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Introduction
The Sponsors
Evangelistic Effort?
The Artists
Newsboys
Relient K
MxPx
Brian Littrell
KJ-52
Plumb
House Of Heroes
The Afters
Nothing More
The Jonas Brothers
Rocfish
The Speakers
Steve Baldwin
Justin Lookadoo
Paul Colman
Conclusion
Introduction
According to their website the Revelation Generation Music Festival is
“an annual gathering of a community of believers from all over our world. People of all kinds, children seniors, various ethnicities and backgrounds converge on Revelation Farms in Central New Jersey for a day of fellowship, worship, and entertainment. We bring in the finest Christian bands in the world such as The Newsboys, Relient K, MXPX, Salvador, KJ-52, Plumb, House of Heroes, Brian Littrell of the Backstreet Boys and more. Speakers include Stephen Baldwin and Duffy Robbins. In addition festival attendees will enjoy an extreme games demonstration, worship tent, vender area, children’s activities and much more”. (Emphasis Added)
Which takes place takes place on the grounds of Revelation Farms, (140 acres in Frenchtown, Hunterdon County, NJ) on September the 2nd 2006.
According to them Revelation Generation also
“offers a unique mix of music, seminars, worship, games, activities and opportunities that will explore the arts and the lifestyle of our youth. It will refresh and inspire. Engaging artists, speakers and worship leaders, grounded in the word and inspired by the Spirit, will lead the events. Rev Gen offers them the chance to fellowship with a diverse family of believers. They will also have a chance to discover the many organizations that make up our global Christian community and see what it means to be a part of it. Of course, if you know of young people who have not yet chosen to walk with Christ, this is a great way to introduce them to Him”. (Emphasis Added)
They boast that they are
“strategically located between two of the top 10 markets for Gospel music: New York and Philadelphia.”
And that
Newspapers such as The New York Times, The N.Y. Post, The Philadelphia Inquirer and USA Today have featured stories on the [Christian Music] industry.
Magazines such as Forbes, Time, Esquire and O: The Oprah Magazine have covered Gospel music.
T.V Networks such as ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, UPN, WB, MTV, VH1 and others have featured performances by Christian artists or played Christian music.
The Sponsors
The Revelation Generation also seems to rely on sponsors which include Chevrolet, Honda, JC Penney, Target and Sony Playstation.
In order to convince corporations of the value of one of the level of sponsorship (the highest level, Platinum, costs $5000.00 plus) they state that ..
“Millions of consumers are Gospel music buyers who comprise a major buying force in today’s economy….”
Lets not forget that the company in question can also
“Reinforce their brand image with a loyal Christian audience”, “use the Rev Gen logo for promotional needs” and “Exhibit booth space at the festival”
I am not sure how much more commercial it can get but, to be perfectly fair they also mention that sponsors can
“Participate in a powerful evangelistic effort”
Evangelistic Effort?
I am not quite sure why Honda would want to do so, but lets leave that as it may be. A powerful evangelistic effort huh??? Okay. Sounds good. Sounds really really good. So wanting to hear some more about this dynamite effort I looked around some more. A fairly detailed inspection of their site revealed hundreds of details about every aspect of the festival.. from accommodation and sponsorship to the artists and promotional items.
However I was unable to find a single reference to the one we are supposed to be disciples of.. Jesus. Gosh! And here I was under the impression that it was pretty much all about Him. Nor did I find so much as an oblique reference to the topic we are supposed to be evangelizing about.. Salvation! Guess the “powerful evangelistic effort” didn’t get off to a flying start on the web site. I suppose all the effort is being saved up for Labour Day.
A section of the site called Prayer & Evangelism carried what may be almost the only vaguely positive sign … They talk about Prayer Walks, which they say are “a wonderful way to prepare the grounds for receiving the presence of God during the concert”. What’s a Prayer Walk anybody?
I must not forget to mention that there was one video clip on the site which was advertised as “interactive experience into the spiritual walk of people just like you. And promised to “speak to your heart and refresh your soul”. The video turned out to be a few minutes of someone babbling on and on about the beauty and splendour of the galaxy (caused by gases) accompanied by and endless array of NASA like pictures. The video ended with a short declaration of how God was the author of all this. While I quite agree with the conclusion I was left quite short of my ‘soul being refreshed’.
