, the oldest son as head of the family. It is his job to provide and care for the members of the extended house, including looking out for the women in the family. It is Abram’s responsibility to see to all of this.
Verse 29 reflects this responsibility. The Hebrew literally reads, “Abram and Nahor, he took wives.” The phrase means that Abram made the decision about how the selection went. Abram selects their niece, Milcah, for his brother, Nahor. Their other niece, Iskah, is apparently too young for marriage, and so Abram will continue to look out for her until she is old enough for marriage.
Now, here is where we first get a glimpse of Abram’s character. Verse 30 tells us that they knew their sister Sarai was unable to have children. How did they know that? The text doesn’t say, and we have no information to go on, medically speaking. But somehow, the family already knows that. That is why Sarai remains unmarried. Abram could have reserved Iska for himself, but he did not. He knows Sarai needs someone and that no one outside of the family will take her. So Abram chooses her for himself.
This is monumental. As the head of the household, he does not have to do that. But, Abram will do whatever it takes to look out for the members of his household. In the ancient world, this is astounding. It means Abram will have no family line. His name will not continue on. This is why he takes his nephew Lot with him. Lot will not carry Abram’s name, but he will be able to look after the extended family when Abram dies.
Abram is a man who looks out for others. Abram does the right thing, even at a high personal cost to himself. Abram is far from perfect, and the writers of Genesis will have no shyness in pointing that out; but, we can see something in Abram that reflects the character of God. For the first time in Genesis, we have someone God can work with. Noah was a potential, but his character flaws ran too deep to keep that project from being derailed. Abram is someone God can work with. #abraham #sarah.
Notice the implications of that. God waits a long time before he can moe the plot forward. I am often asked why it was so long from Adam to Abraham before God does something significant to advance the work of salvation. Depending on your view of history and age of the earth, this means that God waits patiently for a very long time, maybe a very, very long time, before moving the plot forward.
Heart – The Personal Connection
But I want you to notice that God is not the only one that waited a long time. In Genesis 12 we read:
“The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.” So Abram departed as the Lord had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.”
We have a lot of young people in our church. Our young adult group, when we can get them all together, is made up of more than 45 younger adults. And our youth group is made up of of over 40 teens. We have about 40 children in our children’s ministry. All of that is very healthy. But 50 percent of our church is 65 or older. And a lot of our work get’s done by senior citizens.
So let me just speak to the older crowd for a minute. How many of you are surprised to have been called back up to active service in God’s kingdom? How many of you are surprised to be part of a new church? How many of you thought the most active part of your Christian life was behind you? You are in good company. Welcome to the story of Abraham and Sarah.
Joel chapter two says that when the Messiah pours out the Holy Spirit on his people, one of the signs will be that men and women will both prophesy. And, old men will have new vision and young men will dream new dreams. One of the reasons I am convinced that we are doing God’s work is that we have young people who are dreaming new dreams, and we have old people who have a new vision for the future. And friends, the world needs people like this.
But there is more to unpack here. The twenty-first century is already a weird time to live in. But it is about to get weirder. Several things are about to happen that have never happened before. Let me tell you about just one of them.
The U.S. Census Bureau projects that by 2034, there will be more senior citizens than children for the first time in American history.
This does not make America unique. It makes America like most of the world. Let me explain.
For most of human history, this is what the population pyramid looked like for most nations. There were always more young people than older people.
For most of history, the typical family tree looked something like this.
But all of this is based on a birth rate of at least 2.1 children per woman, which is what is needed in order for a population just to remain stable. It takes something like 2.5 children for a population to grow.
The birth rate for America is now 1.66 children per woman. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/hus/topics/births.htm
For South Korea it is .86 children per woman. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/south-koreas-fertility-rate-dropped-fresh-record-low-2023-2024-02-28/
For Germany it is 1.58. https://www.destatis.de/EN/Themes/Society-Environment/Population/Births/_node.html
For Mexico it is 1.82. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.CBRT.IN?locations=MX
For Iran it is 1.82 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Iran
For Saudi Arabia it is 2.1. https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/SAU/saudi-arabia/fertility-rate
For South Africa 2.2 https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/ZAF/south-africa/fertility-rate
And for India 2.0. https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Society/India-fertility-fall-puts-policymakers-on-clock-to-avoid-Japan-like-strain
This is what Japan’s population pyramid looks like now
This is what China’s population tree will look like by 2100.
And this is what an average family tree will look like.
By the end of this century, the average child in our world will have no siblings, no cousins, and no aunts or uncles. And, they will be the only grandchild of four grandparents. And they will live in a world where old people will out number children.
What does that mean for Jesus’ people, as we seek to give a faith informed response to rapidly changing world?
Hands – The Practical Application
The easiest thing for older adults would be to give into despair and disappointment. Many of the dreams we had for the future didn’t materialize the way that we had hoped. The future turned out very different than we had thought. So we can spend our last years in sadness and regret, or, we can be like Abraham and Sarah, who were willing to hear the call of God on their lives in their senior years.
Maybe you thought God was already through with you. Maybe you already answered and lived out a call on your life and you were ready to hang it up. But, lo and behold, God has called you back up to the major leagues. Maybe this wasn’t the future you held in your heart. But what if this was only supposed to be the beginning of the journey? Perhaps your last years and mine will be spent planting the seeds for a future someone else will see. Perhaps we will only get to lay the foundations for a future work of God.
Hebrews 11 tell us – “It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going. And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith—for he was like a foreigner, living in tents. And so did Isaac and Jacob, who inherited the same promise. Abraham was confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God.”
What does that mean? It means that if we are still here on earth, living and breathing, walking around on the ground instead of buried under the ground, we may still have things God is calling us to do. And we may be be laying the foundations for a future still yet to be seen. We have to challenge older adults to be an active part of God’s work, because they are a big part of the community of faith, and will be for the foreseeable future.
But, it also means that as it pertains to the gospel, that one of the demographics most in need of hearing the gospel and being given a chance to respond is among senior citizens. Any ministry we do with and among senior citizens should include a clear presentation of the gospel and chance to respond the gospel.
Think about it, many of the people who are now in their late 70s spent their young adult years tripping on LSD and practicing free love. Now that they are in their later years, some of them are now ready to hear the gospel. And, we should be just as exited about a 70 year old getting baptized as a 15 year getting baptized; because it means someone is receiving eternal life.
Sadly, many senior citizens are living lives that are spiritually broken and empty. Drug and alcohol abuse is rampant among senior citizens, as is gambling additions, promiscuous sex and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. I am not picking on older people who are acting in these ways. All of this is a form of self-medicating, which is something people do when their hurting inside. Many of these old people are facing end of life issues without a clear understanding of the gospel and they are experiencing existential anxiety as they try answer questions about life and death. The Gospel has the answers they are looking for and we have a responsibility to share it with them.
https://nida.nih.gov/publications/drugfacts/substance-use-in-older-adults-drugfacts