SPEAKER_00: Hey, I'm Pastor Steve Hole.
SPEAKER_00: I want to empower you today to walk in your true identity as a worshiper and warrior.
SPEAKER_00: Embrace the power of God's Word and the Holy Spirit.
SPEAKER_00: Today, be encouraged with a word from my guest speaker.
SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Born for War podcast.
SPEAKER_01: My name is Joey Follett.
SPEAKER_01: I'm the youth pastor on staff here at the road.
SPEAKER_01: Happy to be here, excited to be here with all of you this morning.
SPEAKER_01: And Lexi's video is a perfect intro for this morning's topic because we're going to talk about the next generation.
SPEAKER_01: Generation Z, as they're known, the youth and young people today, and talk about the hope that we should have for this generation, that I have for this generation.
SPEAKER_01: And so that's what I'm here to do this morning.
SPEAKER_01: Talk to you about these young people, advocate for this next generation.
SPEAKER_01: I'm passionate about them.
SPEAKER_01: And I'm excited to share some important truths and encouragement with all of you this morning.
SPEAKER_01: And while it is true that youth and young people are leaving the faith, are walking away from the church, it's also true that youth and young people today are hungry for truth, are hungry for the gospel, and so many of them are fired up for Jesus Christ.
SPEAKER_01: So we're going to dive into that today to discuss the current state of Generation Z and what we, the church, can do to support them, empower them, encourage them, and come beside them, which I feel is our job.
SPEAKER_01: So the primary passage we'll be in this morning is Hebrews 5.
SPEAKER_01: So you can turn in your Bibles.
SPEAKER_01: If you've brought one this morning to Hebrews chapter 5, we'll start towards the end of that chapter.
SPEAKER_01: If you don't have one, there should be one in the seat back in front of you.
SPEAKER_01: While you are turning there, would you pray with me?
SPEAKER_01: God, thank you for this morning.
SPEAKER_01: Thank you for your word.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, as we open your word together this morning, I ask that your presence would be felt here.
SPEAKER_01: Would you lead us and guide us through the reading of your word and the truth that's in it?
SPEAKER_01: Would you reveal your truth to us this morning?
SPEAKER_01: In Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_01: Amen.
SPEAKER_01: Well, like I said, I'm passionate about youth.
SPEAKER_01: I always have been for the past 12 years since uh high school.
SPEAKER_01: I've been working with uh youth and teenagers in a variety of different settings.
SPEAKER_01: Um I've been an eighth grade history teacher, I uh been a wrestling coach, I've been a volunteer youth leader, and now um I get to be the youth pastor here at the road.
SPEAKER_01: So as you can imagine, I've got a lot of stories about teens, funny stories about teens, and um I just want to share a quick one.
SPEAKER_01: Uh my first year teaching, I was uh an eighth-grade history teacher, it was my first year teaching, it was in my early 20s, and uh the students are coming back from lunch one day, and I was talking to the math teacher on my team.
SPEAKER_01: Her classroom is next to mine, and I was probably asking a question because I didn't know what I was doing.
SPEAKER_01: I was a first year teacher, and and so we're talking, and this eighth-grade boy comes up, who we both had in class, and he's holding um a pickle, like a pretty good-sized pickle, that I guess was left over from lunch, and he was asking if either of us had a Ziploc baggie for his pickle.
SPEAKER_01: I don't know what when he was planning on eating it or what he was saving it for.
SPEAKER_01: But the funny part was he said, I need a baggie for my pickle because it was in my pocket and it leaked on my pants.
SPEAKER_01: And he and after lunch, he had just put this pickle in his pocket and there was a nice wet spot above his knee.
SPEAKER_01: Um, and that's a weird story to tell on a Sunday morning, but it it was impactful to me because A, it was funny, and I still find it funny.
SPEAKER_01: And B, it solidified in me that I'm supposed to work with teenagers.
SPEAKER_01: As weird as that sounds, I I just I love it.
SPEAKER_01: And I find I have more fun hanging out with teenagers than adults, no offense to all you lovely people, but it's just that's how God created me, and it's what I'm supposed to do.
SPEAKER_01: And I know that confidently, and part of the reason I know that is because of the pickle story, as weird as that sounds.
SPEAKER_01: So, but I am passionate about uh this generation of young people, and I want to make this clear I'm not here this morning to complain about Generation Z.
SPEAKER_01: That's not my heart, and that's not at all what I want to do.
SPEAKER_01: And I think too often we spend time, and every generation is guilty of this, but we spend time pointing down at and complaining about the generation behind us.
SPEAKER_01: And and that's not what I want to do this morning at all.
SPEAKER_01: And so when I say Generation Z, I'm referring to those born between the years 1997 and 2012.
SPEAKER_01: So that would be anyone today who's between the ages of 12 and 27.
SPEAKER_01: Roughly these generational barriers are they people like to argue about them.
SPEAKER_01: But that's the the biggest consensus I found was those years.
SPEAKER_01: So 12 and 27.
SPEAKER_01: I know what you're thinking, Joey, you look like you're 12.
SPEAKER_01: You're in this generation.