So having exhausted most of the site resources I turned my attention to the stars of the show.. the artists. At this stage I would like to make it very very clear that this critique is NOT about the style of music, which has nothing to do with the reasons for this article.. In fact I am not particularly fond of what most western church goers call the ‘great hymns’ of the church. [See Footnote] However the very essence of Rock .. loud, abrasive.
I do not doubt for a moment that at least some [if not all] these people are probably perfectly sincere in what they do. I also do not doubt that many, if not most of them are probably very nice and somewhat talented people. Unfortunately the nicest and most sincere of people are all too often sincerely wrong.
Most modern Christians do not seem to have a clue as to what Christianity is about. Our evil day has brought with it the most virulent apostasy and crass Biblical illiteracy. Look in any direction and you will be brought face to face with the sad spectacle of insipid, good-for-nothing Christians, a church that has been hopelessly infiltrated by the world/big business and a spineless sold out clergy. ‘Christian’ music and musicians have fared no better with a style that most often closely apes the more decadent side of secular rock, and with lyrics that are either shallow, confusing, doctrinally errant, or even blatantly unbiblical. If you comb the spectrum of so called Christian Music you will (once in a blue moon, run across a few verses that sound almost Biblical. I say almost simply because many of these are doctrinally incorrect. [See Section God and Worship]
And please do not write me any silly e-mails about being judgmental. No Christian.. let me say that again… NO CHRISTIAN would ever sing absurd and and highly suggestive songs about Catholic girls taking off their dresses, deep throat, and asking a girl to sleep with you.
Remember the Command of the Lord….“be ye holy; for I am holy”
See Section Holiness and Overcoming Sin
Also bear in mind that God’s "tool" for reaching lost young people (or any people) with the gospel is not music — any music! God’s "tool" for reaching people with the gospel is "preaching the word of god". Music was used for praise and worship in the Bible. Although rarely heard of, this does not exclude the possibility that someone can be saved through music . However the Gospel message would have to be very clearly presented in the lyrics in order for someone to be saved through music. This simply does not happen.
‘Nuff Said.
The Critique
Please Note…. Tongue stuck firmly in cheek through most of the following.
The Revelation Generation site advertises a line up of the artists and speakers who will be featured on Sept 2nd. The first on the list is
Newsboys
A band that has sold more than six million records and been nominated for three Grammy awards. While they seem to have done some good by building homes for the poor in Baja, Mexico, their site also talks about them “playing pubs in Australia” where “the crowds did not care whether the music was gospel,  pop, reggae or blues - only if it was good. And if it wasn't, beer bottle missiles would soon get the message across”.
They have also played in the front of 400,000 people and the Pope; in Paris, Holland, Germany” and to “Muslims in Morocco and to a new age festival in Israel”.
The official fan club of the newsboys is called The Breakfast Club, where for a mere $49.95 you can get exclusive T-shirts, inflatable drum sticks, best seats for special shows and a great package of newsboys stuff in the mail. Not forgetting the Printed autographed 8"x10" Glossy Photo. Wow! And of course I found no mention of the Messiah on either their site or in the lyrics of the 20-30 songs I read. Now while I have little idea what this band sang to the Moroccan Muslims, Jewish New Agers or soused Australians. I hope it wasn’t Live In Stereo. But there again it hardly matters.. after scanning so many of Newsboys lyrics, it is a safe bet that those Moroccan Muslims are no more aware of who Jesus is, than they were before the concert. And I am sure the New Agers Have cheerfully gone back to doing whatever it is that New Agers do.
This field guide's
Got no soul
Digging for the sacred
In a man-made hole
The soil gets harder
The shovel won't behave
I just dug myself
Into a six foot grave
I need a new dimension
Got to Supersize
A Jacobean ladder
To a parallel prize
The walk's by faith
The sight lines lie
How'm I gonna tag along
With one tin ear
And one glass eye
Well I...
Lead vocalist Peter Furler says his favorite song on the album, “Devotion”, is The Orphan’. He says “ It’s really about – ‘what is the church for?’ …. the song is about restoring the desolate inheritances and like handing something great onto the next generation. And that’s really being a father to the fatherless. But it’s more than just orphans out there who don’t have parents”.
