Teach Them

 18Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20

I recently watched the wonderful and powerful movie, "The Jesus Revolution." I was deeply affected and since it depicted what was happening in both the nation and the church during the late 1960's and into the 70's, it was very much a time travel kind of experience for me. As I contemplate all that the movie portrayed as to how the Holy Spirit captured the hearts of a great part of what we now call "the baby boomer" generation, I was impressed by His Spirit as to how we must be prepared for what looks to be another great move of God in this nation and the nations, and most especially among what we call "generation Z."

The late 1960's brought upon a mostly unsuspecting older generation, a horde of young people who rejected their values, and even mocked them. They had long hair, funky clothing, experimented freely with many types of drugs, and broke all the sexual mores. They were a generation in a beyond desperate need for Christ. And God, through His Holy Spirit, began to move upon them. They came to a church that wasn't ready for anything like them. In so many cases, the traditional church turned them away. Some, like Chuck Smith's Calvary Chapel, and Jack Hayford's Church On The Way, welcomed them. Eventually they transformed the face of the American Church. I eventually became part of that. But the transformation was a messy one. Those coming in were in desperate need of being discipled, taught, just as Jesus commanded in the above Scripture we know as "The Great Commission." Pastor and teachers like Smith and Hayford, and many like them, met these young people where they were. They didn't demand immediate change but taught them the Word, defined sin, holiness, and the authority of Scripture. They obeyed Christ's command and trusted the Holy Spirit to work the transformation. Some of the young people fell away. Most didn't and their voices are among the most potent in the church today. Michael Brown, Greg Laurie, Richie Furay, and so many more, all were swept up by His Spirit in that move and all came from a counter cultural background. Now, we who are the church, are faced with something very similar, yet even more threatening. The beliefs and practices of a generation caught up in a world gone crazy. Our great challenge is how do we meet them? Our parents' generation in so many ways failed. Will we?

What will you and I do when people who have been caught up in lifestyles that are openly counter to the Word of God? How will we respond to people who have been living in and practicing sin, much of it in ways we rightfully deem to be a perversion of God's intention in creation? Will we turn them away, or, will we embrace them in love, and in love, confront them with His Truth? Will we demand that they immediately start believing and living as we do, or claim to, or will we patiently teach them His way and life, all in the power of His Holy Spirit, and all the while trusting God to honor it all? These, and many more are the challenges we'll face. We need to be prepared to do so. Are we prepared? Are you, and am I?

When I came to Jesus in 1979, nothing about me fit with the church I attended. They were, as I was once so fond of saying, "squares." Yet they, starting with a pastor with a heart filled with love, just welcomed me and ministered to me. I dressed differently and looked differently. Though I was immediately set free from my drug use, I still smoked heavily and arrived each week reeking of tobacco. This was a fellowship that frowned upon that, but not once did anyone say anything to me. No one ever told me I needed to be free of that ugly habit, but each week, I soaked in the teaching of the pastor and church, and eventually, I was freed of that as well. And so much more than that. I think, as a new wave of young people come to our doors, we need to minister in that same way, and moreso. Will we?

Teach them. That's what He said. Not indoctrinate them. Not to try and force change upon them but teach them. Just as Jesus did a small group of disciples that He called out of a world trapped in darkness. He's doing the same right now. What will we do in response?

Blessings,

Pastor O