Passing the Torch

What this episode covers

06/21/2026 – Blank Outline 06/21/2026 Filled in Outline Deuteronomy 6:4-9 Deuteronomy 6:4-9 I’m going to read some scripture this morning. This is Deuteronomy 6:4 through 9. It’s actually called the Shema, and the Jews recited this every day, every morning. They would recite this passage. It’s called the Shema, because the first word here in Hebrew is Shema, and this is what they would recite, and this is Deuteronomy chapter 6. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home, when you walk along the road, when you lie down, and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands, and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates. Well, we’re going to talk about passing the torch in a little bit. And of course, in the context here, the torch is the gospel. But I want to tell you this morning, and some of you aren’t quite there yet, but here’s one of the greatest things about becoming a father is that you have the potential to be a grandfather. So here we are last Sunday. Dianne and I make lots of trips up to Grand Rapids, actually Caledonia, where six of our eight grandchildren live. And they’re usually 24-hour trips up and back. And we wanted a picture of the six grandkids with us. And we waited a little too long, and it was kind of the end of the day, and they had been outside playing. And so, we could not get a happy picture of everybody. So, we decided to go with this one. So right to left, that’s Liam. He’s holding Graham. Next to him is Cameron. And then famous Audrey, first girl in 138 years in our family line. And then that’s Weston. It was his fifth birthday that we celebrated. He’s wearing the Lakers jersey. And then that’s unhappy Aiden. But sometimes he’s happy, and sometimes he’s not. But that was a fun picture. Anyways, so we’re going to think about some truths from Deuteronomy chapter 6, verses 4 through 9. And so, I don’t want you to get frustrated this morning like I sometimes do when I’m listening to a sermon, and the pastor’s preaching, and the speaker’s preaching, and I’m thinking, when are we going to get to open our Bibles? And so, all that to say, I’ve got a rather long introduction, and then we’re going to get to Deuteronomy chapter 6. So don’t be frustrated that we’re not there like right away. We are going to get there. Introduction – The changing cultural landscape in America But here’s the picture that I want to paint, and I want to think about the changing cultural landscape in America. In other words, if you’re, I’d say, 35 or older, you’ll see a drastic change in where our country is today and what it was like when you were being raised. And so, I was born in the 50s. I was raised in a pastor’s home in Cleveland, Ohio. So, I was basically raised in the 60s or 70s. And I have to tell you that life in America was much, much different than it is today. It just was simpler, less complex. Let’s think about television. I remember us getting our first television. We had three TV stations available to us in Cleveland, Ohio. Channel 3 was NBC, Channel 5 was ABC, Channel 8 was CBS. Today, most of us perhaps have televisions that we have hundreds and hundreds of choices of media coming at us. The news was a lot simpler and it was more reliable. Today, you know, depending on what news source you’re listening to, you’re going to get several different viewpoints. It was Ted Turner that started the first 24-hour news cycle, CNN. By the way, back then when I was growing up, those three TV stations, guess what? At midnight, they played the national anthem and then you were done. They went off the air until the next morning. And the news, there was a man by the name of Walter Cronkite, who

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