I try to settle, but I just pass through
a rain dog, gypsy
a wandering Jew
all those homes were not ours
then I slept one night
in Abraham's field
and dreamt there was no moon
the night he died
counting stars
Selah
Not very many of the other lyrics made very much sense either, especially He Reigns which has the following lines…
its all gods children singing glory glory, hallelujah he reigns, he reigns
and all the powers of darkness, tremble at what they've just heard
cause all the powers of darkness, cant drown out a single word
There was a very accurate comment made on Slice of Laodicea’s RevGen Festival To Hit New Jersey by S.F. Baptist .. (one of the readers)
"the powers of darkness tremble" at the sound of Christians singing "He Reigns". This is nothing but pure charismatic "spiritual warfare" nonsense in lyrical form. Demons do not tremble at us doing anything; they are much more powerful than we are, and the only thing they fear is the judgment of God that awaits them. Besides, all this ecumenical-unity stuff that these musicians talk about is even worse than their rock music and worldly looks.
Here's a question to consider: If these rockers are SO concerned with reaching people AND with being committed Christians, why aren't they willing to compromise with those who oppose rock and try to find a middle ground? No, we mature Christians are always the legalistic and intolerant and narrow-minded ones, never the kids with their rebellious agenda.
The second group listed on Revelation Generation site was
Relient K
 One of their most popular songs is has the promising title of Who I Am Hates Who I've Been. However the promise begins and ends at the title. The lyrics say nothing about what (or rather who) caused the change or anything else of importance. In the song Poison Ivy are the incredibly senseless words.
In the Freezer,
Your words give me seizures,
And if we take a breather,
We'll break up and be hurt
According to a poll one of their most popular songs is Be My Escape, which is a classic example of incredibly bad theology. Note the words in Bold
I gotta get out of here
I’m stuck inside this rut that I fell into by mistake
I gotta get out of here
And I’m begging you, I’m begging you, I’m begging you to be my escape.
I fought you for so long I should have let you win
Oh how we regret those things we do
And all I was trying to do was save my own skin
But so were you
So were you.
Of course you can join the K Team and receive great prizes... CDs, video games and DVDs, T-shirts, hats and buttons and on and on Ad Nauseum. Just out of curiosity.. Don’t people ever have enough silly T-shirts?
Moving on to Number three…
MxPx
According to -Daniel Brantley of the Chattanoogan.com
“MXPX has undergone a punk rock revival, and Panic is the result. They stripped every bit of gimmick and artificial sweetener from their brand of West Coast Punk. I couldn't be happier with their effort, and neither could the thousands of punks who have been looking for a new battle cry to sing as they raise their banner and fists in the air."
Which probably says it all, but this is the title of an article on Crosswalk “MXPX Goes Back to Punk-Pop Beginning on "Panic".
Looking up the definition of punk rock is pretty revealing.
A loud fast moving form of rock music with crude and aggressive effects.
[simplythebest.net/music/glossary/music_glossary_p.html]
rock music with deliberately offensive lyrics expressing anger and social alienation; in part a reaction against progressive rock [wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn].
Adding fuel to the fire is some of their unashamedly ridiculous lyrics [Perhaps because ‘The KKK took someone’s baby away’. Take for example the song Barbie Girl
I'm a Barbie girl in a Barbie world
life in plastic, it's fantastic
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation
Or take this verse from My Boyfriends Back
My boyfriend's back, he's gonna save my reputation
(Hey-la, Hey-la My Boyfriend's back)
If I were you, I'd take a permanent vacation
(Hey-la, Hey-la My Boyfriend's back)
Hey, he knows I wasn't cheatin'
Now you're gonna get your beatin'
There wasn’t the slightest hint of Christianity in any of the more than 20 lyrics I scanned. I also regret having to admit that MxPx is from Bremerton, Washington.
Moving right along …brings us to
Brian Littrell
 While I could not find more than one or two of Brian’s lyrics At least the lyrics of In Christ Alone (a Dove-nominated track off WOW #1s ) stands head and shoulders above the rest.
