Russell Moore: Young Adults See the Hypocrisy
We’ve seen the stats: young people are walking away from the church. From the Gen Z “nones” who indicate no religious affiliation to the ex-vangelical movement, the church seems to be hemorrhaging its people at a historically alarming rate.
As church leaders and cultural analysts dissect the reasons that this is happening, Russell Moore, Director of Christianity Today’s Public Theology Project, posits that perhaps the mass exodus is due to a lack of integrity in the church.
From sexual abuse and spiritual abuse scandals to pastors wearing $1,000 Gucci shoes to preach to hyper-politicized and ideologically divided congregations, many young people look at the church and its people and only see hypocrisy. As Moore states,
If people reject the church because they reject Jesus and the gospel, we should be saddened but not surprised. But what happens when people reject the church because they think we reject Jesus and the gospel? People have always left the church because they want to gratify the flesh, but what happens when people leave because they believe the church exists to gratify the flesh – in orgies of sex or anger or materialism? That’s a far different problem. What if people don’t leave the church because they disapprove of Jesus, but because they’ve read the Bible and have come to the conclusion that the church itself would disapprove of Jesus? That’s a crisis.
The church has never needed faithful and obedient disciples as much as it does today, which is exactly what the ministries of Christian Union are aiming to produce by the grace of God. At some of the most influential universities in the nation, Christian Union ministry faculty disciple students one-on-one, dive deep into Scripture through Bible courses, and teach students what it means to pursue the Lord wholeheartedly in every sphere of their lives. In New York City, CU Cities connects professionals, provides spiritual retreats, and engages the intellectual beat of the city through high-caliber forums.
The crisis Moore speaks of is real, but the Lord is still seated on the throne, he is not mocked, and Christian Union is working to raise up a new generation of Christian leaders to transform culture.
Read the full article here.
