How Can Young Adults Change the Church?

The Question

A friend recently asked me, “How can our generation change church culture?” It’s not a crazy question.

Perhaps in every generation, young Christians have hungered to make a difference. And now I see it in my friends. I see it in the hours they spend discipling others. I hear it in their questions and concerns and dreams.

Christianity Today says we're "Young, Reformed, and Restless." TIME Magazine says we're "changing the world." But what does that look like locally?

The Answer: Patient, Faithful, Gospel-Driven Service

Young people tend to want radical, paradigm-shifting plans that will change the world—tomorrow, if not sooner.

But as far as I can see, the answer isn’t very sexy, and it’s a lot slower: patient, faithful gospel-driven service.

• Be patient and faithful. Pastor Mark Dever says that young people tend to overestimate the difference they can make in one year, and they underestimate the difference they can make in ten. Think long-term.
• Be gospel-driven. Live a Romans 12 life. In view of God’s mercies—that is, in view of the gospel truths of Romans 1-11—give your life to God and to others. You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body.
• Be a servant. Christ came not to be served but to serve; do likewise. Be quick to serve in menial, thankless roles. Aim to wash others’ feet, whether you’re on stage or hidden in the back. Be a servant, whether you’re setting up chairs or teaching Sunday School. Don’t be the 25-year-old who thinks he knows everything. Be quick to listen and slow to speak. Do nothing from selfish ambition, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Don’t be a triumphalist; be a servant.

Three C’s of Cultural Change

Here are three ways you can be a patient, faithful, gospel-driven servant.

1. Connect, don’t just cordon yourself off.

How well do you know people outside of your clique/age/language? If you’re like me, the answer is “not that well.” And, to be honest, I don’t always want to.

But in my better moments, I want to welcome others as Christ has welcomed me, for the glory of God (Romans 15:7). So the gospel-driven Christian should also be the outward-looking Christian.

You can’t much learn from—or influence—people you don’t know. And you won’t know people outside your demographic if you don’t make an effort. Cross lines. Go to “the other side of the church.” Go to Sunday Schools and church camp and Lay Leadership events, even if only to connect with others.

2. Care, don’t just condemn.

Maybe older generations aren’t beating down your door to mentor you. (Older people, don’t be intimidated! You may not feel qualified, but many of us have a secret hunger for mentors, whether formal or informal.)

But you can still begin to cultivate intentional relationships. Treat people out to Jade Fountain. (Make the meeting as easy and appealing for them as you can; outdo one another in showing honor.) Ask them what they’re learning in their quiet times. Share what you’re learning in your quiet times. Ask them what they would tell 25-year-old versions of themselves. (Side note: You can still learn from people, even if you don’t agree with all of their ideas. Use eager discernment; chew all the meat you can, and spit out the bones.) Care for others, and learn from others; don’t just condemn them.

In ten years I would love to see rich, intentional, cross-generational, Word-driven relationships littering the DNA and landscape of our church. Be the firstfruits of that vision.

3. Create, don’t just criticize.

In his book Culture Making, Andy Crouch argues that if Christians want to change culture, they shouldn’t just critique, copy, or merely consume culture; they must create. Crouch uses a parable of dinnertime chili routines:

Instead of simply protesting, our children could increase the sophistication of their critique of the chili, explaining in more detail why the green peppers are too sour, why tomatoes are appealing when puréed but appalling when chunky. 

Alternatively, our children could just give up, consuming whatever we serve. They might even grow to tolerate, if not like, the green peppers and chunky tomatoes. Or, at the other extreme, when they are old enough they could simply stop coming to dinner altogether. Once the leave the house they will be able to cook their chili any way they want… 

There is one thing our children could do, though, that could have a decisive effect on our family’s culture at the table. If I come home on a Tuesday night a few years from now (when they are old enough that I can trust them with the knives) and find dinner already simmering on the stove, even if it’s not chili, I will likely be delighted. Especially if the food being prepared is a substantial improvement on our usual fare, just as tasty, and even more creative than I would have prepared myself. 

Don’t primarily be a critic; be a creator. God has not called us to just complain but to build. Don’t complain about the chili; make a better dish instead. Don’t complain that Ministry X isn’t strong enough; look for ways to help Ministry X. Don’t complain that Group Y isn’t being discipled; see how you can help disciple Group Y.

What are you passionate about? Purifying church practices? Responding with truth and love to homosexuality? Evangelism? Mercy ministries? The arts? In the body of Christ, God has given us different gifts, and He has sovereignly positioned us in that body. So let’s use them.

Computer pioneer Alan Kay said, “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.”

It’s time to start inventing.

A Vision of the Future

Our church has a full history of gospel proclamation; I want to see a future of continuing, increased gospel health.

I want to see a church culture driven by the Word. I want to see a people who know and love the gospel deeply. I want to see a church that makes disciples, not just administrators.

I want to see a people who are held together by the mission of the Word, not by tradition or potlucks. I want to see a people who love each other deeply, across a dizzying manner of demographic divides. I want to see rich, Word-driven relationships and conversations.

I want to see Biblical elders who shepherd the flock by the Word, not shrinking from declaring the whole counsel of God. I want to see a norm of vigorous expositional preaching.

I fear capitulation to the culture. I fear apathy and inwardness.

I want to see a church that is never “relevant” enough to compromise—a church that feels in its bones that Christ’s Church is a pillar and buttress of the truth. I want to see a church that is willing to be labelled “intolerant” for the sake of truth and love.

I want to see a people who carry the Word eagerly, winsomely, and wisely to the outside world, even if that world crucifies them, like it did their Lord.

I would love to be a part of that future.

And I would love you to be a part of that future, too.