In Christ alone do I glory
For only by His grace I am redeemed
For only His tender mercy
Could reach beyond my weakness to my need
And now I seek no greater honor in just to know Him more
And to count my gains but losses to the glory of my Lord
However Brian Littrell is a member of the Backstreet boys… So how do they reconcile In Christ Alone with some of the other trash they have come out with???
And from Catholic School Girls Rule
In the class she's taking notes
Just how deep is my throat
Mother Mary don't you know
She's got eyes like Marylin Monroe
Catholic school girls rule...
The good books says we must suppress
The good books says we must confess
But who cares what the good books says
Cause now she's taking off her dress
How About One Backstreet Boy Is Gay
we are one fire,
we have desires,
but one is that way,
one backstreet boy is gay,
but we don't want to be mean
since now he's a queen
don't ask please
which back street boy is gay,
tell me who?
ain't saying that its AJ,
tell me who?
The song ends with the reassuring words
Number Five is
KJ-52
"A white dude from the suburbs and inner city of Florida doing Christian rap and driving a minivan".  While this ‘white dude’s’ lyrics are no where near as bad as some of the other artists listed on this page, they yet leave a lot to be desired.
How’s this for a clear Gospel presentation..
ya back on the scene crispy and clean
you can get with that plus the gat and cream
or you can get with this and let Christ reign supreme
but now the choice is still yours can you see what I mean?
you see we seek like in abundance
all right Yahweh came through and then gave me substance
overflowing we let it spill on the mic
embrace the truth and then we keep it focused right
Or the Lyrics from Video Games
I'll take ya back like Galaga and Atari
I was falling into junk like Pitfall Harry
My Life was game over thats when Christ saved me
So now its bonus round ever since then he changed me
It was scary how my life was run over like frogger
I was down to one life and didn't have another
But now i'm super like the mario brothers
Pulling stunts off like tony hawk pro skater
So here's the story ain't legend of Zelda
Its about Christ who was the space invader
Hit sin like arruken from street fighter
Came from heaven now just to die for ya fella
That's why he paid the price for ya sins
On top of that he just wants to run ya life like the sims
You have to love this one.. In the song Jesus, the Great Commission is compared to Spiderman in some way.. Never mind..I’ll never figure it out so read it for yourself...
Skip the cris i'd rather sip the living aqua
Cuz ever since i tasted it there was no need to bother
So the father sent his son to the slaughter
And he's the lion king but his name aint mufassa its
The great physician he's my doctor
The great commission is reason why i gots ta
Keep slinging it out like Peter Parker
And keep holding the mic up to my mouth like Bob Barker
I don't even try to hide it
See why fight it see he's the reason i'm excited
But why is the body of Christ chopped and divided
Man if you like beef go peep the atkins diet
Every person is invited
All the way from the best to the worst one it's provided
That God will turn a messed up life around like mine did
Open your eyelids it's time that you recognized that its
There is one glaring lack in the above words that speak of Christ who hit sin and everyone being invited somewhere or the other... there is never any mention of what people have to do.. and in case you have forgotten, the Bible does speak of sin and repentance.. More than once if I remember right. [See Sin and Salvation]
Coming in at Number six
Plumb
 Unfortunately it would take better eyes than mine to read much of the text on her website but I did glean that Matt Bronleewe, an original member of Jars of Clay co-authored many of her songs. Figures!
Drugstore Jesus Lyrics
Take the blame for saving lives
You've got the sunset in your eyes
And you've got glory on your mind
Your good intentions are hard to find
You're a drugstore jesus
The miracle is gone
You're a drugstore jesus
A saint for everyone
You've thrown your soul away
All your gold turns to dust
And all your masses lose your trust
This grand illusion, this planned confusion
This substitution is tainted love
By now I am getting very very tired of inane pseudo Christian lyrics and wonder if it worth struggling through the next few bands. Maybe tomorrow.
House Of Heroes
A.J. Babcock.. The chief lyricist is quoted as saying “We felt like being that open with our  social/spiritual commentary would also be one of our biggest contributions to our audience." And then we have a song called Vampires. Why am I not surprised?
Don’t bother to show integrity
It never sells on the market
Jade all the World Jade all the World down
Don’t Bust with creativity
The never asked for honest
Take all the Heart Take all the Heart out
As an aside they have a posting on their site which reads
Hey lovelies!!!
