Following up my last past, the “Demise of Guys,” where a
commenter asked, “What are verses that can help with this issue?” Another suggested Romans 12, and since
I had a post sitting in my brain featuring Romans 12, leggo!
What I love about Romans 12:1-2 is Paul’s juxtaposition of the
words “conform” and “transform.”
Do not conform; instead, be transformed. This, I would argue, is the heart of Christian living. Don’t conform. Be transformed.
In recent years, the hot topic in youth ministry has been
the fact that too many students are graduating high school and leaving church
behind. The numbers reported are alarming;
it is a legitimate issue. And even
if it’s only 20-30% of high school graduates who are leaving the church, I
believe that’s too high.
Two of the books I’ve read on this topic specifically
address how parents can model faith and walk with their teens in order to
produce, as one book suggests, Sticky Faith – a faith that lasts. Isn’t
that what we’re after in youth ministry – faith that lasts? The consensus in these two books (Parenting Beyond Your Capacity and Sticky Faith) is that too many Christian
parents are settling for the appearance
of faith in their children. That
is, they are happy so long as their children conform to the rules of Christianity
and play the part. Upon
graduating, these students quickly find new roles and new parts to play. In the same way, youth ministry
is to blame when we teach “behavior modification” rather than transformation in
the likeness of Christ.
We are teaching conformity rather than transformation, and
conformity doesn’t always stick. Here is where I pick up my
argument from the beginning: The
Christian faith isn’t so much about “conforming” as it is “transforming.” I believe there is a difference, and
that difference speaks to issues present in my previous post on the “demise of
guys.”
Paul says, “Do not conform to the patterns of this
world.” Resist the temptations the
world provides! Flee from
evil. So we in the church say,
“Here are some new patterns to which you need to conform.” On one hand that doesn’t sound so bad, but conformity isn’t
the same as transformation, is it?
The Gospel is about transformation! A relationship with Christ is about being changed, so that
the believer can “test and approve God’s will.” Conformity is about doing things without really
understanding the meaning or reason behind the doing. This may be fine for the beginner in Christ, but
transformation is the goal.
My desire for my students is that they would resist evil
desires and sinful living not because of sheer determination or “conformity” to
a religious code, but because their desires have been transformed to imitate
those of Christ. My hope is that
the student confronted with temptation would begin to naturally resist the
patterns of the world because she has been transformed and trusts in the power
of the Holy Spirit to deliver her from these temptations.
The power of the Gospel story is that Jesus death and
resurrection has made change in the world. Things aren’t the way they used to be. Death is defeated. Sin is overcome. And the power that raised Christ from
the dead is available to those who seek God. Conformity says, “Keep trying to live up to the rules, be a
good person, and hopefully you’ll learn self-control and earn salvation.” Transformation says, “Salvation has
already occurred, Jesus already did the work of defeating sin, now submit your
life to Christ and let Him do the work of changing your heart and mind.”
There is a difference, and it matters.
No comments:
Post a Comment