SPEAKER_01: I'm not 12 or 27, I'm a little bit older, I'm a millennial, but I can relate a lot to this generation and and I have a huge um heart for them.
SPEAKER_01: And I also want to say that this uh today's message is for everyone.
SPEAKER_01: And while there's 69 million Gen Zers in the United States today, this message is for everyone.
SPEAKER_01: So if you are in Gen Z, if you're one of those 69 million and you're in the room or watching online, I want to encourage you and empower you this morning.
SPEAKER_01: If you're a parent of a teenager or you have a teenager or young person in your life, I want to help you support that loved one and give you some encouragement as well.
SPEAKER_01: And if you don't currently have a teenager or young person in your life, then I want to inspire you to change that this morning.
SPEAKER_01: Because here's the truth.
SPEAKER_01: If the church isn't actively investing in youth and young adults, then we're in trouble.
SPEAKER_01: If the church is not actively investing in youth and young adults, then we're in trouble.
SPEAKER_01: Because the world and the enemy is.
SPEAKER_01: And the world and the enemy and Satan is after this generation in a really real real way.
SPEAKER_01: And as someone who spends almost every day with this generation, it is obvious that they are under attack.
SPEAKER_01: Under attack.
SPEAKER_01: So it should be a top priority of believers everywhere to pray for this generation, to support this generation, to invest in them, to pour into them.
SPEAKER_01: And we're going to talk this morning about how we, the church, can do that, how we can support Generation Z.
SPEAKER_01: But first, let's look at who we're talking about.
SPEAKER_01: So, just like any generation before it, this generation faces a unique set of circumstances and challenges.
SPEAKER_01: And that's always the case.
SPEAKER_01: I think that's why we make these generational guidelines and barriers, because the world's constantly changing, technology's changing, society's changing, politics.
SPEAKER_01: It all changes.
SPEAKER_01: So our experiences growing up are different than the current generation growing up, which is difficult because we're trying to help raise the generation and we don't know what they're dealing with because we deal with something different, right?
SPEAKER_01: Um, but they're facing new sets of challenges in a new situation and circumstance.
SPEAKER_01: And they're known as the social generation.
SPEAKER_01: For a few reasons.
SPEAKER_01: The primary one is they've easy access to the internet.
SPEAKER_01: About 98% of Gen Z has a smartphone in their pocket, 98%, which means they have easy access to unlimited information.
SPEAKER_01: I would say this is a good and a bad thing, right?
SPEAKER_01: Easily learn things, easily look things up, right?
SPEAKER_01: Don't have to go to the library anymore to find things out.
SPEAKER_01: You can.
SPEAKER_01: I don't know that many of them do, but uh they can.
SPEAKER_01: Um but they can easily look things up with a phone, right?
SPEAKER_01: And because of this, I would say this generation is curious and hungry to learn, curious and hungry for truth.
SPEAKER_01: But it also there's a downside to that, too, right?
SPEAKER_01: Having a computer in your pocket means you have easy access to explicit content and pornography, and they're being bombarded by those things all of the time.
SPEAKER_01: Uh youth today are more likely to watch YouTube than television, which again is accessible on their phones.
SPEAKER_01: They have easy access to social media.
SPEAKER_01: About 54% of Gen Z spend four hours or more daily on social media.
SPEAKER_01: And I would say that's probably a conservative figure.
SPEAKER_01: But quick moment of reflection, just think about yourself for a minute.
SPEAKER_01: Are we any better?
SPEAKER_01: Okay?
SPEAKER_01: Well, again, I'm not pointing down at Gen Z or anything like that.
SPEAKER_01: And so throughout this whole message, let's also reflect and say, are we setting a good example for Gen Z when it comes to technology and social media and phones, stuff like that, right?
SPEAKER_01: Um and a side note, this fall, um still lining up a date, but we're gonna bring in a group to do a digital safety workshop for um parents and teenagers, and they'll go on simultaneously.
SPEAKER_01: And so I'm excited about that to really help parents and teens know how to navigate social media and screens and everything that's going on there.
SPEAKER_01: But we need to be effectively teaching and modeling boundaries for our young people when it comes to technology.
SPEAKER_01: Um, and so we should be modeling the behavior that we want to see when it comes to phones and technology.
SPEAKER_01: But teenagers today, young people today, are also dealing with comparison and identity.
SPEAKER_01: And again, this is not anything new, right?
SPEAKER_01: Teenagers have always struggled with comparison and figuring out who they are in high school and college, and you see everybody and you're comparing themselves to them and what they're wearing and what they're saying and what they're listening to, and teens are still doing that.
SPEAKER_01: The difference though, instead of just comparing themselves to who they're seeing in person, they're also comparing themselves to what is seen online.
SPEAKER_01: And the problem with that, the dangers of that, is that oftentimes what's online is is not real, right?
SPEAKER_01: Or is altered or is semi-real.
SPEAKER_01: Or the the picture they're looking at that someone posted is the 500th picture that person took and they altered it, right?
SPEAKER_01: And and teens know this.
SPEAKER_01: They know that what they're seeing isn't necessarily true.
SPEAKER_01: So you don't have to tell them, believe me, they know.