I can't tell you how wonderful it is to get all these Birthday comments! You are all so wonderful. We want to be real friends with all of you, rather than "inter-friends". And we will get a chance in 2006!!! Looking foward to it. (misspelling theirs)
How old are these guys anyway?
Which brings us to
The Afters
 the Texas-based rock quartet won the MTVu 2005 "Streaming Woodie" Award! Josh Havens, guitarist and vocalist is quoted on the Revelation Generation site as saying
“ the album is about running the race of life. At the end of the race, there are winners and losers. With these songs, we explored a utopian outlook where everyone wins and everyone lives for something greater than their own desires”. (Emphasis Added)
Which makes examining the lyrics of the music completely unnecessary.
Next in line is...
Nothing More
Some of the comments about Nothing More are
One critic compares their music to “skinny dipping in wasabi”
“Simply put, Nothing More is Rock Meets Bruce Lee” (Alex Lozano, CEO, United Music Alliance).
“No one out there is doing what Nothing More does night after night. No one matches their sound, and no one is even touching the caliber of sheer entertainment that Nothing More delivers on stage” (Taylor Lee, SBC Productions
Their site is presently non-functional but I briefly checked out their page on myspace.com. Not being a registered member of myspace, I was unable to access one link, which carried the fascinating slogan
"Progressive Pop with a Nipple Twist" Nuff Said!
Number ten on the list
The Jonas Brothers
Quoted as saying “There's been heartbreaks and there's been crushes so we know how it feels  and can write about it," explains Kevin, but overall, the songs of the Jonas Brothers celebrate the joy of living and encourage people to feel good”
Encourage People to feel good?? But there again these guys look like they are about sixteen.
Their site carries more blather about signing their new CD at various malls and special album release parties at Planet Hollywood. And then there are the lyrics of What I Go To School For...
“That's what I go to school for Even though it is a real bore You can call me crazy I know that she loves me That's what I go to school for Even though it is a real bore
Girlfriends I've had plenty But she's the one that I need That's what I go to school for That's what I go to school for”
And I am What I am
I am what I am
I can't help myself
And if you don't like it
Get with somebody else
I'll never change my ways
It's not a phase
This is how it is right up until my dying day
Has anyone told these guys about Being Born Again??
Lastly (Whew!) we have
Rocfish
Is just about the only site so far that even mentions Jesus.
Rocfish Tells us on their site that The Revelation Generation Festival is “a movement that started centuries ago with Christ and continues today”.
They are kidding Right?
The Speakers
If these people were speaking for a living at any other venues they and what they say and do would be a matter of supreme indifference to me. However when they are featured speakers at what is claimed will be “a powerful evangelistic effort”. And when they will also be speaking to some of the most vulnerable among us… young people. When they have claim to be Christians and preach a Christian message ..then I sit up and pay attention.
Steve Baldwin
Quote from www.livinit.com
“if you’ve ever wanted to do something to help other people, you know how Stephen Baldwin felt when he saw the twin towers in new York city come down on September 11, 2001. that day changed his life and made him realize he had something important to say to people”. (Emphasis Added).
"So many kids today are lost and searching," says Baldwin. "We believe Livin’ It will connect with them, entertain them, and get them thinking about living their lives for Jesus Christ."
The short video clip resembles the nonsense put out by M tv and is pretty much centered around skateboarding. I guess the only way any of the Biblical characters would have got in if they had been skating their way around Jerusalem. The people who weren’t with it walked or rode donkeys..
However the site also says
Livin It is a pair of skate films (Livin It and Livin It LA) produced and directed by Baldwin in partnership with Kevin Palau of PalauFest Productions.
It's also a tour that travels the country with some of the best action sports athletes in the nation.
Livin It is even a new clothing line for skaters and a book series.
And
Baldwin's new "Lord's Lounge", a customized truck that the actor is driving cross country in support of Livin It LA and his new "Livin It" line of books and graphic novels”
"This was an amazing evening," said Executive Producer Kevin Palau. "To have a totally packed theater, with everyone from kids to grandparents enjoying what we believe is a world-class action sports film with a clear Gospel message, was everything we'd prayed for and dreamed of."
At the close of the screening, skateboard professional and pastor Jay Haizlip took the stage with an invitation to make a decision for Christ. Several dozen people came forward, with many others standing or raising their hands.
