When I talk about this in parent or youth leader workshops, I ask people to form trios and pick one of five examples where Jesus engaged his culture in some way. Then I ask them to come up with a “now equivalent” for their chosen example. I mean they must brainstorm what Jesus would have done in our current culture that’s similar to what he did in ancient Jewish culture.
For example, often those who choose the example of Jesus allowing a known prostitute to wash his feet with her tears and dry them with her hair come up with a current-day scenario of Jesus inviting a friend who’s gay to go to a Sunday school class with him. After trios have a chance to report on what they come up with, I ask them if they think their current-day equivalents would be offensive to most people in their churches. The answer is always an overwhelming yes! In the silence that follows, most people begin to realize that Jesus was far more engaged in the world than we are in the church.
The sobering upshot is that the dichotomous lives we’re living—our real-world selves and our church selves—have “trickled down” into our kids’ lives. We’ve effectively communicated to them that church is not a relevant place where we can talk about the real world in critical and biblical ways.
Giving Our Kids the Critical Tools They Need
We need tools that will build biblical bridges from kids’ cultural influences to God’s truths. That’s Jesus-style relevancy.
1. Use cultural resources as ministry tools.
Jesus was a subversive—he used the stuff of his surrounding culture to teach his followers about God, confounding his critics as he did. When you watch popular movies or listen to popular music, think of ways to have biblical discussions about their messages. Talk about where you see both examples and counterexamples of biblical truth.
2. Talk often about their media influences.
Our survey found that just 17% of Christian teenagers say their participation in a church youth group has helped them “a lot” to think critically about films or videos.
Jesus often challenged the people of his day to think critically about the “givens” in their culture. For example, Jesus challenged “acceptable” male-female contact when he engaged the woman at the well in John 4. Here’s one way to do the same: Challenge kids to come up with a list of five things their favorite TV shows are teaching them. Then use those lists as fodder for a Bible study series that uses clips from their favorite shows as part of the study.
3. Use what’s cool.
Challenge your group members to come up with a Top 10 list of “things that are cool” that everyone agrees on. Once they’ve wrestled through that challenge, give them a greater one. Have them come up with a definition of what makes one thing cool and another thing not cool. Use their list and definitions for a Bible study series on “What Jesus Thinks Is Cool,” using their examples throughout the study.
4. Establish ‘problem time’ as a regular part of your gatherings.
Jesus used parables to introduce critical-thinking problems to his followers. So at least once-a-month, give small groups a problem to solve that’s linked to something in popular culture. For example, you could use a clip from the movie “Hulk” as a lead-in to this problem question: “Did Jesus condemn or embrace anger?” Also, you can find thematic links in movies, TV shows, and music to tie into three categories of “problem” questions: gospel (“Why did Jesus treat the beggar woman in Matthew 15 so harshly?”), cultural (“What makes music Christian?”), or relational (“What’s the difference between our youth group and a clique?”)
5. Teach kids to question everything they take in (including Christian stuff).
Jesus often spurred people to question faulty cultural assumptions. Typically, he started by saying, “You have heard it said…” We’re aiming to train kids to think critically instead of passively taking in the messages in their culture. It’s just like reading the nutrition information on food products. For example, not long ago I noticed the cover of a Best Buy flyer that read, “Reality is overrated—lose yourself in our huge home theater selection.” What’s the message Best Buy wants us to buy into? What’s the promise they’re offering? Is it a kingdom-of-God promise? You can use literally anything in popular culture to spur critical-thinking conversations with your teenagers.
RELATED: Relational Ministry in a Technology-Dominated World
Soon, when kids are driving alone in their car, they’ll hear something and a little voice inside will ask, Is that really true? When that happens, you’ll have helped change the way they engage with their culture and opened up a new, deeply relevant phase in their relationship with God.
This article by Rick Lawrence was originally published on YouthMinistry.com, © Group Publishing, a division of David C Cook.
