Faith and the Young Person

“Train up a child in the way he should go, so when he is old, he will not depart from it.” - Proverbs 22:6 (Image: Unsplash)

If you have spent your early life in the church or around family and friends who frequent the building on Sundays, you’ve no doubt heard them say, “The Book of Revelation is playing out right now.” I know I have. They make the book of Revelation, that last book of the Bible, sound like a blockbuster movie set for release in the next few weeks. In a sense, one could consider it a movie, because it is packed with unbelievable events:

1.     Oceans boiling away

2.     Permanent darkness on Earth

3.     Plagues, Sicknesses, and global famine

4.     World War Three and massive carnage

5.     Nightmarish bugs, earthquakes, and volcano eruptions left and right

6.     Mountains and buildings crumbling to the ground

7.     The sudden unexplained disappearance of legions of people

8.     The establishment of the New World Order under Satan

9.     And the world as we know it ends abruptly

SPOILER ALERT: Jesus is the big action hero who defeats the bad guy (Satan) in the end. But…for the young person who does not know who Jesus is, the road to that victory is paved with worry, uncertainties, insecurities, and mind-bending fear.

It is those four things that make the concept of FAITH confusing and extremely incomprehensible for anyone, especially if you are an adolescent. Every succeeding generation of children, specifically those who have had reality dropped on them at a young age, had to abandon their naivety at warp speed and assimilate into the coldness of adulthood before they were ready to accept the change. It is understandable for children in these cases to rebel and go in any direction in search of some sort of control in their own lives.

Unfortunately, therein lies the problem.

“Suffer the little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me for such is the kingdom of Heaven.” - Matthew 19:14

The Bible says in 2nd Timothy 4:3 that in the last days, they shall have itching ears, seeking answers. Despite how you may feel about GOD, you have to admit that there are a lot of religions and belief systems at work out there in the world. And, just like drugs, they are tailored to fit everyone’s spiritual fancy. But, just like drugs, religions that do not teach the word of GOD do nothing to address everyone’s specific needs, and in most cases, they can do spiritual harm to the entertainer. Though it can be difficult to live this crazy life in the natural realm, it is even more impossible to live without Jesus in the spiritual realm or to see where the two entities come together.

In summary, we must educate our young people through the Bible and our example of what it means to have faith in God in their youth, how to exercise their faith in times of trouble, how to silence the naysayers who would try to redirect them from the straight path, and how to fight the spiritual battle and still come out on top.

Hopefully, they will develop the confidence to live as faithful young people in Christ, who live not after the flesh but the spirit.