The audio recording from C.J.’s message Sunday at Covenant Life Church:
Don’t Waste Your Sports
C.J. Mahaney
1 Corinthians 10:31
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Covenant Life Church; Gaithersburg, MD
57:34 run time; 13.2MB MP3
Download here.
HT: Sovereign Grace
Art by David Somerville.
Bre Engel is a high school senior from Indiana and a member of The Rebelution Forums. Along with other young people from her church Bre participated in some community service projects and gave a report to her local church. Afterwards she heard a man saying, “Aren’t you glad these kids aren’t out smoking pot or drinking, but are instead doing service for our community?”
“That comment just broke my heart,” writes Bre, “because there truly is a level of mediocrity that has infiltrated not just our culture, but our churches as well.” Being considered a “good teen” only requires that we don’t do “bad stuff” like taking drugs, drinking, and wild partying. But is it enough to be known for what we don’t do, or should we be known for what we do?
What Does The Bible Say?
Psalm 1 tells us that “blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord on His law he meditates day and night.”
Charles Spurgeon comments, “Perhaps some of you can claim a sort of negative purity, because you do not walk in the way of the ungodly; but let me ask you–Is your delight in the law of God? Do you study God’s Word? Do you make it the man of your right hand–your best companion and hourly guide?” If not, he concludes, the blessing of Psalm 1 doesn’t belong to you.
God’s Word is clear that just “not sinning” is no standard. We’re not only called to “flee youthful lusts” but to “pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace” (2 Timothy 2:22). We’re not only called to “put to death what is earthly in us” but to “put on compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience” (Colossians 3).
In order to reach God’s standard for young people and to enjoy the blessing that He promises, we must get beyond simply avoiding bad stuff. The Apostle Paul makes this calling clear when he writes, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12).
We’re Fighting Low Expectations
Once we understand God’s expectations we can see how dangerous it is to live in a culture that tells us we’re “good kids” just because of what we don’t do. The obvious question becomes: “What are we doing instead?” Are we doing hard things? Are we growing? My dog doesn’t go to wild parties, that doesn’t make him a good kid.
An education expert recently observed that the current ceiling for students is much closer to where the floor ought to be. The very most our culture expects of us is that we don’t take drugs, drink, or sleep around — but that’s the very least God expects from us. We are told to let our light shine before men that they may see our good works and give glory to God (Matthew 5:16) and that by our love all men will know that we follow Christ (John 13:35).
We must be known for what we do. Not in order to be saved, but because we are saved; not in order to earn God’s favor, but with the favor of His help.
As always, our goal is not just to provide information but also to encourage thoughtful discussion. Here’s a few questions to get us started:
- Have you ever found yourself getting complacent because of what you don’t do? If so, how have you dealt with it?
- Have you had an experience similar to Bre’s?
- What would be a biblical response to someone telling you that you are exceptional just because you’re not involved in certain activities?
- What kind of activities should teens be known for?
If you’re from the Des Moines area, I’d like to invite you to join us for some free, family-friendly fun under the stars this Friday night. We’ll be showing Evan Almighty. Please join us under the stars if you’re able and feel free to invite neighbor or pass the word on to anyone you think might be interested.
The movie will be shown at Westkirk Presbyterian Church in Urbandale (2700 Colby Woods Dr.) and will begin shortly after sunset. Please bring a battery operated radio and blankets or folding chairs for your comfort … and, of course, don’t forget your bug spray. I hope to see you there.
PROMO DVDs :: DOWNLOADABLE FLIER
On July 19th the Do Hard Things Tour will make a stop in Des Moines, Iowa — partnering with Grace Church to bring The Rebelution to the Hawkeye State. The Des Moines Conference will primarily serve Midwestern states, including Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Ohio, Nebraska, and Wisconsin.
If you have any questions or would like to get involved in making this event a success, please contact The Rebelution tour at: info@thereblution.com. For more information visit The Rebelution webiste.
Abraham Piper has a good post on his blog about what society, and the church, thinks it means to be a well-adjusted teen.
