The deadliness of silence

As you read the 12th and 13th chapter of Joshua you get the sense that something wonderful is happening. God's promise to His people is being fulfilled. They, in faith and by the mighty hand of God, have conquered a land, and now it is being apportioned to the tribes of Israel. What a day this must have been!

But the moment, glorious as it is, is tainted in two directions. In the past is the memory of a generation that failed to possess this land. They had the same promises. They had the same mighty God, but they failed to enter in and possess all that the Lord promised them. In the future (I know that's cheating, we haven't read there yet) is the haunting statement early in the book of Judges that a generation grew up "not knowing the Lord nor His mighty deeds". And so we have a moment of glory for the nation as the land is being apportioned, but it would only be for a moment.

Part of the reason their glory was only short lived may be that they did not heed the counsel of Psalm 145. Verse 4 and following states, "One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts. ...They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds, and I will declare your greatness. They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness and shall sing aloud of your righteousness." These verse make it clear that every generation must SPEAK; they must declare to the next generations the power and goodness and greatness and righteousness of the Lord. Otherwise, they will find that silence is deadly.

We see how deadly the silence can get in Jeremiah 6. This people upon whom the favor of the Lord rested, now has become an object of His wrath. They have so drifted from the Lord, that they can no longer received His word. They have so fallen from the Lord that their nation has been rejected by the Lord. Instead of basking in glory, they find themselves in a pit of shame.

The lesson for every generation is that we must continually bring before one another the glorious works and person of our God. We must speak often, not only of what the Lord did in redemption history (as we have been reading in our Bible), but also in the current day.

When God answers a pray we need to proclaim that to our children. When the Lord shows Himself a faithful provider during a financial downturn, we must pass that on to the next generation. When God works a miracle in the heart of an unbeliever and they come to Christ, we must pass it on. When the Lord brings peace to a relationship that was in turmoil, we must not be silent.

As each day provides us with evidences of God's work, we must speak and pass on to those with ears to listen the unsearable greatness of our God. May it never be said they we failed to speak, for such silence is dealy.

As you walk through this day, look for the Lord's hand, and everywhere you see it, be sure to point it out to others. In this way you will be bringing glory to God and blessing the generations with the only vision that can sustain them.