Every once and a while I am struck by fact that there is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Our youth in America are experiencing a unique era of technology and population growth but honestly I think the core principles of the issues we are facing today are nothing new to humanity. Many people like to think that this generation faces challenges that no other generation has, maybe even greater challenges that any generation in history. I think the issue of technology may be a valid point but honestly I don't think you could read history and tell me that this generation faces greater struggle than any other, especially when our greatest struggle may be self-imposed.
I think that we are in the midst of a unique generation in light of the acceleration of the missions movement. Never before has it been possible for every people group to be reached, or for the Bible to be translated into every language. This is the first generation in history that is projected to see the completion of those tasks. That raises several questions and intriguing implication, but let's leave that alone for now.
What really disturbs me about most Christian youth in America is their growing dependance on sentiment. Like I said, this is not something that is unique to this generation. There are many periods of history where generations have traded truth for sentiment and we can see clearly the consequences of their decisions. Honestly I have not heard of any society that traded truth for sentiment and survived long.
The danger of becoming dependent on sentiment is how easily we can slip into it without even realizing it. I don't think most people make a conscious decision to set aside the rule of objective truth for subjective sentiment, but it appeals to our iniquity by validating our insecurity. I don't know if that makes sense...
Let me lay it out like this: the general assumption that humanity possesses an inherent good, even suppressed, is a very appealing sentiment. That idea bears no weight of truth, but it sounds good and the fact that it sounds good seems to be to make it acceptable among the youth. Most of the youth in the church have, in all honesty, left their Bible on the shelf in favor of whatever tickles their fancy regardless of if it stands the test of truth. I find myself looking to the great teachers of our fathers and recognizing that they let the Bible rule over their opinions and make their sentiment subject to the existence of truth. Not so with the youth. Rather the greatest offense has become the idea of imposing one person's truth upon another, effectively subjecting truth to sentiment and becoming vulnerable to delusion.
Let me be clear, this young generation in America is ripe for delusion because they literally have no heading to their moral compass, no foundation of truth to direct their opinion, thus becoming ruled by their emotions and sentiment. In fact, this is the culture described in Scripture as the one that would most readily receive the Antichrist. If you really want to break down the implications of the acceleration in the missions movement, current events in Israel and the general pulse of our western culture, we are quickly becoming the ideal recipients of one such leader.
The most effective element that could turn the tide of this sentiment-driven culture is a resurgence of Spirit-filled, prayerful, Bible-believing grade-schoolers and teenagers. Nowadays their friends would call them extremists, fundamentalists and intolerant, but we need nothing less than young people filled with glory and truth of God. Six years of ministry to high school campuses made this very clear to me.
By now I have probably confused several readers and possibly offended a few others. That's okay. I like you. Bear with me... I am not the best at this whole blog thing but I promise I'm getting better :)
