Inferior Generation
Daniel 2:39
"And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth."
It has been said by many preachers that what the present generation does in moderation, the next generation will do in excess. This has been proven over and over again. When you look at the decline of generations, you see that each generation takes things further than the previous generation. It is astonishing to me how in my lifetime I have seen things that would have be unacceptable as a child become mainstream, not just in the world, but even among Christians.
When Daniel interpreted the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, part of the dream was to show him the kingdoms that would follow. When Daniel described the kingdoms, he said, "And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee,..." In other words, he was saying the next kingdom would not be as strong as his. In fact as you look at the description, each kingdom become inferior to the previous. It started out describing the kingdom as gold, but ended with a description of the kingdom as clay. Clay is a far cry from gold. Gold is certainly valuable, but clay is worthless. You can sell gold, but you can't sell clay.
One of the lessons God is trying to teach with this illustration is that we must be careful to understand that each generation will not be as strong as the previous. The standards of this generation will be less than the previous generation. What this generation accepts, the previous generation would call sin. Things don't get better, they will always get worse. Why? Because we are a sinful people. Under our own strength and guidance we will get worse.
Because of this, we must be careful that we tighten the line of how we do things so that the next generation still has a chance. Every parent should tighten their dress standards so that the next generation has a chance of not being immodest. Every church needs to hold a strong line on what they believe so that the next generation won't compromise. In other words, instead of loosening our stand on standards and beliefs, we should strengthen them so that we can keep the next generation from compromise and sin.
Furthermore, you are a next generation. That means that if you are not careful, what you believe and where you stand may be inferior to the previous generation. You must be careful about thinking that you know more than those before you. One of the greatest mistakes we make is thinking the previous generation wasn't as smart as we are. If something worked for the previous generation, then it will work for this generation. Be careful about acquiring the attitude that you are better than the previous generation.
You may think there is no hope for this generation. There is hope, for God shows us how we can make this generation as strong as previous generations in verse 44 when He says, "And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed:..." The answer to making sure you are not an inferior generation is to build your life on God. If each generation will stop trying to make its own mark and simply build itself upon the Scriptures, then each generation can be as strong as the previous.
Christian, don't try to make your mark by trying to prove that the previous generation was wrong. Instead, build your life on God and you will stop the demise of your generation. Teach the next generation the importance of building themselves upon Christ. This is the only way to keep the next generation from becoming inferior. When you build yourself upon the kingdom of God, then you are building yourself upon something that "shall never be destroyed."