Youth Ministry As I See It

I was thinking recently about Youth Ministry in America and the way in which it has evolved. Since the 1970's the church in America has been trying it's hardest to compete with the world. It began with the Jesus Movement which targeted hippies through their music. The church hasn't stopped and ever since that time the church has been trying harder and harder to make the unbeliever feel comfortable, un-judged and accepted unconditionally. The whole Gospel is rarely ever shared, biblical knowledge and personal devotions are at an all time low. Some statistics indicate that less than 35% of so called Christian people today read their bible more than once a week.

The belief that the unchurched feel condemned, judged and uncomfortable because of Christians and is therefore the reason they don't attend church, is not a new idea anymore. It once was, but now 20-30 years later depending on denomination and what part of the country you live; Church attendance is not growing even though the church is less condemning, more accepting and tolerant of sin than any other time in Americas history.

The unsaved don't attend for the same reasons I don't want to attend any churches in my area. It's because churches all across America won't tell me I'm a sinner, they don't tell me what is sin in my life, they don't hold me accountable and thus there is no conviction of sin and therefore no change or growth. Churches should be a place where believers come together to hold each other accountable, correct, rebuke and encourage one another. After leaving church the believer should have a clear understanding of who God is and what they need to change in their life. Conviction is a good thing!

What's this all have to do with my thoughts about Youth Ministry? I have found no greater joy in life than when I see teens turning away from their sin and lifestyles and committing themselves completely to God. I have seen it, although not often, but when it happens it's exciting. Teens are at a special age because they have so much energy and passion about the things they love. What saddens me so much though is teens are not challenged and the standard of expectation is nothing more than "Don't smoke, swear or listen to secular music". Where are the biblical standards that expect from them what God expects of all His children? Why don't youth pastors expect their teens to study God's Word so that they will be able to present themselves as ones approved, as workman who do not need to be ashamed because they know how to rightly handle and divide the Word? Where are the expectations that when there is conviction it needs to be dealt with immediately not tomorrow? We need real purpose statements instead of the kind that come from the Purpose Driven crap, which is all about the felt needs of unbelievers. It is my strong belief that youth pastors need to get rid of purpose statements and start setting goals like:

We expect our teens to read their bibles and pray daily without exception.
After ____ number of years of attending our youth group the teens should have a complete understanding of key biblical topics such as the trinity, justification, sanctification, redemption, forgiveness, sin, the cross, the law, etc..
By the time the students graduate from high schools they should have an accurate biblical world view that enables them to live in an unholy world without becoming or living like the world.
We expect that our teens will deal immediately with sin when confronted with it.
We expect them to pray regularly for family members friends and other they come into contact with.

This is not a complete list but it makes the point. We need higher standards, stronger teachings and pastors who aren't afraid to preach the whole truth even when it convicts those who are listening. We need pastors to raise the expectations and tell their teens that half-surrender, half-devotion is not surrender or devotion at all. Partial or delayed obedience is still disobedience. We need higher standards more truth and less tolerance of sin. We need pastors to focus on making disciples of those in the church instead of making the church another home where unbelievers feel as though they can continue to live the way they want without consequences. I would much rather see a teen who reads their bible and prays daily, swearing and listening to secular music...then listening to Christian music, not swearing but failing to read their bibles. By reading the bible and praying daily the natural result will be conviction of sin and growth.

04-25-2008 19:44

This article hasn't been commented yet.