SPEAKER_01: But it doesn't affect, it doesn't change the effect that that has on them as far as comparison goes and what they're thinking when they see that picture of that person and how they look, it still affects them to see those images online.
SPEAKER_01: But, and again, I think when we talk about, I'm gonna say this a lot, I believe youth today are hungry for the truth, and I think part of that is because they are consuming a lot of fake things on the internet, and so they are more aware of that and they're hungry for the truth.
SPEAKER_01: And what's exciting about that church is we have the truth, right?
SPEAKER_01: We have the truth.
SPEAKER_01: And so, um, yes, we'll talk more about that.
SPEAKER_01: But that's exciting.
SPEAKER_01: So they're also known as a social generation because they have easy access to each other in ways that previous generations didn't, right?
SPEAKER_01: I remember uh hearing my mom talk about sharing a landline phone with her four sisters and dragging the cord into the room and closing it that privacy so she can talk to her friends, right?
SPEAKER_01: Teens today don't have to do that, right?
SPEAKER_01: They can easily text and call and video call their friends whenever they want.
SPEAKER_01: So they have a easy access to each other, they're social.
SPEAKER_01: But even though this is the social generation, it's also the lonely generation.
SPEAKER_01: And many teens today and young adults today feel alone.
SPEAKER_01: And isolation is a huge problem amongst young people today.
SPEAKER_01: They feel lost, they're trying to find their identity, find their place, they're looking to find their identity and things like what they're good at, who they hang out with, even their struggles, their gender, who they feel attracted to.
SPEAKER_01: Identity is important to youth and young adults, and a lot of them need help and guidance in that area.
SPEAKER_01: And this loneliness has led to a lot of struggles with mental health.
SPEAKER_01: And Generation Z is more aware and struggling more with mental health than generations prior.
SPEAKER_01: And we know that at least one out of every five uh young persons today deals with a diagnosable mental health disorder.
SPEAKER_01: Some studies have it higher, one out of three.
SPEAKER_01: And I've even seen a figure that says 50% of teens today would say that they struggle with mental health.
SPEAKER_01: 50% would label themselves in that way.
SPEAKER_01: And of all the mental health issues that are out there, the number one one that I talk to students with about is uh anxiety.
SPEAKER_01: It comes up all the time talking to students about anxious.
SPEAKER_01: Our young people today are anxious.
SPEAKER_01: And I love walking students through some of the powerful scriptures that we have regarding anxiety.
SPEAKER_01: And what I like to tell them is anxiety is not a new thing, right?
SPEAKER_01: Maybe it's maybe it's more prevalent than generations before or ever, I don't know.
SPEAKER_01: But but it's not new.
SPEAKER_01: Like Paul talks about anxiety, Jesus talked about anxiety, Peter talked about anxiety.
SPEAKER_01: So I love sharing those scriptures with young people.
SPEAKER_01: And I'll talk more about that towards the end.
SPEAKER_01: But but if that's you this morning and you're struggling, and I'd love to show you those scriptures and pray with you at the end of service, our team would love to pray with you as well.
SPEAKER_01: And teens today are also very socially aware.
SPEAKER_01: They're socially, culturally aware.
SPEAKER_01: They want to make a positive difference.
SPEAKER_01: They're also realistic and cautious more than previous generations.
SPEAKER_01: Um, as a whole, yes, there's still teenagers, yes, there's reckless behavior, yes, there's irrational decisions, right?
SPEAKER_01: We've all been there.
SPEAKER_01: But I would say as a whole, this generation seems to be more cautious.
SPEAKER_01: They're waiting longer to like get their driver's license, they're less likely to recklessly party, things like that.
SPEAKER_01: Um, we're seeing that as a whole, and I think there can be a couple explanations for that, but one of them I think is the unlimited access to information that we talked about, right?
SPEAKER_01: And maybe that tends to lead to a tendency to overthink things because they have been bombarded with so much information that they're not sure how to process it and what to do and what to think.
SPEAKER_01: But they're cautious, they're realistic.
SPEAKER_01: One of their top concerns of this generation is the cost of living.
SPEAKER_01: They're also concerned about AI, artificial intelligence, replacing future jobs.
SPEAKER_01: And let's also consider the data that's out there showing young people leaving the faith when they get to high school and college age and even before.
SPEAKER_01: And there's been a lot of studies on this, um, but a few from organizations like Barna, Pine Tops, 10x10, and Pew have shown that young people are leaving the church at an alarming rate.
SPEAKER_01: And we're seeing Gen Z more likely, unlike generations before, to not identify with God or the church or the Christian faith and instead latch on to different world religions, right?
SPEAKER_01: Or just say that they're spiritual.
SPEAKER_01: And again, I love that we started with Lexi's testimony video because I think her story is true of a lot of young people when they get to high school, when they get to college, they start exploring and they're attracted to these other things that promise, like she said, love and light and hope, but really are empty and void of those things.
SPEAKER_01: And again, her story is so powerful and it shows that Jesus is the answer to those things.
SPEAKER_01: And um, praise the Lord that she that she found that.
SPEAKER_01: But another study I want to bring up from Barna showed that Americans as a whole are not opposed to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: It's like 70%.
