THE ROLES OF THE CHURCH IN THE LIVES OF YOUTHS ~ CHAPLAIN RAPHAEL JOSEPH
PREAMBLE
The Church is a spiritual gathering, anyone that finds himself/herself within it should consider him/herself fortunate and blessed.
The roles of the church are indeed very vital/ pivotal.
In summary, the roles of the church centres on three main aspects; namely:
_EVANGELISM_~ to spread (preach) the goodnews of Christ to the world.( Mk. 16:15; Phil.4:15; 1Thess. 1:6-8)
_EDIFICATION_~ this has to do with an act of strengthening and inspiring someone.
(1Cor. 14:26)
Edification is a technical New Testament term for "building up" the Church, "edification," has its roots in the Old Testament interplay of the concepts of building the Temple and of building the people; it was used by Jesus Himself to speak of the building of the new people of God; and finally, it was emphasized by St. Paul as a theological term for the spiritual formation of the Christian community.
Building up" in both OT and NT theology means strengthening more than expansion (Col 2.7: "be … built up on him and strengthened in the faith"). Thus, the role of sound teaching is stressed in "upbuilding" contexts in contrast to the divisive and weakening effects of heterodoxy (Eph 4.10–16).
Edification" involves fraternal correction, encouragement, and support (1 Thes 5.11, 14); seeking what is pleasing to one's neighbor, what helps him advance in good (Rom 15.2); avoidance of foul language and making one's speech an occasion of grace for the listeners (Eph 4.29); and promoting unity in the community (1 Cor 14.26, 40).
_BENEVOLENCE_~ an inclination to do good; kindliness; from Latin benevolentia, meaning “good will”, from bene (“well or good”) and volo (will). Benevolence involves displaying act of kindness towards the poor and less fortunate.
The church should be involved in the work of benevolence (Act 4:32-37; Gal. 6:9).
I decided to dwell a little in two( *edification* and *benevolence* ) out of the three main roles of the church because our discourse will be evolved around the two as the church roles in the lives of youths.
It is worthy to note that every other duties of the church evolve around the aforementioned three; evangelism, edification and benevolence.
The youths are very important and vital component of the Church;without them, the Church has no future; so to say. The future of the Church is not in the buildings and structures but in her capacity to attract and maintain young people within her ranks.
As the Palmist would say, “Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth.”(Psalm 127:4) The youths are the children of a young Church. They are her arrows and she is the warrior in the world.
We can now see that the roles of the church in the lives of youths are prerequisite.
The most important thing any church can do for the youths is providing guidance and knowledge.
While many young people are blessed with wonderful parents/guardians/teachers, some do not have such luxury.
To save them from themselves or from the situations they might be in, *the church has to show them the righteous path that involves faith in Our Lord.*
~The church can be a great way for many young people to find some meaning in their lives. With the help from other church members (ministers, bishops, other believers), the youths can find a place for God in their hearts and lives. In addition, they can learn from other people's experiences, share their own and hear feedback from others.
_~The Churche should offer educational programmes for young people to teach them how to be good, faithful people in the future._
These programs should also provide information that they (youths) cannot find at school or home.
~Church role in youths development should not end with just providing important knowledge and guidance. It should also provide the youth with all forms of support. The support can come from anyone within the church and take on any form. It can be spiritual, financial, moral, social, or any other form of help that the youth might need.
As young people are quite a vulnerable transitional group, they should have all the support they can get in their complicated journey towards adulthood.
~Investing in today’s youths is necessary in growing the body of Christ.
~ The church can also introduce youth ministry, which can help teach the young people various things about Christ and life in general; as it is often said that, “majority of christians today came to know Christ at some point in their formative years (youthful age).
~ The church should serve as a role model: In a fast paced and changing world like this, young people need role models who will help steer them in the right direction; and this is where the church comes in.
As stated earlier, the young people of today are looking for role models, and if the church is not able to provide them with the sort of role models who will help them in modelling their lives after Christ, they will naturally gravitate towards musicians, athletes and other celebrities to fill the void of role models. “Discipleship is not about programming but a modelled relationship with Jesus Christ. Our young people do not need adults who act like kids but adults who care enough to open up their lives for them to see Christianity at work.
**You may be shocked and surprised at the number of young people who are in pain, burdened, broken, disoriented and suffering. Disrupted* *homes, loneliness and guilt seem to be the norm among the young people of today. They are therefore looking for healing and hope and as a church, if we are to make an impact in the lives of these hurting souls, then we have to offer hope and healing to them, and be the place of comfort at all times.*
~ Regular Assignments to the youths, this the church should do.
The saying that, they are the future leaders is presently a cliché. The reason is that, we say it but we do not walk the walk. We do often underestimate the intelligence of our young people. They have a wealth of knowledge that we should strive to tap into. Engaging them gives them a sense of responsibility. It makes them look forward to each day and also gives them a sense of accomplishment after the project they are working on is done. Paul in the book of 1Timothy told young Timothy that he ‘should not let anyone despise him because he is a youth. This is what we often do. We despise our young people thinking they have nothing to offer whereas the opposite is rather the truth.
Being smart and astute, they can easily see through our facade if we start to micro or remote-manage them.
They(youths) will come with questions and it is in asking these questions that they learn. The church should not feel intimidated when our young people seek knowledge. The last 10 years has seen an increase in availability of knowledge and young people of today are desperately in search for the truth. it is therefore important that we make God and the Church relevant in the lives of our children and youths.
The assignment or responsibility has to be challenging. It should not be too difficult that it will scare them neither should it be too easy that, they can do without relying on the strength of God and not feel a sense of accomplishment.
~ Though the youths seem to lack the moral compass to guide their lives;the role of the church is to help transform the lives of young people into that of Christ.
They are looking for guides and mentors who themselves are seeking to know God. It is out of the overflow of the lives of the matured members that the youths will be mentored and guided.
~Teaching young people in the church to grow in their relationship with the Lord prepares them to serve Christ in all they do. As a result, this nurtures the congregation and allows the church to flourish.
CONCLUSION
It is therefore very important that as a church, we should strive to seek God and also model a Christ centered environment for our children and young people to grow in.
SHALOM!