CORRECTING CURRENT TRENDS IN CHRISTIANITY: IMPACT ON THE COMING GENERATION

CORRECTING CURRENT TRENDS IN CHRISTIANITY: IMPACT ON THE COMING GENERATION

Text: Romans 12:2 — “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind…”

Facilitator: Dr Olorundara Lois Olowe-Oguntimehin

Good day, everyone.

I am honoured to stand before you today to speak on a subject that concerns not just the Church of today, but the Church of tomorrow.

My topic is:

“Correcting Current Trends in Christianity: How Our Corrections Today Will Impact the Coming Generation.”

Let me begin with a question:

What kind of Christianity are we handing over to the next generation?

Are we handing them a Christianity built on Christ, Scripture, holiness, love, sacrifice and genuine service? Or are we handing them a Christianity built around popularity, materialism, social media, titles, competition and outward appearance?

Because whether we realise it or not, the next generation is watching us. They are watching what we preach, they are watching what we practice, they are watching what we celebrate and they are watching what we tolerate.

And, most importantly, they are learning what Christianity means from the Christianity they see in us.

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY “CURRENT TRENDS”?

When we talk about current trends in Christianity, we are not saying that everything new is wrong. Christianity has always existed in changing cultures, technology changes, communication changes, music changes, society changes.

The problem is not necessarily that Christianity is changing with the times, the problem is when the Church begins to change the truth in order to fit the times. There is a difference between changing our methods and changing our message.

We can use social media to preach the Gospel, we can use technology to reach people, we can have contemporary Christian music, we can use modern communication platforms. These are methods.

But we must never compromise the message of Christ simply because the message is no longer popular. Paul says in Romans 12:2, “Be not conformed to this world…” The Bible does not tell us to become like the world in order to reach the world, it tells us to be transformed.

THE TREND OF CHRISTIANITY BECOMING MORE ABOUT APPEARANCE THAN CHARACTER

One major trend we must address is the increasing emphasis on appearance without character, Today, it is possible to look spiritual online while living a completely different life privately, Someone can post Bible verses every morning but struggle with unforgiveness, Someone can post powerful worship videos but treat people badly, someone can quote Scripture publicly but fail to practise love privately. We must remember that Christianity is not merely what we post, it is who we are when nobody is watching.

Jesus said in Matthew 5:16: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works…”

The question is not simply:

“How many people see our Christianity?”, The question is: “How authentic is our Christianity?”

If the coming generation sees Christians who are only interested in looking holy, they may grow up believing that Christianity is simply a performance, but if they see Christians whose private lives match their public confession, they will understand that Christianity is a relationship with Christ that transforms character.

How do we correct this? We must return to integrity.

Let our Christianity be the same at church, at work, at school, at home and online. Let our children see us pray, let them see us forgive, let them see us apologise when we are wrong.

Let them see us keep our word.

Let them see us treat people with dignity.

Because character is one of the greatest sermons we can preach to the next generation.

THE TREND OF SOCIAL MEDIA CHRISTIANITY

Social media is one of the greatest tools available to the Church today, but it can also become a great distraction. We can now watch sermons without attending church, we can listen to worship without worshipping, we can watch prayer videos without praying, we can collect Bible verses without studying the Bible.

We can follow hundreds of Christian accounts while having very little personal relationship with God and this raises an important question: “Are we consuming Christianity or actually living Christianity?”

The coming generation needs to understand that Christianity cannot be outsourced to social media. A preacher on Instagram cannot replace personal Bible study, A motivational Christian video cannot replace prayer, A viral sermon cannot replace obedience, A Christian influencer cannot replace the Holy Spirit. Technology should be our tool, it must never become our master.

THE TREND OF CELEBRITY CHRISTIANITY

Another issue we must carefully consider is the elevation of personalities above Christ, we now live in a generation where people can become famous very quickly and even within Christianity, ministers, musicians and Christian influencers can become celebrities.

There is nothing wrong with honouring people who serve God, the danger begins when the messenger becomes more important than the message.

