- From Psalm 45
There's a lot of comment in the Bible, especially the Old Testament, about family, generations, having lots and lots of descendants . . . being remembered generations after you have died.
There's an awful lot of comment on it. A whole lot of comment.
It must be important.
At the very beginning, it was very important to God, that humanity populate the Earth, and that they do so quickly. In the New Testament, the emphasis is on growing the Church, rapidly. But even then, the Church is spoken of as family, and the New Testament is full of references to people and their biological families. The New Testament begins with a genealogy.
It's almost like it was the breakdown of families, and the fracturing of families over time, that made Christ necessary.
No, in fact, that's exactly what it is.
A pastor, mentor, and Christian brother of mine, Al Hutchings, once told me that he would no longer have to be a pastor, when families all did their jobs according to God's plan. Harsh, but true.
The family is a place to practice unconditional love. You are stuck with family. Your parents, kids, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins . . . they are who they are. They are distinct and unchangeable. You either practice loving them, whether or not you want to, or not. But if you choose to love them, you will be experiencing the love of Christ firsthand.
Imagine being remembered and revered, five generations from now. The next generation should remember you well. They knew you. They will cry at your funeral. The generation following - - - your grandchildren and grand-nieces and nephews - - - will probably know you. Those that knew you best will love you desperately. But when you die, they will be sad but they were probably not totally surprised by it.
The third generation after you: the great-grands; may, if you live long enough, have some memories of you. But the generation after that will not know you at all. By the time you get to your fifth generation - your great-great-great grandchildren, there's no way they remember you. And they probably are no longer handing down stories about you.
It is really something, when you are actually remembered a hundred years from now, all because someone passed down stories, someone that knew you well.
It's a really big deal. And since it is so highly treasured in Scripture, why is the Church so weak at practicing it?
Connect with family. Connect with generations. You will be fulfilling one important commandment of God, and it's so easy. It's worth it. Show up. Be there. Be present.
Be remembered generations from now.
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