18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."
20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.
21 And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
He has come to heal the brokenhearted, according to Luke chapter 4. There does seem to be plenty of that going around, doesn't it? There are broken lives, broken relationships, uncertainties and anxieties all around. But, there is an answer - THE answer. Jesus meets us in our brokenness; when we don't see anywhere else to turn, we can be confident that He is there, He loves us, and He wants us to experience the freedom from the hurts that we have encountered - He comes to make us whole.
Wholehearted devotion to Christ can have a tremendous impact on the way we live and the condition of our hearts; in fact, Jesus promised to give us a new life, a new heart. Proverbs 3 gives this admonition:
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil.
8 It will be health to your flesh, And strength to your bones.
Certainly, there is concern for the next generation of young people, today's teens and young adults, and you certainly have to be gratified by what is transpiring on college campuses, originating at Asbury University in Kentucky but spreading to other campuses.
Today is the Collegiate Day of Prayer, and there will be a livestream tonight from Asbury to coincide with it. And, while a Barna Group survey shows that around two-thirds of American teens identify as Christian, as well as about half of young adults, there is still room to grow. Because only around one-third of those teens in the U.S. would fall into the category of "Committed Christian." Worldwide, it's less than 1/4. These are the numbers for teens 13-17 years of age. The numbers drop when you get into the 18-22 group:
The committed Christian category shrinks by nearly half (to 17%), while more than half of young adults (52%) do not identify as Christian or don’t know of Jesus.
But, teens and young adults do seem to be longing to spend time in the presence of God, if these revival meetings are any indications. Spontaneous, lengthy times of worship, confession, and fellowship with God demonstrate a hunger among teenagers and young adults.
The Barna research does show some positive signs in that age group of 13-17 which contains some promise for those who will be inhabiting those campuses in the future. The survey summary states:
Teens in the U.S. are far more intrigued than their global peers, with 77 percent being at least somewhat motivated to keep learning about Jesus throughout their lives. A teen’s personal commitment to follow Jesus goes hand in hand with their motivation to study him—the percentage of teens who want to learn more about Jesus rises significantly among committed Christian teens. Even among teens who are non-Christians or don't know who Jesus is, however, over half is at least somewhat motivated to keep learning about him.
And, where do teens go for information relative to their spiritual lives? The survey summary relates:
Regardless of their level of commitment to follow Jesus, U.S. teens place a significant amount of trust in religious texts and their households to learn about Jesus. Teens are more likely to report looking to these sources than to social media, the Internet, their friends or influencers.
But, the report indicates that nominal Christian teens will go to "themselves" before other sources, including the Bible and the Church.
But, if what has been occurring at Asbury and other schools recently is any indication, there does appear to be a deep hunger within the hearts of young people. An insightful article at The Free Press website by Olivia Reingold stated this:
Some Asbury students told me they grew up praying for a revival—meaning a resurgence of faith that spreads, usually at a community level but occasionally throughout the entire nation. Those students believe that dream is now becoming reality among the generation marked by its lack of faith in anything.
Gen Z is the most likely generation yet to say they don’t believe in God. They are also the least religiously affiliated and the least likely to attend church.
Meantime, their rates of depression and anxiety are soaring. The Centers for Disease Control recently published a report stating that “almost 60% of female students experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness during the past year and nearly 25% made a suicide plan.”
Larry Norman recorded a song many years ago that was entitled, "Why Don't You Look Into Jesus?" If there is a hunger - and it is apparent - the world's methods aren't going to totally numb the pain. The truly effective answers don't lie in superficial relationships on social media, pills and bottles, and immersion in tech. Jesus is calling each us to a fresh, deep, abiding relationship with Himself.
With the insufficient answers that abound, it is time to take a look at THE answer! And, the Barna research shows that young people are open to a relationship with Christ. The real Jesus - the One who claims to be THE Way, Truth, and the Life. He does more than "get" us, He loves us and gave His life for our sins so that we could be saved and have a true, life-changing relationship.
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