A Summary of The State of Theology: What do GenZ’s Christians Believe?
The State of Theology is a research report published every-other year by Ligonier Ministries. Below is a snapshot of the results from 2022 for 18-34 year-olds (their youngest surveyed demographic) who affiliate as Evangelicals and attend church at least monthly. So, these are GenZers and younger Millennials who profess evangelical faith and are regular church attendees. YPT will revisit these findings when the 2024 report is released in a few months.
Below are three main observations, as well as a snapshot of some responses with brief commentary.
But first, it’s important to make two comments about this demographic (18-34 year old evangelicals). First, these young adults are building on a foundation that was poured during childhood and adolescence. Reading these observations with an eye toward youth ministry’s contribution to the problems and solutions is worthwhile. Second, the majority of youth workers fall into this age range. Thus, these young adults are the men and women who are teaching our youth.
Church-Going Evangelical Young Adults are Influenced by Tolerance Culture
Statement 3: God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam:
62% agree or strongly agree
32% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 27: Gender Identity is a matter of choice:
38% agree or strongly agree
58% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 28: The Bible’s condemnation of homosexual behavior doesn’t apply today:
33% agree or strongly agree
11% not sure
56% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 31: Religious belief is a matter of personal opinion; it is not about objective truth:
48% agree or strongly agree
45% disagree or strongly disagree
Evangelical young adults are much more conservative than their peers, so it’s not accurate to react like there’s no difference between evangelicals and non-evangelicals. For example, 51% of 18-34 year-olds agree that “Gender Identity is a matter of choice,” while only 38% of church-going evangelical young adults agree. That’s a significant difference. And yet, that still means that one out of every three young adults who we’d consider “one of us” believes gender identity is a matter of choice.
At the same time, there is only a 5% difference between church-going evangelical young adults and all young adults regarding Statement 3. There is only a 1% differential between church-going evangelical young adults and their peers regarding Statement 31. GenZ and older Millennials carry a particular worldview built on a foundation of extreme tolerance. These statements are important to recognize and directly address – not in a combative way (lest you be canceled), but in a way that engages these young adults to evaluate their worldview and bring it into submission to Christ (which is something we should all do with our worldview!).
Church-Going Evangelicals Young Adults Believe the Gospel
Statement 5: Biblical accounts of the physical (bodily) resurrection of Jesus are completely accurate. This event actually occurred.
91% agree or strongly agree
6% not sure
3% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 33: It is very important for me personally to encourage non-Christians to trust Jesus Christ as their Savior.
89% agree or strongly agree
11% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 34: Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is the only sacrifice that could remove the penalty of my sin.
94% agree or strongly agree
6% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 35: Only those who trust in Jesus Christ alone as their Savior receive God’s free gift of eternal salvation.
92% agree or strongly agree
8% disagree or strongly disagree
These statements and the responses are very encouraging. This shows that Evangelical churches are preaching the gospel and teaching young adults how to articulate it. That’s good news.
However, what do we do regarding the conflict between these responses and the concerning affirmations in the section above? How can 94% agree that Jesus’ death on the cross is the only means of salvation, and 92% agree that only those who trust in Jesus will be saved, while 62% believe that God accepts the worship of all religions, and 48% believe religion is a matter of personal opinion, not objective truth? These are blatantly contradictory statements unless these young adults are Christian Universalists. This is the only way to make sense of such contradictory beliefs, and it presents a significant issue that is largely unaddressed, presumably because of other contentious and public challenges to the faith.
Church-Going Evangelical Young Adults are Confused About Christian Teachings
Statement 4: God learns and adapts to different circumstances:
58% agree or strongly agree
33% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 6: Jesus is the first and greatest being created by God:
64% agree or strongly agree
28% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 7: Jesus was a great teacher, but he was not God:
51% agree or strongly agree
44% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 9: The Holy Spirit is a force, but not a personal being
68% agree or strongly agree
24% disagree or strongly disagree
Statement 13: Even the smallest sin deserves eternal damnation:
40% agree or strongly agree
54% disagree or strongly disagree
Good doctrine matters. Although it’s encouraging that church-going evangelical young adults continue to affirm the gospel, there is more to Christianity than a simple gospel statement. Four of the above statements are blatantly and undeniably heretical (Statements 6, 7, 9). To affirm these statements is to believe a perversion of the gospel to such a degree that it is something “other” than true Christianity (“heresy” comes from the root word for “other”). Statements 4 and 13 could be interpreted in some ways that could be fitting with orthodox Christianity, but they have each been widely considered outside the bounds of orthodox faith throughout the majority of Christian history, and many who rejected them were considered heretics. Statement 6 is problematic since it’s a direct affirmation of Arianism (one of the Church’s earliest heresies), but I think it’s appropriate to give some grace since it’s theologically nuanced and it’s safe to assume many respondents didn’t understand the question.
The significance of these questions cannot be overstated: more than half of the young adults in our churches (many of whom are serving as youth leaders and Sunday School teachers for children and youth!) affirm heretical Christianity. Although Statement 6 could be confusing for people to understand (as noted above), the other statements/questions are very clear and these young adults responded overwhelmingly in unbiblical and unChristian ways.
If nothing else, The State of Theology 2022 uncovers a significant void of theological education in our churches. It will be interesting to see if the 2024 results are more encouraging.
Conclusion
This report corroborates the need for Youth Pastor Theologian’s ministry. We are advocating for theological renewal in youth ministry because we believe that what we teach teenagers matters. Yes, we need to teach the gospel with simplicity and in a way that normal teenagers can understand. But we also need to ensure that we’re actually calling youth into the Christian faith rather than into a thin shadow of what it means to be a Christian.
What good is it for us to preach the gospel and have students respond but never teach them anything beyond the simple statement, “Jesus died for your sins.” That’s exactly what the above survey represents. It’s time to take up the call to disciple teenagers into a faith that’s big enough for them to grow into. Let’s not merely teach them to memorize the Apostles’ Creed. Let’s teach them what it means so they can discern true Christianity from heretical Christianity.
At the same time, the State of Theology sounds an alarm about the generation that most commonly serves in Children and Youth Minsitries. The respondents above are sincere men and women who identify as evangelical and attend church at least once a month. Rather than having judgment or disdain for them, this report is a call to action to provide better theological education in our churches. Let’s help them understand the faith they profess!
Youth Pastor Theologian’s ministry is intimately reflected through this study. If you are also concerned about the results and want to join YPT in advocating for theological renewal in youth ministry, pray about becoming a supporter.
The mission of youth ministry is not to make teenage disciples, but adult disciples whose faith took root during their teen years. This means we invite you into a faith that’s big enough to grow into. And if we aren’t having theological conversations with them, then what do we expect to happen?
