Oak Hill Baptist Church © 2008-2009

Apparently our society has decided to remain immature.

 

A recent article in Christianity Today by Shane Hipps identifies the internet as one culprit. “We get locked in so much information, and the inability to sort that information meaningfully limits our capacity to understand. The last stage of knowledge is wisdom. But we are miles from wisdom because the Internet encourages the opposite of what creates wisdom – stillness, time, and inefficient things like suffering. On the Internet, there is no such thing as waiting; there is no such thing as stillness. There is a constant churning.

 

A new book, The Divine Commodity by Skye Jethani, points to our consumer based, or desire-based, economy. “Disney wants children, the people most susceptible to desire inducing ads, to make the spending decisions for the family, and they want adults to continue behaving like children. The ideal consumer remains a child from the womb to the tomb.”

 

Secular journalist Mark Steyn suggests a third cause, big government. “When the state ‘gives’ you plenty – when it takes care of your health, takes care of your kids, takes care of your elderly parents, takes care of every primary responsibility of adulthood – it’s not surprising that the citizenry cease to function as adults: Life becomes a kind of extended adolescence.”

 

Daniel Taylor, an English professor at Bethel College has observed immaturity in the students around him. He gave this advice in a letter to his daughter, published in Letters to My Children: “You will have won half the battle if you actually wait to marry a man – instead of one of the many boys (of all ages) who are walking down the aisles these days.”

 

No one can perfectly “read” society at any given time, but these observations have the ring of truth about them. Recently deceased Michael Jackson, one of the pop icons of generation X, seems a good representative of the trend. As a wealthy adult he built a million dollar home called “Neverland,” in his desire to escape the demands of maturity.

 

How different this is from genuine Christianity. The Bible constantly warns us of the pain experienced by everyone in this sinful world (Romans 8:22). While Christ died to take away the sting of sin (1 Corinthians 15:54,55), our Lord purposely uses the trials of life to mature us, to transform us into his image (James 1:2,3). Viewing life as one extended “Neverland” or “Adventureland” or “Disney World” is a sure way to lose your life now and forever.

 

Foolishly many who claim to be Christian have adopted a mindset only slightly different in that they expect God to deliver. We might call their lifestyle “Six Flags Over Jesus.” Worship is transformed into a stage show with semi-pros giving a polished performance. Short term mission trips are just one of the rides in the theme park. Ministry to others is taken on if it is “fun” without a long term commitment. Gone are the days when someone would take the 5th/6th grader Sunday school class for ten years straight, completely enjoying the opportunity to mold a whole generation of new Christians. (“Oh, and by the way, what’s Sunday school?”).

 

Think of it this way, especially you who are mature in Christ. Your grandson wants to show you his new skill learned, tying his shoe. After you give him sufficient praise for this accomplishment, he wants to instruct you in the fine art of shoe tying. Then he gets irate when you patiently explain that you have better things to do.