The State of Theology in Youth Ministry
The state of theology in youth ministry is not good.
What else should we expect when we hear statements like: “Teenagers don’t need to hear about the Trinity, they need conversations about sexuality.” “Theology divides. We should focus on the gospel instead.” “You seem like you want to be a theology professor and are practicing on our kids until you get the job you really want.” Youth pastor theologians are swimming upstream, but I’m encouraged that there are more of us out there than there used to be.
If we graduate students who know the gospel, but not a biblical worldview or a good understanding of essential Christian doctrine, then their understanding of the gospel is incomplete and we have not prepared them for lifelong faith.
One of the most common statements I’ve heard from youth workers when it comes to theology is something like this: “Mike, we’re youth workers, not theologians. Let’s put our theology aside and simply preach the gospel to these teenagers.”
That response comes from a good evangelistic motivation, but it’s woefully shallow and the most recent “State of Theology” makes this obvious.
The State of Theology for Evangelicals age 18-49
Youth Ministry has been widely embraced for long enough that many Evangelical Christians who are in their 40’s grew up attending youth group during their teen years. They are representatives of the fruitfulness and legacy of youth ministry over the past few decades – and the theological legacy of youth ministry isn’t good.
Trevin Wax has written an excellent article about the Ligonier State of Theology, so I won’t try and do the same. As I combed through the responses to the questions, a few statistics of Evangelicals between the ages of 18-49 that jump out to me:
Q3: 62% believe God accepts the worship of all religions, not only Christian worship.
Q4: 56% believe God “learns and adapts to various situations.”
Q6: 66% believe Jesus is “the first and greatest being created by God.”
Q7: 52% believe Jesus was “a great teacher, but he was not God.”
Q9: 62% believe the Holy Spirit is “a force but is not a personal being.”
Q11: 36% believe the Holy Spirit can “tell me to do something which is forbidden in the Bible.”
Q15: 71% believe we are all “born innocent in the eyes of God” (only a 1% difference from all U.S. Adult Responders).
Q22: 65% believe “Worshiping alone or with one’s family is a valid replacement for regularly attending church” (only a 2% difference from all U.S. Adult Responders).
Each of the above statements except for the final one about church attendance would have previously been considered heretical in previous generations. These are theological statements that were outside the boundaries of historic orthodox Christianity. Now, they’re mainstream.
Perhaps some of the respondents likely answered the way they did because they didn’t understand the question - but that’s also telling, isn’t it? These are foundational truths about the Christian religion. These are not obscure questions about secondary doctrines. These professing-believers believe heretical statements about the very nature of God, the Person and Work of Christ, and the Person of the Holy Spirit. This is concerning.
A Theological Vision for Youth Ministry
When youth workers minimize the role of theology in order to “simply preach the gospel,” then we shouldn’t be surprised when our youth ministry alumni are theologically illiterate. Afterall, 79% of the above group agreed, “God counts a person as righteous not because of one’s works but only because of one’s faith in Jesus Christ” (Question 14). If ministry is simply concerned with people believing the gospel, then the state of theology is good.
The report suggests a renewed emphasis on apologetics in order to persuade unbelievers and to strengthen believers in clarity and conviction. I believe in the value of apologetics and have dear friends who have committed their ministry to apologetics. Frankly, youth workers have been obsessed with teaching apologetics for over a decade while neglecting to teach theology.
Rather than promoting more and better apologetics, I sincerely believe that youth workers need to commit themselves to reading theology personally. If youth workers would commit themselves to think deeply about core doctrines then they’ll speak with greater clarity and conviction about the gospel week-in, week-out. They would be more likely to actually teach about the attributes of God, be deliberate about praying Trinitarian prayers, and would generally infuse their ministry with small doses of theological depth that will make a significant impact over the long haul.
A theological renaissance in youth ministry begins with youth workers who rejoice in God. They love to read and discuss theology together - not in a stuffy or merely intellectual way, but as an expression of awe and wonder. Being a youth pastor theologian isn’t about teaching a particular series or reading Calvin’s Institutes with your students. It’s a commitment to being deliberate about the way you talk about God, and being careful to ensure your ministry structure and culture reinforce the message you declare when you teach.
Youth Workers Want More Theology
My first book is entitled “A Biblical Theology of Youth Ministry.” It took a significant period of time and many rejections before receiving a book contract. One of the comments I received from multiple publishers went something like this: “Youth pastors don’t buy books, and they definitely don’t buy theology books about youth ministry. We believe this book is needed, but it won’t sell enough copies to break even. I’m sorry but we can’t publish this.” It’s certainly not a best seller and I’ve only made a little money on it, but it’s far surpassed all sales expectations. Personally, I call it “the little book that can.” I continue to receive emails each month from youth pastors around the world, thanking me for this book. To put it simply, there’s very little competition in the marketplace for books about theology and youth ministry… and youth workers want more.
Youth pastors who have the benefit of formal theological training struggle to translate what they learned in the classroom for teenagers. And youth pastors who haven’t received formal theological training are trying to teach theology to students but are terrified about accidentally teaching heresy.
We need to renew our commitment to teaching what the Bible teaches. Yes, we should be persuasive and engage the questions and objections our students will raise. But this is what youth ministry should have been doing all along.
If we want students to develop lifelong faith, then we need to give them something rich and deep enough to sustain them when life gets turned upside down. Students are asking theological questions. Let’s be sure we’re prepared to answer.
