“Every eye closed, every head bowed please. If you would like to ask Jesus to come into your life to be your personal Lord and Savior, then just pray this…”
You know you’ve said it. Quit trying to hide behind your computer, I can see you. Just kidding! That would be creepy. The thought for today is when will we abandon this tired and worn out model of pushing students into a “personal relationship” with Jesus? Was it the self-help movement that created this “gospel”? Simply, it is never mentioned in the Bible this way. I’ve found one instance in Scripture where the term accept or received is used in regards to Salvation: Col. 2:6.
In a missional community, the emphasis becomes less and less personal, and more and more communal. What is this infatuation with a “personal relationship” with Jesus anyway. How are you presenting your students with information about being a follower of Christ? Is it true to Scripture? Or, is it just the easiest way you can think of so they’ll understand? I would love to hear how you approach this stuff.
Stay tuned for some great stuff about a dude in the Northwest that is doing some unique things in youth ministry.
April 18, 2009 at 1:28 am
Yep. That approach is definitely not Scriptural!! How about ‘take up your cross and follow me.’. That’s an action. It’s not just about accepting or even believing. It’s about following, and that following includes taking up our own cross.
April 18, 2009 at 1:35 am
Yep, that approach is definitely not Scriptural. How about “take up your cross and follow me”? That’s an action. It’s not about just accepting or even believing but about following Christ, which requires taking up your cross.
April 20, 2009 at 6:42 pm
Amy, thanks for responding! I know that you’ve had quite a transition in your faith perspective over these last few years. I hope that you will continue to come and contribute to this, and future, conversations. Say hi to Mike.
April 20, 2009 at 3:41 pm
I think it’s important that everyone, not just teens, know that their decision to “follow Christ” is individual and communal. You can’t separate the two – God holds each ONE Of us accountable, but he holds us accountable in community with each other. Look at Deut. where he tells the whole gang of Israelites to “choose life…” I have to choose life for myself, but in the context of group life too. Our church, http://www.creekvineyard.org, is a missional church so it’s not really about getting folks to come to church, but about us getting to know people around whom we live/work/hang out etc. Like Jesus did. He didn’t try to get people to come to the temple, but instead he hung out w/ people and said, “Come along, do this stuff w/ me.” But in Matt. 8 where Jesus asked a disciple to let go of his dad and follow him, that guy had to make an intentional decision for himself. However, Jesus made that remark in the context of a group of disciples… so it was one that was to teach the whole group how to live as followers of Christ. It is important to give kids (and adults) both. Does that mean we need an altar call at church on Sundays? No. But if you don’t ever mention the role of personal responsibility in the context of salvation, then it can become…”Do this and you’ll be like me” instead of true understanding that mission and relationship must be both individual and corporate. You see Jesus getting away from the crowds to be w/ the Father and you see him w/ the Father amdist crowds. Gotta be both.
April 20, 2009 at 6:41 pm
Like it Brooksie! It’s all about discussing these things and sharpening our views about something that for the longest time, especially in youth ministry, have been just accepted without regard to it biblical integrity. Very good stuff, thanks for responding.
May 29, 2009 at 5:25 pm
Interesting question. The phrase “personal relationship” is just fine, depending on how you define it. “He who defines the terms wins the arguments.” Some wise dude said that sometime….
Yet, remembering from my days of youth ministry – I never once gave a typical “altar call” as you described it. I think the problem with the average salvation message is that it confounds those that are hearing it – they are hearing a poor presentation of the gospel – one that promotes easy believism. One that possibly tricks people into thinking they are saved, when in actuality they are not. Jesus never said “get saved.” Instead, He always called people to discipleship, which entails not only a point of belief and recognition as to who Jesus is, and to what he has done to secure salvation, but also recognizing that His Lordship is calling us into discipleship and a life of action and service – Kingdom work. So, Jesus always presented a very difficult challenge to unbelievers – it was not a simple, easy prayer. It was a life-altering, mind-transforming choice to believe and to follow – not a memorized prayer. I always did that in small group discussions, or 1-on-1 with a teen. I tried to make my teaching centered around not only orthodoxy (right thinking) but orthopraxy (right living or discipleship) and I avoided the big group salvation time like the plague. That way, it was very natural to discuss with a teen 1-on-1 any questions about the teaching, and we could wrestle through their issues about God, discipleship, etc. Hope my rambling made sense. Probably not.