Popular Myth No 5: We need to focus on our Youth!

My doubts began some years ago when I heard a sincere Christian chap who worked in broadcasting describe how a large Anglican church in another city was getting hundreds of unchurched youth into its Saturday night Nine o’clock Service (NoS). The meetings were very high tech. They used music and dance in a creative way. He said he was moved to tears when he saw it. Many churches began to copy their model. Moved to tears? I was not sure. Is the investment in expensive sound and video equipment better than sending bibles to China or training pastors in Africa? Is making Christianity ‘cool’ the answer? Do the people who are into this still take a biblical line on the tough issues like divorce and remarriage, eternal judgement and and modest dress?

I got my answer a year or two later, when it turned out that the chap who headed up this ministry (his surname was ‘Brain’) was found to be sexually molesting some of the female dancers who took part in the NoS. The headlines in the Sunday papers were predictable. “Brainwashed!”. For Christians, it was embarrassing and humiliating.

But what about the more low-key stuff? A look in at the Christian jobs on the average website or magazine usually has lots of vacancies for Youth Workers. I don't doubt that there are many hard-working, dedicated, Godly, sincere and effective youth workers around. I am not here to criticise individuals. I want to ask a more profound question. Are we going about things the right way?

My next shock came more recently when I was preaching through Titus - a life changing experience. (I’m not kidding - this small letter has changed my views on how to ‘do church’ more than anything else). Paul gives a list of qualities Titus was to seek or nurture when discipling different groups within the church. First, the elders (blameless, the husband of one wife, faithful children not self-willed etc). Next, the older men (sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience). Thirdly, the older women (reverent in behaviour, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things...).

So what happens when he gets onto the young men? The young men! The future of the church!!!

“Exhort the young men to be sober-minded.” Titus 2:6.

And....? Is that it??? Why didn’t Paul give another lengthy list? I had to ask an important question. If Paul puts more emphasis on the leaders, the older men and women, why do our churches put so much emphasis on youth?

Since the 1950s, western churches have experienced a burgeoning of youth ministries like never before. Churches will spend huge amounts on youth ministry. Trips away, youth focused sermons, cool Christian music, high tech services. And yet this has coincided with a massive falling away of young people from Christ. The vast majority of kids from Christian families do not ‘make it’ into adulthood as Christians. Some American churches have already begun to realise that youth ministry is not working. Willow Creek abandoned its Axis youth ministry some years ago, finally putting the teens in with the other adults. It is also interesting to read what the Mars Hill church in Seattle says:

“Does this church even have a youth ministry?”

I hear this question all the time, from Mars Hill members, visitors, and people who have never set foot within our doors. And the short answer to the question is “no.” At least not what most people would consider a youth ministry.

What’s really being asked is “Does this church gather all its teenagers on Wednesday nights, have monthly lock-ins, go on summer mission trips to Mexico, and have attractional, flashy, and really expensive winter and summer retreats?” The answer is a gentle, but emphatic, “no.” Not anymore. Why? Three reasons:
1. Statistically, it isn’t working.
2. Discipleship as seen in Scripture is minimal.
3. The Holy Spirit told us to do otherwise.

Some churches in the US at least are beginning to realise something. So what’s going on here? Let me share some thoughts.

(1) The world segregates people by age, creating generation gaps, though nurseries, schools, universities, old peoples homes etc. This is causing great damage to society. I am beginning to believe that the church should avoid copying the world’s model by segregating age groups.

(2) God has set us in families. It is primarily the job of parents to teach their children, not the church youth leader. We ‘send’ our kids to school. We ‘send’ our young people to the youth group. By setting up youth ministries, churches need to make sure they are not tacitly telling parents, “Give them to us and relax. It’s our job to evangelise and teach your kids”.

(3) The term, “Teenager” was invented by marketing people in the 1950s. In God’s sight we are either men or women or children. Most primitive cultures have a ceremony for a boy becoming a man. Jewish boys become men at their Bar Mitsvah (son of the law). The equivalent Roman ceremony was called “Putting away childish things”. Western culture lacks such a ceremony... and it shows! In Britain, our towns and cities are full of big babies. Some of them are in their forties! We need to stop treating young people like babies and put them with mature people.

(4) Young people need to be challenged with the gospel like everybody else. That means taking responsibility as an adult, working hard, training in a skill, repenting of flirting and fornication, music with ungodly lyrics, wasting hours on things like facebook, endless DVDs and x-box or the television, stealing by downloading copyrighted music, idolising pop stars and sports stars, disrespecting elders and authority figures. And yes, it also means committing themselves to marriage and bringing up children in the nurture of the Lord.

(5) Look at what Jesus achieved with his youth group - the apostles! Let us put away childish things, stop pandering to their fleshly tastes and teach them to become fishers of men!

(6) Finally, I want to say this. The church needs paid EVANGELISTS. How often do you see an advertisement put up by a church for an evangelist? And why do the evangelists we do have struggle so much to get support?

(7) In case you didn’t read the previous point, I’m going to say it again. The church needs paid EVANGELISTS. How often do you see an advertisement put up by a church for an evangelist? And why do the evangelists we do have struggle so much to get support?