Rethink: Gen Z and Jesus, Gospels through a Middle Eastern Lens, and Faithfulness over Fame

This month lets question what is happening with Gen Z and Jesus, explore the gospels through a middle eastern lens, and ponder what it looks like to seek faithfulness over fame.

Rethinking Faith: September 2023

Welcome to the September issue of Rethinking Faith. Today we will question the movement of Jesus within Gen Z while wondering how we can get involved, explore the gospels through a middle eastern lens, and ponder the importance of pursuing faithfulness over fame.

Is the Church Ready to Disciple Gen Z?

“God knew what we needed to do and helped us do it. It happened because of Jesus. Everything happening here right now, and everything that will happen is because of Jesus. Oh, what a beautiful name it is.”

Alexandra Presta, Asbury University Graduate 2023

In early February 2023, a typical Wednesday morning chapel service at Asbury University lingered on. A few students stayed behind to worship, pray, and confess sin. A few hours later the gathering had grown rather than wrapping up. Later dubbed The Outpouring, spontaneous, student-led services continued around the clock for the next few weeks and attracted visitors from around the United States and across the world. Similar but smaller movements began at various colleges around the country.

Photo by Ismael Paramo

While the world looked on in curiosity, some Christians claimed the movement was a revival while others dismissed it as mere emotionalism. Intrigued, I followed what was happening closely and spoke about it quite a bit on my Instagram reels.

Last week Jennie Allen shared on social media about an experience she had at Auburn University in Alabama. After a special service called “Unite Auburn” where Jennie and others spoke and the Passion worship band played, a student asked to be baptized. Jennie extended the invitation to the gathered crowd and with thousands of their peers watching, celebrating, and illuminating the night with the headlights of their cars, hundreds of students proclaimed their faith in Jesus by being baptized in a nearby pond.

These are not isolated instances.

In a season when many of us—who are decades older than these college students—feel cynical and jaded by our Christian culture and church experiences, these young adults are somehow finding Jesus in fresh, new ways.

Photo by Hudson Hintze

Gen Z seems to be hungry for simple truth about Jesus, and God seems to be meeting them in the place of their deep desire (which is so typical of Him). I love this.

I’ve recently begun to help lead a new 18-20 somethings ministry at my church. My heart for these young adults is bursting at the seams. They came to a kick-off bonfire at my house last night, and it was just so satisfying to sit with them around the fire. They want real truth and they can see through the fake junk and religious lies.

But here is my question:

As God moves among this younger generation (like He did in the 70s with the Jesus People), will the church be ready to disciple them? I look at the corporate evangelical church, and if I’m honest, it feels a bit pathetic.

People are fighting about fringe topics as though they were on the same level as salvation or the existence of God. False gospels, Christian nationalism, and religious moralism have gone mainstream. Abuse, hunger for power, and unethical behavior is rampant.

Are we ready to help train Gen Z in their faith? Or are they going to be the ones who lead us back to a simple belief in Jesus, help us to find genuine community, and refocus us on the core doctrines of the faith?

The real God never stops moving, never stops seeking, and never stops drawing the broken to Himself. But I have to wonder if the corporate evangelical church—like the religious Pharisees before them—are going to miss Him as He seeks and saves the lost without us.

“My intent is to contribute new perspectives from the Eastern tradition that have rarely, if ever, been considered outside the Arabic-speaking Christian world.” Kenneth E. Bailey, Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes

After sharing my new perspective on Middle Eastern Jesus from the Bible study Jesus & Women by Kristi McLelland last year, I had a friend recommend the book Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes by Kenneth E. Bailey. It has not disappointed. (And it’s currently 44% off on Amazon.)

From understanding the birth of Jesus in a clear and non-Western way (he wasn’t born alone in a barn because some mean innkeeper wouldn’t give Joseph a hotel room), to new insights into the Beatitudes (which were horribly misapplied by my cult), I’ve had my eyes opened in each chapter.

Kenneth Bailey grew up in the Middle East and he uses Middle Eastern scholars’ and theologians’ thoughts as he explains the various stories and parts of the gospels. Many of the people Bailey references have never had their works translated into English so they are not accessible to most Western Bible or seminary students. No wonder we’ve gotten so much wrong over the years. Although it looks and feels like an academic book, the language is accessible and the chapters aren’t intimidatingly long.

I’ve been talking about needing a new perspective on Scripture for a while now. Just because many of us are rejecting the way the Bible has been presented to us over the years, doesn’t mean that we need to reject Scripture as a whole. It also doesn’t mean that we get to assign meaning or intent according to how we feel. What we do need is something like this book to put Scripture into perspective. We need people to show us what the culture looked like and how the ideas connect together. We need them to give us an accurate picture of Jesus of Nazareth and the God He came to reveal.

“No one is built to be famous.
We’re meant to be faithful.” ~ Alexis de Weese

A friend who works in publishing posted this on her Instagram the other day as she spoke into the franticness that want-to-be-authors often feel as they try to build their platform (a nice word for audience, number of followers, etc.). The influencer era is a strange one to live in. Some people can literally make money by becoming famous on social media, creating content, and making a name for themselves. But social media isn’t real. And the pressure to be awesome, noticeable, and current can be all consuming and soul crushing.

Photo by Brevitē

I was encouraged to hear Lex talking about faithfulness. Staying true to the beauty that you want to create. Taking time to care for yourself rather than constantly pushing, making, and striving. Respecting the humanity of those who may gather around us rather than seeing them as a number or a ladder rung to climb.

As you may know, I’ve refused to play the game the last few years. I write when I can, sometimes I’m on social media every day and other times it’s more like once a week. My podcast season is late starting this year because of real life (but Season 9 starts tonight). I published my book Religious Rebels with a local hybrid company instead of fighting for a shot with a known publisher. I care about you and not my numbers. It’s good. It feels amazing.

We don’t have to be famous. We don’t have to be well-known. We just need to be faithful to the callings that God has placed on our lives. Live into the giftings and passions we’ve been given. Show up for the real people we know and love. Be in the moments for which we were created. That feels doable!

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Thanks for taking a moment to rethink some of our religious traditions and beliefs. I know that it can be scary to deconstruct and reconstruct our faith, but finding the real Jesus is absolutely worth it. As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts, questions, or comments.

You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, my website, and on my podcast Looking for the Real God. I’d love to connect with you on any of these places!

You can also order an autographed copy of my book, Religious Rebels: Finding Jesus in the Awkward Middle Way by clicking on the button below.