Our Children Need the Hope of Jesus Christ

I read an article the other day from the Wall Street Journal called, “Young-Adult Fiction Takes a Dark Turn.”  It highlights some recent young adult books and their subject matter.

First there’s “Thirteen Reasons Why” by Jay Asher.  The book is about a High School freshman who commits suicide by overdosing on pills.  Before her death, however, she sends a tape to 13 people who she claims are the cause of her hard life.

Then there’s “If I Stay” by Gayle Forman.  This is about a girl who is involved in a car accident that kills both her parents.  She has an out-of-body experience and has a choice to make: whether or not to join her parents in some sort of afterlife or to stay on earth without them.

“Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins is about a future world where the government takes one teenager from each district and puts them into a televised show where they battle to the death.

“Wintergirls” by Laurie Halse Anderson tells the story of a girl who loses a friend to Bulimia.  In her grief, she develops Anorexia.  The book details the girl’s self-starvation as well as her addiction to cutting herself with razors.

The problem with these books isn’t with the books.  It is uncomfortable for adults to realize, but these are issues teens deal with in their lives.  Suicide is a real issue.  Anorexia and cutting are real issues.  And in less subtle ways, the contrariety between realizing independence as an individual while being dependent on your parents (If I Stay) and the dog-eat-dog world of alliances, friendships, betrayal, and feeling alone (Hunger Games) are real issues as well.  It seems as though the books are catching up to the lives of our teenagers.

Our culture will tell us that all of these problems can be fixed by teaching our kids about self-esteem.  As Christians, we should see a different solution because we see a different problem.  The problem isn’t suicide, anorexia, cutting, drug use, alcohol, sex, or any of the other countless ways our children can get into trouble.  The problem is that King David was right when he said, “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me” (Psalm 51:5).  The Bible tells us that we are born with a sinful nature and “the acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like” (Galatians 5:19-21a).

We have the idea that children are born good and we need to keep them from going bad.  However the Bible has the opposite teaching: children are born with a sinful nature, always tending towards evil, and we need to teach them about the life-changing grace of God in Jesus Christ.

We need to be raising children who “belong to Christ Jesus.”  Galatians 5:24 says that “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.”  Galatians 2:20 says, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.”

When we have children who belong to Christ Jesus they will have crucified their sinful nature with Christ.  Are our children crucified with Christ?  Are we even willing to accept that imagery?  That not only our children but even we need to die to ourselves?  When we are crucified with Christ, we no longer live, but Christ lives in us.

With Christ living in us, through the Holy Spirit, we are able to live in such a way that is pleasing to God.  The “acts of the sinful nature” are replaced by the “fruit of the Spirit [which are] love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control” (Galatians 5:22-23).

Teenagers are dealing with very serious issues; some of them life-threatening.  They do not need a self-esteem adjustment.  What they need is to adjust themselves to esteem Christ.  They need to esteem Christ as worthy to be praised, loved, honored, cherished, and treasured.  The only true eternal hope for all of us, including our teenagers, is the hope that is offered by the sacrifice of Christ.

Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.  Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.  So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:34-36).  Our children need to know that they do not have to live a life as a slave to sin.  They do not need to be enslaved to suicide, cutting, drugs, alcohol, sex, or pornography.  No longer do they need to be afraid and alone.  At the cross, the Son offered us freedom at the cost of his own.  He offered us life at the cost of his own.  He is still offering freedom and life.  When we have been made right before God through faith, “we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love” (Romans 5:2-5).

Our children need the hope of Jesus Christ and the freedom he provides through his blood.

April 2009 Apostolos

Confessing Your Sinfulness

When Jesus started his ministry he first began to call his Disciples.  Disciples were people that would follow a Rabbi.  They would study under the Rabbi in order to try and be like the Rabbi.  Here is what happened when Jesus called Simon Peter:

“[Jesus] got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore.  Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.  When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”  Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything.  But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”  When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break.  So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:3-8)

I’ve always thought it was interesting how Peter reacted to this miracle.  He wasn’t like, “Jesus!  You rock!”  He didn’t give him a high five or a standing ovation.  He immediately dropped to his knees and cried out, “I am a sinful man!”

Peter saw Jesus as He truly is: Holy, Sinless, Unblemished, God!  He recognized how sinful he was before God and when he was confronted with God’s power, he suddenly felt inadequate.  “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”

Lent is the time of year that we set aside to really reflect on our sin.  It is the time leading up to Easter where we see the power of Jesus resurrecting from the dead.  As we’re confronted with Jesus’ resurrection, during lent we fall to our knees and cry out how sinful we are to God.

Really take some time in the next couple weeks and think about how we sin against God.  The Bible says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

As a Christian, how are you different from the rest of the world?  When others see you, can they tell by your actions that you’re a Christian?  Are you really a new creation?  Has your old self gone away and are you new?

If you’re struggling with sin—trying hard to overcome a certain sin or just feeling guilty by the weight of sin on your life—there is hope in Jesus.  That’s what Easter is all about.  By falling to our knees and crying “I am sinful,” we can invite the forgiveness of God through Jesus.  He’ll even make you into a new creation if you let Him.