Intergenerational reconciliation

"He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents..." Malachi 4.6

When we consider the Lord's return, all sorts of preconditions come to mind, all manner of preparation to secure our readiness... but do we pay sufficient heed to the imperative for reconciliation between generations? The announcement of "Elijah's" return to this effect is no less than the last word in the whole of the Old Testament! And it is so significant as to feature in the heralding of John the Baptist's birth and ministry (ref Luke 1.17).

In our own day we have witnessed rifts opening up between all generations, exacerbated by the computer literacy divide. We inhabit increasingly divided - even different - realms, which erodes the values we share and undermines mutual respect and understanding. Far from preparing for the Lord's return, the trajectory of social movement is in the opposite direction, rendering us less ready to receive Jesus and more likely to fall under his judgment.

Prayer and the intervention of the Holy Spirit are the only adequate responses to the predicament in which we find ourselves, fuelled by the conviction that faith brings and followed up by obedience to the voice which will answer our prayers and the guiding hand of God's Spirit. Not only are lost generations crying out for it, our future depends on it! God appointed Christian marriage to reflect the love of Christ for his Church. Now God requires Christian families to prepare the hearts of all generations to receive Christ's redemption - which reaches over the whole of creation.