The Truth and Beauty
I will end my initial exploration of Gen Z’s departure from the Church by restating what I said at the start of this journey: I adamantly love my generation. My heart longs for the salvation of my peers, and I lament the corrupt, sin-stained, moral wasteland in which we grew up–it certainly unleashes a viscous onslaught of doubt and discouragement upon any Gen Zer who dares venture beyond its materialistic, live-for-the-moment philosophy in search of something greater. In search of what author Andrew Klavan refers to as the Truth and Beauty, something difficult to articulate that I will nonetheless boil down to “the joy that comes from glorifying and enjoying God in the everyday.”
The world hates Truth and Beauty. In fact, anything that opposes it is, by definition, deceit and ugliness. As I have hopefully conveyed throughout the fourteen posts on this blog, these two malevolent forces sow seeds of spiritual doubt within Gen Z (1) by luring them into a false sense of contentment and a very real case of complacency, both of which tell them they have no need for Jesus; (2) by convincing them Christianity’s core beliefs are nonsensical–or even worse, evil–and therefore belief in God is not acceptable; (3) by insisting that the observable universe does not point to the intelligent design of a loving God, and even if it did there are far too many religions out there to determine which one is true; and (4) by dogmatically asserting that Christianity is an outdated relic of a more bigoted and hateful time.
That is a devastatingly effective plan of attack, and currently, it keeps the majority of Gen Z from asking Jesus to be their savior as well as destroys the faith of many Gen Zers who once followed Him. We are a post-Christian generation.
And yet.
And yet there is still boundless hope. As long as there are dedicated servants of Jesus Christ who, like Jesus Himself, have a heart to seek and save the lost, there is hope for all who wander through the spiritual wasteland of this world. The antidote to a wicked culture is a loving Church. This is why it is so crucial for every believer to be actively engaged in discipleship. It’s why the church at which I serve has made it our mission statement to “pass on an obedient relationship with Jesus to our community.” Culture shifts back to Christ through making disciples who make disciples. And this takes place primarily through relationship. There is no magic formula. No shortcut. No powerful sermon to release on the internet and instantly bring Gen Z and beyond to Jesus. No marketing or outreach strategy for churches to adopt to bring in a flood of the younger generations.
It happens through the slow, gradual, and delightful process of building relationship. Building relationship, and then listening for the prompting of the Holy Spirit to organically engage in spiritual conversations that address doubt and discouragement. I would not have my faith today if the Christian men in my life had not deliberately set aside time to do this–to share Jesus with me through the simple act of talking and doing life together. This is what Gen Z will respond to, much more so than some blog posts written by a guy named Brendan. For the believers who know a Gen Zer (or anyone of any generation, for that matter) on their way to terminal deconstruction, it is my prayer these first fourteen posts have better equipped you to have these pivotal conversations as you do life together.
As for those of you who are struggling with or have already lost their faith, I pray this blog, at the very least, has opened you up to some new perspectives you had not yet considered. Terminal deconstruction is not your only option, and the godless, hollow philosophy promoted by media, school, and the rest of our cultural institutions does not have to be the road you take. I want you to know that God will always take you back. He has never stopped loving you. He longs to enjoy a relationship with you once more. He longs for you to have freedom from the shackles of sin, emptiness, and despair.
Freedom. I guess what I’m trying to express–what I’ve been trying to express for the entirety of these fourteen posts–is exactly that. There is freedom in rejecting the world and following Jesus. Freedom from the guilt and shame that drag you down as soon as you wake up each morning. Freedom from old addictions and the shame of inevitable new mistakes. Freedom from the paralyzing, overwhelming task of making your own meaning and creating your own system of morality. Freedom from the nagging, incessant voice in your head that, try as you might to stifle it, never relents from hammering into your head the message that you are not all you could be. Freedom from feeling lost, or alone, or bitter because nobody cares about you or truly gets you or loves you the way you desperately need to be loved. Freedom! So help me, freedom like you’ve never experienced it before.
That is what I have been trying to say all along. There is freedom in Christ. Enough to liberate a broken, hurting generation from the bondage of death.
As for the future, this blog will continue, but it will shift focus slightly to discuss another topic that is dear to my heart, on which I have only lightly touched thus far–and that topic centers on unbridled Christian joy. I look forward to unpacking that with all of you.