SPEAKER_01: And and their bigger issues are with Christians and the church, but they're open to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: And I think the reason that's true for Gen Z is this issue of like what's fake.
SPEAKER_01: And for a lot of young people today, when they look at Christianity, when they look at the church, when they look at Christians, what they see appears to them to be fake and not authentic.
SPEAKER_01: And ultimately, though, this data point's a good thing because it shows us that they're open to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: And that's half the battle right there.
SPEAKER_01: They're open to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: So if we, the church, can effectively present Jesus in a real and authentic way, as we've experienced him, if we can do that, then there we go.
SPEAKER_01: We're back on track.
SPEAKER_01: So but statistically, we can see there is a problem with young people choosing to walk away from the faith.
SPEAKER_01: So, what can be done?
SPEAKER_01: What can the church do to support this generation of youth and young adults?
SPEAKER_01: Well, I don't have all the answers, but I'm gonna give you a few.
SPEAKER_01: So we're gonna do four things this morning to answer that question.
SPEAKER_01: This is not an all-encompassing list, but I think these are four practical things that we the church can do to support Gen Z and what Gen Z can do to support each other.
SPEAKER_01: So, Hebrews 5, we're gonna start in Hebrews 5, verse 12.
SPEAKER_01: If you'll follow along with me as we read this morning's passage.
SPEAKER_01: For uh for though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God.
SPEAKER_01: And you have come to need milk and not solid food.
SPEAKER_01: For everyone who partakes only in milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe.
SPEAKER_01: But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
SPEAKER_01: Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
SPEAKER_01: And this we will do if God permits.
SPEAKER_01: So we don't know who the author of Hebrews is, but we know that the author of Hebrews was writing to a group of believers and demonstrating some frustration with where they were at with their faith.
SPEAKER_01: And this section of scripture you could title as a warning against apostasy.
SPEAKER_01: Apostasy is when people leave the faith.
SPEAKER_01: People backslide, they leave the faith, they're stagnant.
SPEAKER_01: Exactly what we're talking about this morning with a trend we're noticing in America.
SPEAKER_01: And so the first thing we can do to support Gen Z this morning is be a source of solid food.
SPEAKER_01: Be a source of solid food.
SPEAKER_01: And this one actually uh works on a few different levels.
SPEAKER_01: Uh, you can take this one literally, because teenagers like to eat and they love to be fed, and just practically, like if you're trying to engage with this generation, like feed them, um, it goes a long way.
SPEAKER_01: A huge part of my job as a youth pastor is snacks.
SPEAKER_01: And so um you can take this one literally, but that's not what the author of Hebrews is talking about.
SPEAKER_01: The author seems to be frustrated with the believers he's writing to because they're not progressing in their faith, right?
SPEAKER_01: He's saying by now you should be teachers.
SPEAKER_01: You should be out teaching people about Jesus, but you're not.
SPEAKER_01: You're not even ready for solid food.
SPEAKER_01: You're still drinking milk like a baby, right?
SPEAKER_01: He's frustrated with where they are at.
SPEAKER_01: And it's a great reminder for us that the Christian faith in walk with Jesus should be one that's progressing.
SPEAKER_01: Christian faith in walk with Jesus should be progressing, should be moving forward, should be growing, should be developing.
SPEAKER_01: We shouldn't be staying still.
SPEAKER_01: From the day we get saved, there should be progress every day since that day of growing closer to Jesus, learning more about Jesus in his word.
SPEAKER_01: And that's how we develop our faith in our walk with Jesus, in the word daily, consuming the word, spending time with Jesus daily, growing, increasing our faith.
SPEAKER_01: And notice I'm saying we, right?
SPEAKER_01: And this message, again, is not just for the young people in the room, it's for all of us.
SPEAKER_01: And if we can effectively do these things, if we can be consuming solid food, if we're growing and we're teaching and modeling those things, then they then the next generation will follow.
SPEAKER_01: So we should be a source of solid food for youth today.
SPEAKER_01: Are we helping them grow in their faith?
SPEAKER_01: Are we challenging them spiritually?
SPEAKER_01: Are we helping them progress?
SPEAKER_01: Um, I'm also a wrestling coach.
SPEAKER_01: I've been doing that for almost 10 years now, and and this is what we do when we're coaching young people to wrestle.
SPEAKER_01: We don't stay where we started on the first day.
SPEAKER_01: The first week we'll do fundamentals, teach the basics.
SPEAKER_01: But if we stopped there, then we would not be effectively teaching those students how to wrestle.
SPEAKER_01: And we're sending them out a wrestling matter, they have no idea what to do because they're stuck with the basics.
SPEAKER_01: And so from that day forward, we progress.
SPEAKER_01: We show moves, we're always building on the day before, the day before.
SPEAKER_01: And something I've started doing at practice is I'll ask the wrestlers, did you get better at wrestling today?
SPEAKER_01: And you just focus on each practice.
SPEAKER_01: So, did you get better at wrestling today?
SPEAKER_01: Right?
SPEAKER_01: And I'll ask my son Miles that we've started, uh he started wrestling a little bit and wants to get stronger and bigger.