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 3:6: “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.”

The glory belongs to God, we must teach the next generation to respect spiritual leaders but not worship personalities, our children should know the Bible well enough to examine what they hear.

Acts 17:11 commends the Bereans because they listened to Paul but searched the Scriptures to verify what they were taught.

That is the kind of generation we need a generation that does not blindly follow personalities and a generation that follows Christ.

 THE TREND OF COMPETITION WITHIN THE CHURCH

Another trend we must correct is unnecessary competition, sometimes churches compete, ministers compete, choirs compete, christians compete.

Who has the biggest church? Who has the largest social media following? Who wears the best clothes? Who drives the most expensive car? Who is invited to the biggest events?

But Christianity was never designed to be a competition.

Jesus said in John 13:35:

“By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” The greatest evidence of Christianity is not competition, It is love.

We need to teach the next generation that another person's success does not diminish theirs, another church growing does not mean our church is failing, another Christian being blessed does not mean God has forgotten us. The Kingdom of God is bigger than individual platforms.

6. THE TREND OF REDUCING HOLINESS TO OUTWARD APPEARANCE

We must also be careful not to reduce holiness to clothing, hairstyles, denominations or outward rules. True holiness is bigger than appearance, holiness involves the heart. It involves our thoughts, our words, our relationships, our business dealings, our attitude, our treatment of people, our integrity, our private life.

1 Peter 1:15 says: “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation.”

The next generation needs to understand that holiness is not simply about how we look in church, it is about how we live everywhere.

 HOW WILL CORRECTING THESE TRENDS IMPACT THE COMING GENERATION?

FIRST: WE WILL RAISE A GENERATION WITH GENUINE FAITH

When young people see authentic Christianity, they are more likely to understand that faith is not a performance, they will learn to know Christ personally, they will develop convictions instead of simply following crowds.

SECOND: WE WILL RAISE A GENERATION WITH STRONG CHARACTER

When we model integrity, honesty, humility and responsibility, those values are transferred to the next generation, what we tolerate today can become their normal tomorrow, therefore, correction today is protection for tomorrow.

THIRD: WE WILL REDUCE HYPOCRISY

When the Church emphasises authenticity, young people will understand that Christians are not perfect people pretending to be perfect, they are people being transformed by Christ. This creates room for repentance, growth and genuine spiritual development.

FOURTH: WE WILL RAISE CRITICAL THINKERS

If we teach young people Scripture instead of merely teaching them personalities, they will become capable of examining what they hear, they will not believe everything simply because it comes from a pulpit, podcast or social media platform, they will ask “What does the Bible say?”

 WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR CORRECTING THESE TRENDS?

The responsibility is not only on pastors, It is not only on church leaders, it is not only on parents.

It is on all of us.

Parents must model Christianity, church leaders must teach truth, teachers must teach sound doctrine, young people must seek God personally. Christian professionals must demonstrate integrity and every believer must examine his or her own life.

Before we ask, “What is wrong with Christianity today?” Perhaps we should ask, “What am I contributing to Christianity today?” That question can change everything.

WHAT SHOULD WE DO FROM TODAY?

a)     Return to the Word, read the Bible, study it, understand it and apply it.

b)    Return to Prayer, not just prayer for what we want, prayer for God's will, his wisdom, pray for good character, our families and our communities

c)     Return to Love, love God, love people, serve people, forgive people

d)    Return to Christ, not personalities, not trends, not platforms, not popularity but to Christ.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, every generation is building something that the next generation will inherit.

So, if we want a stronger generation tomorrow, we must become a stronger example today.

If we want a generation that knows Christ, we must show them Christ.

If we want a generation that lives the truth, we must live the truth.

And if we want a generation that will stand for God, we must give them something worth standing on.

Let us not simply ask: “What kind of generation are we raising?”

Let us ask: “What kind of Christianity are we modelling for them?”

Because tomorrow's Christianity is being shaped by today's example.

Thank you, and God bless you.