How Old Were the Disciples?

I mentioned in my previous post that there are no examples of "youth ministry," in the traditional sense of games with Twinkies and shallow Bible messages, to be found in the Bible.  And that's true.  But, depending on the age that you attribute to the disciples, you could say that the entire ministry of Jesus is an example of ministry with youth.

Of course no one knows for sure how old the disciples were at the end of Jesus' life, but there are some hints in the Bible.  For example:

In Matthew 17:24-27 Jesus and Peter are subjected to a tax that the other disciples are considered exempt from and in Exodus 30:11-16 that only those 20 years old and older are required to pay the tax.  These seems like pretty good evidence that the majority of the disciples were under 20 years old.

In addition, in Matthew 10:42, Jesus refers to his disciples as "little ones."  If the disciples were adults I don't think he would refer to them in this way.  The logical explanation is that the disciples were in fact "little ones," or children.

The new trend in conservative churches is to throw youth ministry out because they've deemed it ineffective (see previous post), but that's a mistake from my point of view.  In reality there's a good argument to be made that youth are actually doing much better in churches than adults in terms of growing in their faith and living it, and that's probably because there is at least one adult, i.e., youth pastor, in their churches who is completely devoted to walking with them in life and ministry. 

Rather than throw the baby out with that bath water, we should rather reconsider the elements of youth ministry that aren't working and seek to improve them.  We also need to get more adults involved in discipling young people.  And, in my opinion, we need to move toward a model of more characteristic of the model of ministry that Jesus demonstrated, i.e., ministry with youth, rather than traditional youth ministry.

More Teens Becoming Fake Christians

If you're the parent of a Christian teenager, Kenda Creasy Dean has this warning:

Your child is following a "mutant" form of Christianity, and you may be responsible.

Dean says more American teenagers are embracing what she calls "moralistic therapeutic deism." Translation: It's a watered-down faith that portrays God as a "divine therapist" whose chief goal is to boost people's self-esteem.

Dean is a minister, a professor at Princeton Theological Seminary and the author of "Almost Christian," a new book that argues that many parents and pastors are unwittingly passing on this self-serving strain of Christianity.

HT: Pure Church

Training the Next Generation to Hope in God, Not Us

"We don't want the future generations to put their hope in our musical preferences or our way of doing things. Or our structures. Or our band arrangements. Or our communications methods. We want them to hope in God. We want them to hope in Jesus Christ. It's important that we're not the object of someone's hope."

I love hearing that from someone who's in the generation ahead of me, because it's the opposite message from what we normally hear. The message older generations communication, mostly implicitly, is that what we prefer is most important; what we like, what we do, what we know, the way we worship, the music we enjoy, that's what's important and your role is to learn to appreciate what we like so that it will live on when we're gone. All of those messages tell younger generations to hope in the older generations - they will lead us and show us the way, but only as long as we do it their way. That's not Jesus and that's not the gospel.

I'm amazed when I hear some talking of "traditional worship music" has if it is anything but preference - it's not. And I'm often tempted to point out to those folks that John Calvin, whose theology they love, was appalled by the pipe organ being used in worship services. In fact he called it an idol. But fortunately they don't have to worship God in the same way that John Calvin did, and future generations don't need to worship God the same way they do. It's the gospel that matters - not us, not our likes and dislikes, and that's the message we need to communicate to the children and youth we are mentoring and teaching.

HT: Worship Matters

Mentoring Like Jesus

In Mentor Like Jesus, Regi Campbell questions all conventional thinking about mentoring by simply looking at the example of Jesus. He says:

We have visualized Jesus as CEO, Jesus as an environmentalist, and even thought about what Jesus’ politics might have been. But in reality … in history … regardless of your religious beliefs, Jesus was a mentor.

He describes eleven characteristics of what he calls Next Generation Mentoring, which include:

1. It is on purpose. Mentoring is an intentional relationship that is unlike any other. Regi says it is not about knowing something. That is education. It is not about learning to do to something. That is training. Mentoring is about showing someone how to be something.
   

You 86 the rules. You do what just feels right. . .

Walt Mueller:

Youth culture is a map and a mirror. It is both directive and reflective. We watch it to see where it's sending us and our kids. We watch it to see where we are. We monitor, deconstruct, and exegete it to know how to bring the map of the Biblical world and life view to bear on the realities that exist. A world that's not the way it's supposed to be keeps heading in that direction. We're in desperate need of being straightened out, fixed, and made new. That's why we listen and watch carefully.

Looking for a cultural map and mirror to ponder and talk about over the next month or so? Here's one worth engaging.

"You 86 the rules. You do what just feels right. . . "

HT: Vitamin Z

No Compromise

By Terry Virgo

Your friends may freely indulge their sexual appetites, but this doesn’t give you license to do the same. Young couples have plenty of opportunities to be together. You may be respected members of your church, trusted to keep God’s standards wherever you go. But it‘s so easy to step into the danger areas.

Young People, Beware
Young man, you have no right to make demands upon a girl because you’ve taken her out a few times. Young woman, you have no right to dress provocatively to encourage a boy’s advances, and neither of you has the right to ruin each other’s future.

Do you really want God to use you? If you do, don’t play around. Don’t compromise. You cannot easily shake off the accompanying guilt, the sense of failure, and the knowledge that you have laid a landing strip for the devil in your life.

The Bible says, ‘The righteous are as bold as a lion’ (Prov. 28:1). Very often you are not bold, because you are neither righteous nor do you love righteousness. You are, rather, dabbling around on the edge, caught up in the uncleanness of your generation. But God wants you to be as bold as a lion, so cry out to him not to lead you into temptation but deliver you from evil, and help you be righteous.

Older People, Beware
If you’re older you must beware of thinking that only young people are vulnerable, that strong passions cease as the years pass. At the time of his adultery, David was about fifty years old!

Maybe you’re a man of mature years, going through a dull or difficult period in your marriage. A girl in the office is very warm and understanding. You’re flattered that she takes notice of you. You’re vulnerable; recognize it and keep away. Determine in your heart, ‘I will not yield to this temptation. I will not get even remotely involved in such sin. I will not spoil God’s plan for me.’ Beware of the terrifying power of lust, which like a strong magnet will pull you if you get anywhere near it.

Flee
Imagine coming across the story of David and Bathsheba for the first time. You’ve just read all about David’s mighty exploits, his amazing love for Saul and Jonathan, and his promotion to the throne. And now, here he is with another man’s wife. It shocks you. How could he do such a thing, this man after God’s own heart? How could he wreck the wonderful testimony of his life for the sake of a few moments of pleasure? Surely, if David fell, so can you.

The Bible tells us, ‘The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord… Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?’ (1 Cor. 6:13, 18, 19). Since God’s Holy Spirit lives in you, when you sin against your body, the Spirit is automatically included in your activity. You allow an unholy thing to desecrate the temple of God. You involve a holy and glorious God in your unholy action.

You are a new creation now, so live like it! God is in you, and he will help you. Therefore, honor him with your body.

HT: Terry Virgo

Four Teens Charged in Fatal Beating of Chicago Student & Why the Message of Youth Development is a Dangerous Lie

I am working on a doctorate in Education, emphasizing in the area of Youth Development. My passion for working with youth and their families ultimately led me to pursue two graduate degrees within this field, but as a Christian I have always felt a tension between the philosophy which largely guides the my field and the truth taught in the Bible about the state of the human condition and the process by which are people changed.

Within the story of the tragic events that led to the death of Derrion Albert, a 16 year old from Chicago, you can find an example of the dangerous and deadly lie that guides the field of Youth Development (or Youth Work, as I prefer to call it ... and there are big differences between the two terms). Here is a quote from a youth worker reflecting on the murder of Derrion:

"Misguided youth need leadership in their life. This is learned behavior," said Tio Hardiman of CeaseFire Illinois, an anti-violence group. "You can put all the police in the world in the city, but that's not enough," he said. CeaseFire intervenes in conflicts and negotiates treaties between rival groups, he said, and is working to prevent a violent reaction to Albert's slaying. Dwayne Overstreet, a minister, went to Fenger to pray for peace. "It's not that these young people don't understand the value of life," he said. "They haven't been taught the value of life."

Most people would probably agree with this quote and it's common to hear such things after teens are caught participating in criminal activities that cause us to wonder "what's wrong with youth today." Depending on which area within the field of Youth Development a particular advocate or youth worker is situated (i.e., mentoring, youth services, prevention education, character education, etc.), you'll hear a different prescription for what youth need in order to change and become productive citizens - but nearly all of the prescriptions point toward education as the means of creating change.



What's interesting to note here is that history of the field of Youth Development (well, actually Youth Work. Again, it's difficult to not use the language of 'Youth Development' or 'Positive Youth Development,' because the field of Youth Work has been so hijacked, in my opinion, by the fields of Psychology and Social Work in United States. For a more detailed explanation of the differences between Youth Development and Youth Work, click here) is largely rooted within the Christian Church and Christian sponsored organizations (i.e., YMCA, YWCA, Boys' Brigade, Sunday School Movement, etc.) which, by design, emphasized community-building and informal education, along with Biblical instruction, as a means to come alongside young people. That was the means of communicating, relating, and interacting with youth, but not the means of change, which the Bible teaches is the work of the Holy Spirit.

Today, with the exception of the church itself, we have eliminated God from most of our work with youth, and instead rely on education to create change. We use things like the Six Pillars of Character and the 40 Developmental Assets as a means of helping youth and educating them about what we (adults, society) believe that they need in order to be complete individuals and healthy adults. But if you're a Christian, you see what a deadly lie this is. You know that it's impossible for any man-made method to change the heart of anyone and that without Christ we are all dead in our trespasses (see Ephesians 2:1-9). I don't argue with the means, there's nothing wrong with mentoring, etc., to the contrary these efforts can be very helpful; but what I have to argue against, as a Christian, is the end point toward which we are aiming. Most are aiming at educating for the purpose of teaching youth how to behave (or in my opinion, how to live according to the rules of the world), but this is the path toward death, or more accurately, it is the path away from life.

I don't know the heart of the young men who allegedly murdered Derrion Albert, but I do know that it won't help any of us to be "taught the value of life" if we're dead. And it won't help to have a mentor, coach, teacher, social worker, or youth worker come alongside a young person if that "helper" doesn't know Jesus as their Savior and can't communicate the gospel, both through words and actions. Would you take a young person with a life-threatening gun shot wound bowling or out to a park to shoot hoops? Of course not, they need medical attention, without which they are moving fast toward death. But that's what we're doing in the field of Youth Development in this country. We're committing a vast amount of resources to the effort to teach our youth that "character counts, " helping connect them with mentors, and educating them about what it means to live a good life on Earth; and all the while our youth are dead in the trespasses and moving fast toward an eternity separated from their Creator.

As the t-shirts that Derrion's relatives wore at his funeral proclaim, indeed he is "Gone too soon, too young." All the more reason for having a greater sense of urgency of reaching out to people of all ages with the truth of the gospel. Please pray for Derrion, his family, his classmates, and that somehow this situation would glorify God.