Encouragement for a Generation
Sep. 24 2007
Justin Buzzard’s recent article got us thinking so we asked our bloggers to continue the conversation and share things that encouraged them about this current generation of Christians and things that concerned them. What we got was a great roundtable discussion.
Today: Encouragement.
Justin Taylor: One of the things that I think is most encouraging among this current generation of Christians is the recovery of the greatness and grandeur of God. More and more songs are pointing to the glory of God and our need to passionately pursue him. To see thousands of students at conferences lifting their hands and singing till their voices are hoarse is a sign of God’s great grace.
Eric Simmons: How do I choose just one? There are so many encouraging things about this generation and their pursuit of God. If I had to narrow it down, I think that there is a hunger in this generation for an authentic walk with God—a walk that affects every area of their personal life and that also affects the culture they live in. They are dissatisfied with a Christianity that is practiced only on Sundays. They are dissatisfied with a Christianity that is insulated and isolated and that retreats into a subculture of evangelicalism. They are tired of the Christian tendency to stay in the ‘holy huddle,’ and instead want to make a difference with the gospel. They want a doctrinal understanding that leads to real life change, awe of God, and humility before others. I love being a part of them.
Thabiti Anyabwile: I was a practicing Muslim during my college years, and I was zealous for Islam. I was a real enemy of the cross and delighted in any argument I could start with a Christian. I was proud of the fact that I could “beat” my Christian classmates into submission with arguments and an intensity they couldn’t match. As far as I was concerned, Christians were weak little creatures with an impotent, idolatrous view of God. And more often than not, it seemed to me that they were simply afraid.
What I appreciate about this generation of Christians is that they are bold, zealous according to knowledge, and bow to the massive, majestic God of Scripture and His Anointed Son, Jesus. More and more Christians (young ones in particular) are delighting in the sovereign God who rules all things and accepts no challengers. When I meet young Christians I find that not only are they more knowledgeable, they are not afraid of standing for Christ. And they hunger after him. In the years since I left undergraduate school, it seems to me the Lord has worked a wonderful revival of Christian faith, joy, zeal, knowledge, and risk-taking that–as Piper tells us–is right. And I’m thrilled about that!
Joseph Stigora: I know almost nothing about sports. And I have no real interest in sports either. My wife is more athletic than me. I just want to get that out there so we can start the mockery and move on. But what stands out about a true sports fan is their enthusiasm, their passion to get behind their team. Men who won’t express their emotions to their wives in private can be seen on Jumbo-tron laughing, screaming, dancing and crying in public, wearing two-tone face paint and joined by 50,000 strangers. Their enthusiasm is freely expressed.
When I think about this generation of Christians, I am grateful for a similar enthusiastic passion. It’s not a trivial passion like at the sports stadium. It is serious. But the expression is similar in that it is willing to give all its energy to try to make a difference, take risks, and to be less reserved. I think this is the kind of enthusiasm and zeal Scripture calls us to when it says we should hunger and thirst for God and earnestly seek after him (Psalm 63). It encourages me as a pastor to see the college students I relate to expressing this kind of zeal in their lives.