And I guess they believe that people standing or raising their hands means they just got saved. Let me quote Leonard Ravenhill
“If you add all the lists of people saved, everybody in America, the whole population has been saved and filled with the Holy Ghost about six times over in the last ten years. And yet we are as dumb and as dead and as damned as we were when we started off”. (Baptism of Fire.)
There is a LOT more to being saved and staying saved than the Sinner’s Prayer.
Justin Lookadoo
When I read the following I hoped that at least the guy with the spiked blonde hair would have something sensible to say..
“Totally awesome! Justin is dealing with the hard topics with a direct approach in a language that kids can understand. . .he is tough. . .funny. . .and so biblical.” - Josh McDowell, Speaker and Author (Emphasis Added)
Ah well! I guess there was a time when one could rely on Josh McDowell.
Justin Lookadoo’s site is about Justin Lookadoo, being extremely stupid most of the time. Under one animated sequence (with him going through a series of gyrations that is quite likely to end in a herniated disc) is the following…
“Not quite sure what Justin is doing here but we caught it on film. We think he is walking, this might be his he-male strut which works on some women. Who knows?” (Emphasis Added)
[His favourite movie is Shrek, so I guess one can expect no more]
No wonder he appeals to young people.. Here is Justin’s 20 minute pep talk on dating. While I am sure many teens need to learn some wisdom about dating, it seems to me that if they are taught how about some wisdom about Salvation, hell, sin and holiness, dating won’t be too much of a problem. The burning need of this eleventh hour is to save people. (http://www.ambassadoragency.com/display_client_videos.cfm/cmid/484.. Link is now obsolete).
This is the only reference to God and Christ I could find on his site. To the question of whether he was a Christian he replied..
YES. I have been since I was a kid. But only recently did I really get it. I grew up thinking that it was a bunch of rules and really boring stuff. But I am figuring out that Christians should be the coolest, edgiest people out there. We truly should have NO FEAR. Because Jesus handled that at the cross. My challenge to every Christian out there is to get off your butt, quit staring at the DVD w/surround sound, and push live over the edge. (Emphasis Added).
I wonder which part of the Bible he got that from. Oh I know.. Peter was so cool he was crucified upside down and Paul. Hey Paul was even cooler! After all how many people are shipwrecked, beaten with rods, stoned, cold hungry and thirsty.
Justin I greatly fear that you still haven’t got it! [Also See The Meaning of The Cross]
Paul Colman
His site gives us the good news that he
“is now a member of newsboys - joining the band as guitarist, backing vocalist and songwriter. The new line up performed their first show together at Atlanta (Jan 13)” Back to the Muslims in Morocco are we?
Conclusion
One attendant of last year's inaugural music festival, Micah Jacobus, called it [The Revelation Generation Festival] a great way to introduce unsaved people to Christ through music.
"The concert itself was a great way to get unsaved people to hear that Christian music isn't just boring music with a choir; Christian music is the same as secular music except that instead of bringing people down or talking about obscene subjects, they talk about God and all He's done for them," said Jacobus on the Rev Gen website. (www.christianpost.com/article/20060605/5940.htm)
Unfortunately Jacobus has not being paying attention to the lyrics of many of these bands . At best they are vague, shallow, confusing or doctrinally errant. At worst they are crude, immoral and Unbiblical.
SFBaptist [Mentioned above] also made the following very pertinent observation….
“Never anything about what God has done, never anything about repentance and believing the Gospel. It's always "me myself and I" and all the self-centered sho gazing that goes along with this kind of event. Some spiky-headed 40 year old trying to pass for 20 talking like a surfer dude: "Gahd is Ahsum, Duuude!" He'll make you happy and your life will have purpose and you will get along with your boyfriend... never mind telling the kids to go home and stop sinning and playing footsie with the world.
