Chapter Nine
1. Sarah’s story
illustrates one of the most pervasive perceptions among young adults: the
church is exclusive. Many in the next
generation believe that Christians have an insider-outsider mentality that is
always ready to bar the door to those who don’t meet their standards. This
flies in the face of the Mosaics’ collective values and reference points.
Tolerance has been the cultural North Star for most of their upbringing.
Inclusiveness, diversity, and political correctness are ideals that have shaped
this generation.
- Where have you
experienced church life as “exclusive?”
How did you feel about it then?
How do you feel about it now?
2. Could it really be
that, for America’s younger generations, intimidation and intolerance are on a
level with oppression by a foreign power? Even if not, their affinity for
tolerance poses a significant challenge for the church, in four related ways.
A. Agreement versus Disagreement
B. Peer Responsibility versus Individuality
C. Fairness versus Rightness
D. Participation versus Exclusion
- Review/discuss the
merits & challenges of each.
3. Most young committed
Christians have a great deal of theological consistency with their parents’
viewpoints on these issues. Aside from exiles and other committed believers,
however— that is, among the wider population of young Christians and former
Christians— we find significantly more religious pluralism than among the older
generations. What, then, is the difference between young Christians and older
believers? It’s their context. The younger Christian community is “doing
theology” in an environment different from that of the past; not everyone
within the community connects with the historic faith’s truth claims. This fact is causing younger Christians, especially exiles,
to rethink theology and practice in at least three areas:
A. Evangelism; B. Denominations; and, C. the “Other.”
- Again, review/discuss
the merits & challenges of each.
4. At the heart of the
Christian story, however, is the Triune God’s rejection of both exclusion and
tolerance. The Creator was not content to exclude those who had rejected him,
but neither was he prepared to tolerate our hatefulness and sin. So what did he
do? He became one of us, one of the “other,” identifying with us to embrace us
in solidarity, empathy, and selfless agape love— all the way to the cross.
- What would it look like
for the church to do the same?
- How would the church
be different if we were to reject exclusion as unacceptable and tolerance as
not good enough?
5. What would we do
differently when discipling young adults to help them cultivate Christ-like
empathy that identifies with the least, the last, and the lost?
A. Embracing Scripture - We might start by seeking a fully
biblical view of Christ’s message and mission. A good place to begin this
endeavor is with the stories Jesus told about the “other.”
B. Embracing Practice - As we share practices and fellowship
across denominational lines, we reject both exclusion and tolerance and can
truly embrace each other as sisters and brothers in Christ.
C. Embracing Empathy - The next generation needs workable,
biblical, grace-filled ways to relate with people who are not believers. For
the sake of Christ and the church’s mission, we must give them better tools and
a thoughtful, livable theology to match. I wish I had easy suggestions, but the
truth is that relationships are hard, complex work. No two are alike. Yet
learning how to love others with the courage of our God-given convictions is
the fine art of following Christ. Teaching younger Christians how to do this is
the fine art of discipleship.
- Where do the witness
Christians moving in these directions?
- Where are we
challenged to grow into these roles?
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