SPEAKER_01: So it's also, did you get stronger today?
SPEAKER_01: Did you get better at wrestling today?
SPEAKER_01: And I think we can ask ourselves a similar question when it comes to our faith, similar questions, or ask young people, right?
SPEAKER_01: Things like, did you get closer to Jesus today?
SPEAKER_01: Did you increase your faith today?
SPEAKER_01: Did you learn something about your heavenly father today?
SPEAKER_01: Did you learn something from God's word today?
SPEAKER_01: Right?
SPEAKER_01: If we're challenging ourselves daily and thinking of it that way, like every day I should be progressing in my faith.
SPEAKER_01: Every day I should be getting closer to the Father.
SPEAKER_01: Every day I should be learning and growing as a believer.
SPEAKER_01: That's what the writer of Hebrews is talking about.
SPEAKER_01: Are we growing?
SPEAKER_01: Are we progressing?
SPEAKER_01: And if we are, then we can help the next generation do the same, right?
SPEAKER_01: So, along with being a source of solid food, are we also available to hear them, to listen to youth and young people today?
SPEAKER_01: And that doesn't mean you have to fully understand what they're going through.
SPEAKER_01: Because I think in a lot of ways, we can't, right?
SPEAKER_01: These generational divides cause us to just not fully understand what it's like to be a teenager today.
SPEAKER_01: And that's okay.
SPEAKER_01: We don't have to fully understand.
SPEAKER_01: And sometimes I caution against that.
SPEAKER_01: You know, instead of always inserting personal stories and trying to say, I know exactly what we're going through.
SPEAKER_01: Just listen and be there for them and pray for them and be available to the youth and young people today, to find out what it's like to be a teenager today, to put ourselves in their shoes and learn.
SPEAKER_01: Be available.
SPEAKER_01: And if you need help with that, ask the Lord for an extra dose of compassion and empathy.
SPEAKER_01: So you can be there and reason and listen and help them grow.
SPEAKER_01: So are we Available?
SPEAKER_01: And are we also being a source of truth?
SPEAKER_01: The enemy is feeding this generation lie after lie after lie.
SPEAKER_01: Are there any lies from enemy that we're believing?
SPEAKER_01: Right?
SPEAKER_01: We can't be an effective source of truth for Generation Z if we're also following the enemy's lies.
SPEAKER_01: Are we believing the truths that we want our students to believe?
SPEAKER_01: Be a source of God-given truth to Generation Z.
SPEAKER_01: So that's number one, be a source of solid food, be available, be a source of truth.
SPEAKER_01: Number two, young people need community.
SPEAKER_01: Young people need community.
SPEAKER_01: The enemy wants us to be isolated.
SPEAKER_01: I talked about how lonely this generation is, even though they have access to all their friends in their phone, in their pocket, right?
SPEAKER_01: But I think because of that, it actually causes them to be more isolated because instead of going out and hanging out with people in a group, they can say, Oh, I talked to my friends today on my phone, right?
SPEAKER_01: But it's not the same thing.
SPEAKER_01: Personal connection is important, community is important, and our young people need it.
SPEAKER_01: This generation's lonely.
SPEAKER_01: That's how Satan wants it.
SPEAKER_01: He does his best work when we're alone.
SPEAKER_01: But God did not intend for us to do things alone.
SPEAKER_01: He intended us to be in community, to be the body of Christ.
SPEAKER_01: When I was in college, I got to be a part of a Bible study that really, really changed my life and was really impactful for me.
SPEAKER_01: And I got, it was kind of a weird connection.
SPEAKER_01: We weren't really affiliated with the church.
SPEAKER_01: It was the guys I used to know from church, but we were all college-age, going to college or working.
SPEAKER_01: And at that time I was going to college, a secular college, and I was in a class called The History of Early Christianity, which sounds great.
SPEAKER_01: It wasn't.
SPEAKER_01: Her job was she viewed it as her job and goal of that class was to just like debunk the gospels.
SPEAKER_01: And so she uh every day we would open the Bible and so she could poke, try to poke holes in it.
SPEAKER_01: Um and what was cool about that time period is as I was walking through that and and having my faith challenged and tested a little bit, I was also in this group of peers where we were feeding each other solid food and teaching each other and growing.
SPEAKER_01: And I had that Bible study every Monday night, and I had that class every Tuesday morning.
SPEAKER_01: And so every Monday night I'm with my friends, pouring into God's Word, like reading God's Word, growing together, so that I could walk into that class Tuesday morning and not have my faith shaken.
SPEAKER_01: And I remember the first day of that class, the professor opened the book of Matthew, the genealogy that's in chapter one and other genealogies as well, and was trying to poke holes in these genealogies.
SPEAKER_01: And soon after that, I found this verse, 1 Timothy 1 4, which says, Nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification, which is faith.
SPEAKER_01: When I read that, my like jaw hit the floor and I couldn't believe it.
SPEAKER_01: I was like, the Apostle Paul just called out my history professor.
SPEAKER_01: Like 2,000 years later.
SPEAKER_01: I was blown away.