It seems that wherever adults define cultural guidelines (i.e., schools, most churches, libraries), the decision about whether a young person is to be welcomed or not usually has more to do with how that teenager looks and behaves than an actual knowledge of who that youth is as a person. In general, adults not only don’t know the young people in their communities, but aren’t interested in taking the time to get to know them or what they’re interested in. All they want to know is whether or not a young person is going to disrupt what they have established - if so, they’re out, if not, then they’re welcome to stay.
It’s rare to find a teenager that will sit in a pew quietly for an hour and listen to an adult, who probably doesn’t know them, talk about why they should know God; and when they get “rowdy,” the common opinion is that those youth would be better off not attending the church service. I’ll take the rowdy teens over the sleeping old folks any day. Why? Because it’s not about me or delivering some message that I’ve prepared, it’s about getting to know people (regardless of age) and doing life together within the context of Christian community. Community can’t happen if the requirement for gaining acceptance is that you have to be like me. Is it any wonder why the church is so segregated and divided today?
Abraham says:”Understanding teenage rebellion only as sex, drugs, and rock’n’roll (may I add worship style preference?) implies that the goal is celibacy, sobriety, and employment. It’s not.
It’s Jesus.”
Amen.
This past Sunday, Pastor John Piper kicked off a five-part series on Bethlehem Baptist Church’s vision for a rising generation of young people — a series our father, Gregg Harris, will wrap up on May 18th there in Minneapolis.
The passage of Scripture that he used was 1 Timothy 4:12 — the theme verse of the Rebelution. In fact, the message of “rebellion against low expectations” and “do hard things” features prominently throughout. But that’s not why we share it.
The reason we bring this message to your attention is because it does one of the best jobs we’ve ever seen (and far better than we could do ourselves) of laying out the call of 1 Timothy 4:12 and a biblical portrait of the perils and potential of youth.
This message is a must read (or watch, or listen to) sermon for rebelutionary teens, parents, and youth workers. Don’t miss out on the benefit.
HT: The Rebelution
The official definition of the ‘rebelution’ is “a teenage rebellion against low expectations.” When you look around today, our culture does not expect much of us young people. We are not only expected to do very little that is wise or good, but we’re expected to do the opposite. Our media-saturated youth culture is constantly reinforcing lower and lower standards and expectations.
The word ‘rebelution’ is a combination of the words “rebellion” and “revolution.” So it carries a sense of an uprising against social norms. But in this case, it’s not a rebellion against God-established authority, but against the low expectations of our society. It’s a refusal to be defined by our ungodly, rebellious, and apathetic culture. Actually, we like to think of it as rebelling against rebellion.
And it’s exciting, because the Rebelution has become a type of counter-cultural youth movement among young people from around the world, who are not only rejecting the lies of popular youth culture, but they’re returning to biblical and historical levels of character and competence.
In 1 Timothy 4:12, the Apostle Paul tells Timothy, “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” In other words, as young people we are called to be exemplary in all areas of life. Our generation is falling incredibly short of that calling. Instead of serving as the launching pad of life, the teen years are seen as a vacation from responsibility. We call it the “myth of adolescence.” And the Rebelution is all about busting that myth.
Our battle cry is just three words, but it’s an explosive concept: Do Hard Things. That’s it. And “do hard things” is a mentality. It’s a mentality that flies right in the face of low expectations. The world says, “You’re young, have fun!” It tells us to “obey your thirst” and “just do it.” Or it tells us, “You’re great! You don’t need to exert yourself.” But those kinds of mindsets sabotage character and competence.
Do Hard Things is just the opposite. It’s how we build character and competence. It won’t drop to meet the low expectations, it won’t just do what comes easily, and it won’t become complacent. It applies no matter who you are or what level you’re on, because there’s always something harder to do, something that will take you outside your comfort zone and cause you to grow.
The Rebelution is made up of three fundamental parts. We’ve talked about character and competence. The third is collaboration. It’s not enough for us to be individual exceptions. We have to create a counterculture. We do that is by networking and encouraging one another in our common cause. That’s what the Rebelution has become. When you have a community of young people committed to doing hard things for the glory of God and the good of others, that’s an incredibly powerful thing.
For more of the history and message of the Rebelution, grab the book or check out the blog.
HT: The Rebelution
