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“Another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel” (Judges 2:10)
After Joshua and his generation died, Judges 2:10 says something chilling: “Another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel.” That is one of the most sobering lines in all of Scripture. It reminds us how quickly faith can fade when it isn’t intentionally passed on.
This didn’t happen over centuries. It happened in one generation.
And the people's ignorance of God (with a few exceptions) lasted around 370 years until the rise of David.
That should get our attention.
God had done incredible things for Israel. He rescued them from slavery in Egypt, parted the Red Sea, provided in the wilderness, and brought them into the Promised Land. These weren’t small moments. They were defining acts of God’s power and faithfulness. And yet, somehow, the next generation grew up without truly knowing Him.
Not because God failed.
Because the people did.
Scripture repeatedly shows that passing on faith is not automatic. It requires deliberate, consistent effort. In Deuteronomy 6, God commands His people to teach His words diligently to their children, talking about them at home, on the road, in the morning, and at night. In other words, faith was never meant to be a once-a-week conversation. It was meant to be woven into everyday life.
The same urgency applies today.
We live in a time where information is everywhere, but deep understanding is rare. Kids and teens are constantly being shaped by culture, social media, and entertainment. If families are not actively teaching who God is, the world will gladly fill in the gaps with something else.
And the stakes are eternal.
This is not just about raising “good kids.” It’s about raising people who know God personally, who understand what Jesus has done, and who trust Him with their lives. Without that foundation, everything else is unstable.
Psalm 78 puts it clearly: we are to tell the next generation “the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done,” so that they would put their trust in God and not forget His works. The goal is not just information; it’s transformation.
So what does this look like in real life?
It starts with parents and families taking ownership of spiritual formation. The church plays an important role, but it cannot replace the daily influence of the home. A couple of hours on Sunday will never outweigh the rest of the week.
Faith has to be seen, not just heard.
Kids need to see what it looks like to pray, to trust God in difficulty, to repent when we fail, and to live with integrity. They need to hear stories of what God has done, not just in the Bible, but in our own lives. When faith becomes real and visible, it becomes believable.
It also means being intentional about teaching the story of the gospel.
At the center of everything is Jesus, who He is and what He has done. Our kids need to understand that God is not distant or abstract. He is holy, loving, and just. We have all sinned and fallen short, but God sent His Son to rescue us. Jesus lived a perfect life, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again so that we could have forgiveness and eternal life.
That message cannot be assumed.
We have to say it clearly, often, and in ways that connect. We have to help the next generation see that their identity, purpose, and hope are all found in Christ, not in success, popularity, or anything this world offers.
There is also a warning here.
When a generation forgets God, the consequences are serious. The rest of Judges shows a 370-year cycle of spiritual drift, compromise, and brokenness. When people lose sight of who God is, they begin to define truth on their own terms. And that always leads to confusion and pain.
We are not immune to that.
If anything, the pace of modern life makes it even easier to drift. Busyness, distractions, and competing priorities can quietly push God to the margins. And if He is on the margins in our lives, He will likely be absent in the lives of our children.
But there is also hope.
Every generation has the opportunity to return to God and to pass on something different. It doesn’t require perfection. It requires faithfulness. Small, consistent steps, reading Scripture together, praying, having honest conversations, pointing back to Jesus, can shape a lifetime.
This is one of the most important callings we have.
To make sure the next generation doesn’t just know about God but truly knows Him.
Because one generation from now, the difference between knowing and not knowing the Lord will shape everything.