SPEAKER_01: And I only came to that and knew that because I was in fellowship, in community with my friends, and we're we're going over the word together, sharing verses like this, and they would pray for me on Monday nights before that class on Tuesday mornings, and I don't know where I would have been or what would have happened to me in college if I didn't have that community keeping me so grounded.
SPEAKER_01: And what was cool about that also is that we were teaching each other.
SPEAKER_01: And we had opportunities to teach each other.
SPEAKER_01: And the writer of Hebrews said, you know, he's lamenting that these believers are not teaching each other.
SPEAKER_01: Because I think there's importance and value to teaching each other.
SPEAKER_01: The best way we can learn is by teaching something, right?
SPEAKER_01: If you have to teach it, you're gonna learn it really well as you're teaching.
SPEAKER_01: So we need to be teaching, and young people can do that too.
SPEAKER_01: And Jesus said in the Great Commission, go and make disciples.
SPEAKER_01: The word disciple means pupil.
SPEAKER_01: So if we're gonna go and make disciples, that doesn't mean just gather up followers, it means teach them.
SPEAKER_01: Because they're pupils.
SPEAKER_01: You're making disciples, which means you have to be a teacher.
SPEAKER_01: And young people can do that too.
SPEAKER_01: Start a Bible study with your friends.
SPEAKER_01: That's the most comfortable environment to start teaching and growing and going through the word together.
SPEAKER_01: But young people need solid community where we're pouring into each other and filling each other up.
SPEAKER_01: And if you're a young person in the room today, I want to personally invite you to some groups of community we have built into the fabric of our church, right?
SPEAKER_01: If you're a middle schooler, I'll invite you to flagship.
SPEAKER_01: We meet on Sunday mornings during third service, next service, so starting at 11:15 in the chapel.
SPEAKER_01: We have community built in that.
SPEAKER_01: We break into small groups.
SPEAKER_01: Same thing with tribe on Wednesday nights for our high schoolers, ninth through twelfth graders.
SPEAKER_01: We meet at 6:30 in the chapel on Wednesdays, and same thing, we divide into small groups, and then if you're a young adult, college age, invite you to revive with Pastor Emmanuel on Tuesday nights at 6.30, same thing.
SPEAKER_01: That's a source of community.
SPEAKER_01: If you're not a young person, but all that sounds awesome and you want to be a part of it, then talk to me about being a servant leader, right?
SPEAKER_01: Or talk to Pastor Emmanuel.
SPEAKER_01: Young people need community.
SPEAKER_01: And I've personally seen the positive effects of community for teenagers.
SPEAKER_01: And we do small groups at youth group on Wednesday nights, like I said, and I always tell my leaders don't let a small group time end without praying for your students.
SPEAKER_01: And what I would love to see is instead of you just praying for them, we get to the point where they're praying for each other.
SPEAKER_01: And so we've seen a lot of growth with that, and we've seen them doing that.
SPEAKER_01: And what's cool is that it doesn't just happen during the small group time on Wednesday night.
SPEAKER_01: Now we see kids during worship praying for each other.
SPEAKER_01: You've even seen it here on Sunday sometimes.
SPEAKER_01: They're praying for each other.
SPEAKER_01: It happens before tribe, after tribe.
SPEAKER_01: They're spending time praying for each other because they genuinely care about each other, and that's how we get young people to come back to church.
SPEAKER_01: Right?
SPEAKER_01: If they feel connected, if they feel like they're in a community, if they feel like they're being filled up, if they're praying for each other, if they're serving too.
SPEAKER_01: They're not just taking their giving.
SPEAKER_01: And that's how we can get these young people in community and get them to be excited about it.
SPEAKER_01: So that's number two, young people need community.
SPEAKER_01: Number three, remind young people of who they are.
SPEAKER_01: Remind Generation Z of who they are.
SPEAKER_01: And this should start before they get to the ages of 12 to 27, right?
SPEAKER_01: Uh we should be telling our kids, or I have young kids, we should be telling them that you are a child of God.
SPEAKER_01: That's your identity.
SPEAKER_01: You are a child of God.
SPEAKER_01: We need to be solidifying that in young people.
SPEAKER_01: And the Bible is full of stories of young people doing amazing things, right?
SPEAKER_01: Um, my boys love to hear Bible stories.
SPEAKER_01: And so every night as they're going to bed, I'm I'm telling Bible stories, and they love stories like David and Goliath and Daniel in the lion's den and Joseph and his brothers and all that.
SPEAKER_01: And what's unique about all those, or not, I mean what's common about all those stories and many more is those are teenagers, young adults, young people doing extraordinary things.
SPEAKER_01: Why?
SPEAKER_01: Because they knew who they were.
SPEAKER_01: And that's the common theme in all those stories.
SPEAKER_01: They knew who they were.
SPEAKER_01: They knew that they were children of God, and that it was, they couldn't, you know, David didn't defeat Goliath because he was strong, because he was mighty, it's because God was in him, and God was mighty, right?
SPEAKER_01: And he knew who he was as a child of God.
SPEAKER_01: And he said, we can defeat Goliath because we have God on our side, right?
SPEAKER_01: So they knew who they were.
SPEAKER_01: So, real quickly, I I want to, if you would flip back in your Bible with me to Daniel chapter 1, and uh keep a finger in Hebrews, we'll go back to it.
SPEAKER_01: But if you want to go to Daniel 1, um, quick context here here.
SPEAKER_01: Babylon had just captured uh Jerusalem and brought a lot of Israelites back to Babylon in exile.
SPEAKER_01: Daniel was one of these Israelites, and he was chosen amongst other men as well to uh be in the king's palace and to train to be of service to the king in this like three-year training program.
SPEAKER_01: And the goal of that was to really indoctrinate Daniel and these other men into the Babylonian culture and the Babylonian way of life.
SPEAKER_01: And there was some honor associated with it, it was a big deal, like they got to eat from the king's table, which most Babylonians did not.
SPEAKER_01: So that would have been a huge honor, a great honor to eat from the king's table.
SPEAKER_01: And this is a powerful, this would have been a cultural shock for Daniel and his friends, right?
SPEAKER_01: Because they're used to living in Jerusalem and being around people who fear the Lord and follow his laws, and now they're in this completely different culture where a pagan culture, where they're not following God, they're following false gods, and he's totally in a different environment.
SPEAKER_01: And as soon as these men entered King Nebuchadnezzar's palace, things started changing.
SPEAKER_01: The first thing to change was their names.
SPEAKER_01: Daniel's name meant God is my judge, God Yahweh, the true God, God is my judge, and they changed his name to Beltejar, which means Bel's prince, which is a pagan god.
SPEAKER_01: And the same happened for all of these men.
SPEAKER_01: And then the food changed, right?
SPEAKER_01: They're asked to eat from the king's table, which again would have been considered a great honor, but it was contrary to the way God had commanded the Israelites to eat.
SPEAKER_01: And then education, right?
SPEAKER_01: He's part of this three-year training program to be indoctrinated into the Babylonian culture.
SPEAKER_01: So I first want to point out what Daniel didn't do, because I find this really interesting, right?
SPEAKER_01: He did not make a fuss about the name change.
SPEAKER_01: And maybe he did, we don't have any record or indication of him complaining about the name change.
SPEAKER_01: Now, if someone changed my name to Beltajar, I would have a problem with that.
SPEAKER_01: Um we know that he did do something, right?
SPEAKER_01: He took big action in this chapter, but we but he didn't do anything about the name change.
SPEAKER_01: So what did he do?
SPEAKER_01: If you look at verse 8 here in chapter 1, it says, But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank.
SPEAKER_01: Therefore he requested of the chief of the enochs that he might not defile himself.
SPEAKER_01: And so he kind of set up this contest.
SPEAKER_01: He said, I can't eat that way.
SPEAKER_01: That's in disobedience to what the Lord has asked us as Israelites to do.
SPEAKER_01: I can't eat that way.
SPEAKER_01: So he requested that he would eat a vegetarian diet.
SPEAKER_01: It was granted to him, and the Lord blessed him, and he was in better shape as the other men who weren't eating that way, and so that request was granted for three years.
SPEAKER_01: And from there, he just continues to act with courageous, bold faith as a young person in this foreign land.
SPEAKER_01: And the Lord opened up doors for him because of that.
SPEAKER_01: And the king, King Nebuchadnezzar, one of the most powerful people in the world at the time, a man who followed pagan gods.
SPEAKER_01: If you get a couple chapters deep into Daniel, he praises the name of the Lord, King Nebuchadnezzar.
SPEAKER_01: Because Daniel was bold and courageous and stood up and had extreme faith as a young person, and most people say you can't make a difference, he made a difference, right?
SPEAKER_01: And I love this example of him because he did all that because his identity was grounded in God, in who he was as a child of God, in his creator.
SPEAKER_01: And to go back to the name thing, Daniel knew who he was.
SPEAKER_01: The name that people called him didn't matter because he knew who he was.
SPEAKER_01: And the same is true for each one of us and every young person in Gen Z.
SPEAKER_01: Your identity is a child of God.
SPEAKER_01: And if someone calls you anything different, it doesn't matter.
SPEAKER_01: Because that's not who you are.
SPEAKER_01: Your identity is a child of God.
SPEAKER_01: They don't define who you are, God does.
SPEAKER_01: Nobody on this earth has the power to define you or tell you who you are, including yourself, by the way.
SPEAKER_01: Including yourself, right?
SPEAKER_01: We're seeing young people today trying to redefine themselves contrary to how God created them, right?
SPEAKER_01: So even you don't have the power to change who you are or define yourself.
SPEAKER_01: Only God.
SPEAKER_01: The only person who can define you is the one who created you.
SPEAKER_01: And he created you the way you are for a reason.
SPEAKER_01: He has a purpose.
SPEAKER_01: He loves you.
SPEAKER_01: He loves the way he created you, and he doesn't make mistakes.
SPEAKER_01: The enemy wants to define you, wants to give you a false identity.
SPEAKER_01: There's countless examples of things that the enemy tries to use to define us, right?
SPEAKER_01: One of those would be the mental health issues that we talked about at the beginning, right?
