Featured Youth Abandoning Church...

Correct.....& that's what I have been saying all along. :smilewinkgrin:

 

Isn't one thread on that "subject" enough?

 

Arch should come up to NJ to have a look-see.....anyway, its more than youths abandoning "THE CHURCH" & guess what ....I dont blame them.....they aint bein fed!

 

Are you stating here that only reformed churches can even teach/preach the real Gospel, and that those Baotists churches who are not also reformed will not have a shot at having active youth/adult groups in the churches?

 

There's always a faction of young adults who end up leaving church, this is traceable for several generations. I argue, and have the evidence, that young adults today's aren't leaving at the high rates some say they are, but are instead falling into less regular attendance patterns and attending other churches than the ones of their youth.

That said, the primary group of students, then young adults, that is leaving are those who have infrequent attendance, a lack of connection in student ministries, and parents who are casual Christians.

I saw this article earlier and wondered if anyone would use it to preach against progressive worship services or contemporary models. Didn't take too long. The point here is that all of these markers are made different, young adults remain engaged in church, in homes and places where active church involvement and grace-filled ministries abound.

(Man my autocorrect offered some weird suggestions here.)

 

You don't know if the young people leaving the church "saw Jesus as an add-on butler who gives you what your sinful heart desires". There was no poll done, there was no data, there was simply one youth pastor saying this is what he thought was happening.

 

Could it be you are just speaking for your own neck of the woods? I know its a very different in the North East where I am from. Here they have lost interest altogether because 99.9% of the churches don't feed anyone but themselves ....and most of them are woefully pathetic and lacking in any serious Bible study....and its been happening for at least 3-4 generations now.

 

Are you out there actively trying to reach them Arch....are on the street visible to them or are you sitting in the church building all day wondering where the Utes are and why they aren't there? I used to have a pastor who would plat a pick up game of hoops with us...this is just an example. My parish priest, when I was a kid would pound the pavement knocking on doors and asking how we were doing...how is God working in your life today fellas? Ya know, bring Him into the streets through the activities of one lone priest. Then it doesn't matter if you are a Catholic a Protestant a Baptist or whatever...they see God in you and you are God's. Representative.

 

Ah, I see. Conjecture.

 

Silly me. Of course your limited anecdotal evidence is gospel truth.

 

With some of the churches I've seen, there is good reason to leave.

Don't know all the reasons but I doubt they are as simplistic as those listed. From my experience the only churches preaching easy believism are extremely progressive/ liberal churches, more universalism really and fundamentalist baptist who see hundreds saved each year on "visitation" yet average about 50-60 in actual church attendance.

 

They are leaving because they realize you have nothing to offer. How did Jesus draw crowds? How did Paul draw crowds and keep them? Power. Not just words only but the demonstration of the Holy Spirit. The trend will continue.

 

The Archangel,

You're exactly correct in your assessment, in your further replies here and I appreciate the post, the detractors aside, keep on preaching truth against the tide of easy-believism and other gospels that aren't. :thumbs:

 

The young people raised in the church in our area don't seem to be leaving the FAITH in droves.

But yeah, you could say they leave "the church" in one sense.

Most here are leaving what they think is "inauthentic" church. That means they don't like endless praise choruses by a rock band, they do like churches that challenge people to truly live the faith, and they aren't much into following preachers just out for bucks, butts, buildings, and bands.

What we have is a lot of younger, traditional Christians in fundamentalist churches. And we also have a lot of them in more the "organic" style of church. Many have been influenced heavily by Pagan Christianity and Revolution, or have come to a more early Quaker/early Baptist point of view.

So they aren't really leaving.......but they are leaving church as the baby boomer generation has done it.

 

AMEN!:thumbs: