ear, my children, the instruction of a father, and give attention to know understanding; for I give you good doctrine: Do not forsake my law. When I was my father's son, tender and the only one in the sight of my mother, he also taught me, and said to me: "Let your heart retain my words; keep my commands, and live..." (Proverbs 4:14)
You shall rise up before the gray headed and honor the presence of an old man, and fear your God: I am the Lord (Leviticus 19:32).
Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity (1 Timothy 4:12).
Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart (2 Timothy 2:22).
Our society has taken a shocking turn. In the 1950's we saw the development of a subculture that was peculiar to young people. This was the first time the Western World had ever seen an ageexclusive subculture. Now, a little more than a generation later, that youth subculture has become the dominant culture in our society.
In terms of culture in all its forms, art, dress, music, etiquette, and entertainment, we train up our little ones to make the most of their youth. High school is the pinnacle of life. Young people dream of being high school seniors, and when they reach the age of eighteen they are on top of the world. What's worse, the world, old and young, bows down to them.
By age thirty we are already past our prime. We begin the frantic posttwenties pattern of fitness, facelifts, weekend recreation, and spicy relationships which "make us feel young again." Late twentieth century America is not allowing itself to grow up. We have established a pattern of perpetual regress that is tearing down the last vestiges of maturity that our fathers labored to achieve.
This regress happens when we ignore the mandates in Scripture which implore the young and old to interact with one another. With age comes wisdom wisdom that needs to be passed on to young people. Older people must be eager to share it, and younger people must be eager to receive it.
The socalled "generation gap" (a twentieth century invention) has been used as an excuse for age segregation, but Scripture speaks of no such thing. Our Lord prohibits the perpetuation of immaturity that results when the younger generation is left to itself. Instead, our children should be standing on our shoulders.
When young people exclusively interact with one another and make their own rules, a "herd mentality" develops: they follow in the footsteps of one another rather than those of adults. The problem is not peer interaction per se, but irresponsible parental oversight. Young people should never be allowed to form a herd. Though peer interaction is often profitable, it is only so when it promotes maturity. From their birth, children should see themselves as adultstobe, growing into an adult world. They must never be trained to think that perpetual youth is life's aim.
Therefore the church ought to be wary of what some call an ideal youth ministry. Such a ministry pulls teens away from their elders, brings them together, and encourages them to revel in their youth. Even worse, children are drawn away from home in order to keep church commitments. I have seen youth ministries where the "deeply committed" kids are at the church four nights a week!
Some are frustrated that the church is too slow in keeping up with societal trends. But they are encouraged to see the church closing in: Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith have made the top 40, and This Present Darkness is being made into a movie. And, most important of all, youth ministries are learning to follow the latest fads in order to sell Christianity to today's teen.
Perhaps we should step back and ask ourselves if our standards are too low, patterned after the standards of our declining culture. Youth ministries have not solved the problem, they have become part of it. Our goal has been to provide a place where kids will have fun in a wholesome atmosphere. We don't want our kids to be immature in a worldly way, but rather in a "Christian" way. So we reject a pagan immaturity, and embrace a "Christian" immaturity. In the name of good clean wholesome fun, immaturity is perpetuated.
Building on our foundation, our children ought to move far beyond the goals we achieve. Our grandchildren should be raised better than our children. They should have a deeper understanding of God's word, their Christian worldview should be more refined, and their fear of God should be more profound than ours.
The biblical standard is "godly offspring" (Mal. 2:15): descendants of whom we will not be ashamed, sharp arrows who rise up and contend with our enemies at the gate (Ps. 127:5). If this standard is not met, parents bear the full responsibility. The Scriptures couldn't be more clear: the responsibility for the upbringing of children in every area is given primarily to parents (Deut. 6:7, Eph. 6:4, passim). Responsible youth ministry in the church involves teaching and exhorting parents.
The focus of next month's essay will be to cover specific problems with modern youth ministries, and to suggest alternatives for those who are tired of imitating the world.