SPEAKER_01: And I a couple years ago I had to meet with a student who was experiencing crippling anxiety and had been for a few years.
SPEAKER_01: And I remember we were at lunch and I looked him in the eyes and I said, your anxiety does not define you.
SPEAKER_01: That's not who you are, right?
SPEAKER_01: You are a child of God.
SPEAKER_01: We own it, right?
SPEAKER_01: We say, My anxiety, I'm an anxious person.
SPEAKER_01: I said, Don't do that.
SPEAKER_01: You're a child of God.
SPEAKER_01: Own who you are, right?
SPEAKER_01: You're a child of God who deals with anxiety, who struggles with anxiety, but who you are at your core is not the anxiety.
SPEAKER_01: It's a child of God.
SPEAKER_01: And I saw something switch in his brain when I said that, and his eyes lit up, and he I don't think he'd never heard that before.
SPEAKER_01: And it didn't stop there.
SPEAKER_01: We met for weekly for about a year and walked through some books and some scripture together and worked on that, and he's had a lot of progress and has overcome in many ways with that.
SPEAKER_01: And so we need to remind young people of who they are.
SPEAKER_01: And so the fourth and final point as we close here is back in Hebrews 6.
SPEAKER_01: Hebrews 6, 19, says this this hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, which enters the presence behind the veil.
SPEAKER_01: Number four is share the hope of Jesus with Generation Z.
SPEAKER_01: Share the hope of Jesus with Gen Z.
SPEAKER_01: Hope is a powerful thing.
SPEAKER_01: We have it as believers, the world doesn't.
SPEAKER_01: The world thinks they have hope, they'll put their hope in things, but those things don't last.
SPEAKER_01: Our hope is in something eternal.
SPEAKER_01: Our hope is in something that the world can't touch.
SPEAKER_01: Because our hope is in Jesus Christ and the gospel, the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
SPEAKER_01: And the writer of Hebrews says that hope should be an anchor to your soul.
SPEAKER_01: An anchor to your soul.
SPEAKER_01: Every summer we we drive out to Michigan and we spend some time on a lake at a family Bible camp.
SPEAKER_01: And my wife Allie, her uncle, usually rents a boat, and I don't know why, but the boat never has an anchor.
SPEAKER_01: It's not ever the same boat, it's always a different boat.
SPEAKER_01: But I don't know if they just don't know where to find it, and I don't know anything about boats, but I get to be the anchor.
SPEAKER_01: So I'll like stand on the back of the boat and hold the boat and stand on this sandbar where we hang out and let the kids swim.
SPEAKER_01: And what I've realized, learned through that experience, is even on a calm, sunny, peaceful day, that boat will drift a lot, right?
SPEAKER_01: And it's hard work being an anchor.
SPEAKER_01: I have appreciation for anchors now.
SPEAKER_01: And uh, and it'll and you gotta pull it until because it wants to go all over the place.
SPEAKER_01: And the same is true of our life.
SPEAKER_01: If we're not anchored to Jesus Christ, we're gonna drift.
SPEAKER_01: And there's a lot of things in this world that are gonna try to push us and move us and drift us, right?
SPEAKER_01: We just finished a study of 1 Peter with Pastor Steve.
SPEAKER_01: We talked a lot about suffering.
SPEAKER_01: Suffering comes, boom, pushes that boat out into the middle of the lake, right?
SPEAKER_01: The culture comes with its winds and its waves, with its confusion, with the lies from the enemy.
SPEAKER_01: There are so many things that want to push that boat somewhere else, push it out to the middle of the lake, push it into confusion, into despair, into suffering.
SPEAKER_01: But if we're anchored in the hope of Jesus Christ, if we're anchored to the hope of Jesus Christ, if our young people are anchored to the hope of Jesus Christ, then we will not be moved.
SPEAKER_01: Then we will not be moved.
SPEAKER_01: We got to be anchored, and we need to help this generation be anchored.
SPEAKER_01: There's hope for Generation Z.
SPEAKER_01: And maybe you have a loved one from this generation who's walked away, who has drifted, who's left.
SPEAKER_01: There is hope for that person.
SPEAKER_01: Pray for them, pray for them every day, war for them spiritually.
SPEAKER_01: And would you come get prayer at the end of the service?
SPEAKER_01: I would love to pray for you.
SPEAKER_01: Our team would love to pray for you and that young person.
SPEAKER_01: But let's not lose hope for this generation.
SPEAKER_01: And I want to encourage everyone here to be hope for this generation, to be truth, to be someone who points them to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Because I said they're hungry for the truth and we have it.
SPEAKER_01: They're hungry for the truth and we have it.
SPEAKER_01: So would you share that truth with the young people in your life?
SPEAKER_01: And if there aren't some, find some, right?
SPEAKER_01: Let's share hope, share Jesus, share the truth with this generation.
SPEAKER_01: And let's not lose hope.
SPEAKER_01: Thank you for listening to the Born for War podcast.
SPEAKER_01: We hope today's message has empowered you to make a difference in your world.
SPEAKER_01: To connect with Pastor Steve's sermons, books, and blog, visit Steveholtonline.org.
SPEAKER_01: God bless.