AJ the Irish Lass' Ramblings

An image that never goes “out of style”

Many writers have been tackling the issue of whether the modern demand for “relevance” in Christianity actually has to do with why younger generations just don’t seem interested in church. Is it really about music and worship styles, dress or having interesting little extras like coffee shops? Or is this way of doing things really missing the mark?

Maybe the issues the fledgling Church was coping with in Acts 2:1-21 can shed some light on today’s situation. The disciples had to cope with:

• Being raised in a religious society that didn’t view itself as accessible for and to all people
• Conflicting schools of thought that often lead to a lot of legalism
• Living in a world that saw a lot of turmoil over current events

In many ways, what the disciples were dealing with during the Church’s early days mirrors what we have to deal with today. Consider the following:

• Many Christian groups see their particular expression of faith as being THE sole, legitimate way of coming to God. such groups, in the long run, push more people away from God, rather than leading them TO God.
• Others, while not teaching exclusive salvation, get too caught up in form and style, forgetting that the Church is for God’s whole people, and doesn’t fulfill her mission effectively when there is too much focus on specifically reaching hipsters, contemporary music fans, cowboys, bikers, etc.
• Legalism is always a very real threat when there is too much focus on following rules and conforming to the “right” interpretation of a given belief
• Current events often lead Christians to read answers into Scripture, rather than drawing answers from Scripture

The search for relevancy doesn’t need to be an issue when we keep a balanced perspective: The Gospel message and benefits of salvation are available to all who are willing to receive them, and we must keep that perspective in mind.