Churches and pastors need to recognize that investing in the next generation of leaders is not just a necessity; it’s a Biblical mandate. The Apostle Paul mentored Timothy, Barnabas mentored John Mark, and Jesus spent three and one-half years with the twelve apostles; teaching them doctrine and spiritual truths. In addition, the Bible emphasizes that the stronger Christians should be teaching the new believers. And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. — 2 Timothy 2:2.
As our fundamental churches age, our members are aging with them. As a result, many churches have empty nurseries along with only a few children in Sunday School. From where will the next generation of leaders come if churches don’t have any children? Today, we are facing an impending crisis in which there are not enough young men being trained for the ministry to fill the pulpits of those who are stepping down.
From the very beginning, a church must make an effort to appeal to children and young families. The shortage of future full-time Christian workers is a broader secular trend, with both state and Christian colleges experiencing declining enrollment. Without young men stepping up to lead churches in the years ahead, its very existence is at risk.
We face difficult times, yet we must not ignore the troubling trends of our day. To meet this urgent need, we must take deliberate action. The solution starts in the home. Zebedee’s sons, James and John—the “Sons of Thunder”— heard Jesus’ call and instantly left their nets and their father to follow Him. Zebedee had prepared his sons for Jesus’ calling. Are parents today raising children with hearts ready so that when Jesus calls, they will go?
The preparation begins in the home, but it is nurtured in the church. Pastors must urge young people to fully yield their lives to God’s will. The church needs a bold vision: to send its finest to the mission field or to plant new churches. Preachers must begin early, when they are young, and nurture them as they heed God’s call. Involve them in service from childhood, and they will be far more likely to serve faithfully as adults.
Encourage them to spend at least one year at a Bible college. It will confirm their faith and challenge them to find God’s highest call for their lives. Don’t expect a Bible college to give them all the training they need. Upon graduation, every young man and woman needs mentoring. The first year after graduation is critical to help prepare them for the ministry. Older men and women must accept the responsibility of mentoring the church’s youth. That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded. —Titus 2:2-6
We must ensure that the next generation is not the last!
