Don't Care?

The possession of hope in Christ will produce a sense of diligence and urgency - we should be, as the Bible tells us, contending for the faith, as we can read in the book of Jude:
3 Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.
4 For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

God calls us to pursue a walk of righteousness and holiness, to know Him better and to reflect His presence in our lives.  We are navigating our way through a world that is full of rejection of our Lord and for His people. That should enable us to seek out opportunities and seize those opportunities so that Christ might be proclaimed and fruit produced for His glory. The gospel is still a source of hope, even though there are those that related in a recent survey that they "don't care" about the existence of God.

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We are called to be diligent in our pursuit of the gospel, not wooed by a laissez-faire attitude that is not productive. 2nd Peter 1 relates a sense of intensity, when it says:
10 Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble;
11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

The departure from time-honored Biblical principles is being seen all around us, and it can motivate believers to continue to hold on to and share the teachings of Scripture.

George Barna has continued his excellent work of documenting trends in the Church and the culture through his position as Director of Research at the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University.  The Center has released more information in its American Worldview Inventory series, which reveals an indifference among the millennial generation regarding the things of God.

The youngest millennials will be turning twenty next year, with the high end currently being 36 or 37. The lead statistic in articles about this survey on CBN.com and The Christian Post: as CBN puts it, "43 percent of Millennials stated they either don't know, don't care, or don't believe God exists..."  That contrasts to 28 percent of Boomers, the group born between 1946 and 1964.

There are other generational differences.  The Christian Post states that...

...nearly half of all boomers believe that when they die, they will go to Heaven only because they confessed their sins and accepted Jesus as their Savior, compared to only 26% of Gen X and 16% of millennials.

Gen X are those born between 1965 and 1983.  Also, the Post points out that concerning the builders, the generation born between 1927 and 1945: "A staggering 90% of builders believe you treat others as you want them to treat you, while less than half of millennials agree."

CBN points out that:

The CRC research shows that some of the biggest differences are in definitions like success in life, abortion, evolution, Biblical practices, reincarnation, karma, horoscopes, according to Relevant Magazine. Millennials and Gen X beliefs align more closely to one another, while Boomers and Builders hold more similar beliefs.

The Christian Post relates:

Commenting on the study, George Barna, CRC director of research, said that Gen X and the millennials have “solidified dramatic changes in the nation’s central beliefs and lifestyles,” adding: “The result is a culture in which core institutions, including churches, and basic ways of life are continually being radically redefined.”

The Post reported that the researchers wrote, "...this radical spiritual revolution has created a generation seeking a reimagined world without God, the Bible, or churches..." This is indicated, even though "a majority of Americans call themselves Christian, ranging from 57% of millennials to 83% of builders."

Spiritual ideas are not necessarily religious nor Christian.  It's cool in some circles to embrace spirituality, but Christianity demands surrender to Jesus and His principles, whereas a more vague "spirituality" can be styled by the person who practices it.  But, the upside of being a Christian far outweighs worldly, human-centered ideas - here on this earth and in the afterlife, which is by no means certain for many younger people these days.

But, there is cause for optimism.  The CBN article featured quotes from Nick Hall of the PULSE Movement, who said, "There's all sorts of opinions about all sorts of things, all sorts of ideas and yet there is one thing that changes everything, and so I am seeing people praying, fasting, and really believing that, man, no matter what happens, we know that God is in control and we need to trust Him now more than ever."  The Christian Post quotes Jacob Bland of Youth for Christ, who said, “Teens today are facing crises like never before, but it’s often in the darkness that light shines the brightest,” adding, “To enter into a disciple-making relationship where you're introducing a kid to an unconditional love that maybe they've never even considered, showing them the goodness and love modeled in Jesus — there's a lot of hope in that.”

There is a challenge for faithfulness. God wants us to be faithful to walk in His ways, to be grounded in the Word and dedicated to sharing the love and truth of Jesus Christ.  Some may not care, and it seems like almost half of millennials fit in that category; but that does not exempt us from caring about them.