“Here's a question to consider: If these rockers are SO concerned with reaching people AND with being committed Christians, why aren't they willing to compromise with those who oppose rock and try to find a middle ground? No, we mature Christians are always the legalistic and intolerant and narrow-minded ones, never the kids with their rebellious agenda”
Ingrid Schlueter expresses it perfectly in Nothing But The Wind.. (Lengthy quote)
“Since including references to two Christian rock groups in one of my articles, outraged members of the rising generation have launched a fierce defense of the bands in question. The email equivalent of katyusha rockets [Details] have been landing in my in box and in the comments section at the rate of about three an hour for days now. Many, if not most, are angry. "You guys are pathetic. Get a life. Shut this site down!" That sort of thing. Others are somewhat pitiful. "I love you all, really, but ZombiGutz ministers to me. You're hurting my feelings by saying this stuff." Others play the age card. "You're out of touch. You don't have a clue about our generation!! Do your homework." (A little homework on me would reveal that my husband and I have raised three young adult males currently aged 20, 19, and 18 with two more younger children growing up as we speak. We are highly aware of youth culture.)
The one thought that repeatedly came to me while looking over the emails was, "if only this loyalty and energy would appear when Jesus Christ is blasphemed." These kids are fiercely, energetically loyal to their gods of rock and roll. They will nearly riot in defense of their style of music, down to defending a Christian band with the idiotic name, ZombieGutz. But ask them to put down their idols for the sake of the true Gospel, ask them to surrender their brand of music and be separate from the world? Not a chance. They claim they can have both their rock, which was birthed in rebellion, and their God. An idol is anything you refuse to put down for the sake of Jesus Christ. An idol is where you run for comfort when you're hurting, it is where your money goes, it is where your loyalty lies.
Sadly, I have seen none of this passion and loyalty and singleness of mind in young people when it comes to opposing the false doctrine entering the church. There is little zeal for truth, for righteousness or a defense of the faith once delivered to the saints. Where is this ferocious loyalty when it comes to our Savior, Jesus Christ? Young people can have a powerful testimony and lead by example in a holy life for the Lord. But the emphasis today isn't on holiness, it's on being ''cool'' for Jesus. Most teens believe they are defending Christ when they defend the Christian rock idol of their choice. Their rebellion has so blinded them to this that they truly believe that by defending their music heroes they are engaging in apologetics. The layers of biblical ignorance and illiteracy are so deep now that it brings to mind the verse, "When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?"
The cause of this illiteracy? Children have been catechized on Veggie Tales and not the Word. Our son's senior high school Bible class was shown the Jonah Veggie Tale video and the students were told to "take notes". These were young adults! With all the riches of Scripture, the teacher had nothing better to offer than a cartoon video with dancing vegetables. Few today have memorized anything of the Scriptures--a task made all the harder by the plethora of Bible versions. Imagine memorizing out of the Gangsta Rap Street Bible or the Scratch and Sniff New Testament. You get the picture. What poses as youth ministry in many churches is merely the adulation of the world and the parents don't know enough to object. ''Just keep them off the streets and off drugs,'' they say. Church has become little more than a YMCA. They have no idea that in many cases, after years of taking their kids to "church", they have fashioned hardened worldlings with an evangelical coating. It's really a brittle shell, sort of like those the dip cones have from Dairy Queen. There is no substance underneath because the parents, my generation, are as Scripturally impoverished as their own children.
These teenagers break my heart. They have been lied to about who God is so often by their pastors and youth leaders that they no longer will hear a sound word from the Bible. The enemy has stalked through our churches and caused unspeakable destruction. You can almost hear the wind whistling through the broken walls of these places. That's what our children inherit when we fail to teach them God's Word--nothing but wind”.
Quotes
If you add all the lists of people saved, everybody in America, the whole population has been saved and filled with the Holy Ghost about six times over in the last ten years. And yet we are as dumb and as dead and as damned as we were when we started off. (Baptism of Fire. Leonard Ravenhill)
Christianity of old quenched the flames of oppression, lit the fires of freedom, and led two continents out of the darkness of paganism. Today's Christianity is known for bingo games, softball leagues, and milquetoast preachers. Christianity of old toppled the Roman Empire. Today's Christianity cannot even rid the nation of legal abortion. (Chuck Baldwin. Christians No Different From The World)
“The chief danger of the 20th century will be religion without the Holy Ghost, Christianity without Christ, forgiveness without repentance, salvation without regeneration, politics without God, Heaven without Hell.” (General Booth. Salvation Army) What better description of today’s Gospel?
God forgive us for what we have become.
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