I remember one of the first times I watched the sitcom South Park. It was funny. I knew instantly that it was a show I could get hooked on. Fortunately for me and my brain, as I watched a few more episodes there was one that shut down my viewing experience and desire to keep up with the new releases.
I don’t even remember the episode title, but I do remember the characters South Park introduced. One was Jesus. The way they portrayed Him was nothing like I had ever seen. In a sense they made Christ funny—sometimes even at His own expense. The fact that Christ was being portrayed in a humorous and in a sense mocking way, and that I chuckled, shook me as a young adolescent.
While I couldn’t articulate the exact reasons why that was not good, there was something in my spirit that shut the series down for me. Looking back, it’s obvious to me what the writers of South Park were doing with not only our Lord, but many other subject matters. Their aim was to influence. Their means was humor.
Don’t get me wrong, well-timed appropriate humor can be both useful and productive. However, humor that is not appropriate—according to a biblical standard—does more harm than we realize. In fact, this type of humor distorts our vision, and is insidious in its agenda.
Really, our perspectives have been shaped by more than humor. Consider for a moment one example such as the entertainment industry. How has movies, sitcoms, YouTube, Snap Chat—being brought into our living rooms, our smart phones, and ultimately our perspectives of people and even ourselves—influenced us?
Trueman, once again sheds light here. In reference to how the homosexual agenda slowly and surely gripped the emotions of the West, he states, “It is arguable—in fact, incontestable—that the eventual triumph of gay rights, in the form of gay marriage, was predicated not so much on “Blatant is Beautiful” as on reassuring images of gay domesticity such as those presented in sitcoms like Will and Grace.”[1] In other words, the insidious genius of the entertainment industry is akin to the weapon used by the Greeks to defeat Troy, the Trojan horse.
Thus, just by examining one example of the ubiquitous entertainment industry, we find ourselves in a global world more intrigued, more influenced, and more accepting of lifestyles contrary to Bible than ever before. This is not a naïve statement. We all know that sin has always existed post Genesis 3; however, the difference now is that its ability to mass spread its influence has never been as possible as it is today.
There are two pertinent studies that provide some insight to this argument. One study states that more than half of adolescents born between 1999 and 2015 (referred to as Gen Z) are spending four or more hours per day using screen media.[2] At the same time, another study stated that “abnormal users of smartphone in the adolescent age group are more at risk of severe psychopathological disorders such as problematic behaviors, somatic symptoms, attention deficits, depression, and aggression.”[3] All the while, these Gen Z adolescents also stated that their chief aim in life is their happiness.”[4] This line of research points out the paradoxical challenge facing not only Gen Z, but all Christians seeking to walk faithfully in biblical wisdom. While most Gen Z adolescents are succumbing to significant anxiety-causing hours on the smartphone every day, they still desire happiness above all things. This once again presents the question that this book seeks to address: What are the pre-college discipleship methods for cultivating biblical wisdom within Gen Z adolescents, and how is the Christian to train such individuals facing these pervasive worldly challenges every day?
We Need New Vision
My high school years were spent doing many things, but there is one that pertains to this context and is quite bizarre looking back. I can’t recall how many days I spent squinting at the chalkboard trying to read the teacher’s notes, but it was a lot. For some reason, in my youthful arrogance my choice was to squint and delay correcting my vision rather than wear glasses and see clearly. It was silly, but I persisted, nevertheless. I am not quite sure what finally prompted me to go to the optometrist, but I finally went, and it was a game-changer. Putting those glasses on for the first time was eye-opening—pun intended. Buds in the trees were noticed, signs on the road came into clear view, and I could finally read the chalkboard. It was incredible.
The reality is the temptation to walk around without a clear vision exists for Christians today. A shortsighted vision—as mentioned earlier—is often accepted as enough. Many fall into the trap of planning, preparing, and even praying at times, but with their Bibles closed. Vision is short-circuited when we close our Bibles. What this book is seeking to address then is the one thing I believe this generation needs. It is discipleship around the Word of God. It’s what prepares this next generation to build a life of true success. But we’re giving this next generation a world that will require more biblical wisdom to navigate its intriguing distractions than ever before.
Thus, our Bibles cannot be closed. We must open them. We must be men and women like Ezra who had set his heart to study, to practice, and to teach the Word in all the land (Ezra 7:10). Before we get to that point, we must first see how we got here.
[1] Trueman, 347.
[2] Kinnaman, Gen Z: The Culture, Beliefs and Motivations Shaping the Next Generation, 14.
[3] Dinesh J. Bhanderi, Yogita P. Pandya, and Deepak B. Sharma, “Smartphone Use and Its Addiction among Adolescents in the Age Group of 16-19 Years,” Indian Journal of Community Medicine 46, no. 1 (January 2021): 88, https://doi.org/10.4103/ijcm.IJCM_263_20.
[4] Kinnaman, Gen Z: The Culture, Beliefs and Motivations Shaping the Next Generation, 14.
— September 9, 2021