Kingdom Glimpses - Biola University

KINGDOM
They came from all over the world. They will go out to all of the world.
They seek to build the kingdom, not a fortress. They are Biola in 2009.
GLIMPSES
In the 2007 book, unChristian, Biola alumnus and Barna
Group president David Kinnaman (’96) presents a startling
array of statistics about the perceptions people have
of Christianity.
One of the most significant findings of the book’s
research is the report that among young outsiders, 84
percent say they personally know at least one committed
Christian, yet just 15 percent think the lifestyles of those
followers are significantly different from the norm.
At Biola, though, is this the case? At a time when Biola is
seeing record numbers of enrolled students — students
choosing to attend a university known for missions rather
than binge drinking and spiritual formation rather than
sexual awakening — the statistics of unChristian don’t seem
totally applicable.
But if the Christian young people at Biola are different
than the “norm,” how and why is this the case? What in the
By Brett McCracken
lives of these current Biola students makes them different
than their non-Christian counterparts?
For several weeks this fall, Biola Magazine went to the
source, interviewing students of diverse backgrounds,
majors, interests and ages — both undergraduate and graduate
— to take the pulse of Biola in 2009.
It’s a student body that is focused outward, actively
seeking ways to make the world better and bring people
to Christ, as well as inward — striving to be an authentic,
transformed community of believers. They’re part of a
generation of Christians that is tired of being against
things and would rather live lives that are for something.
They are committed to a confident faith, less embattled
than empowered and motivated by building a kingdom
rather than defending a fortress.
They are spiritual entrepreneurs, dreaming of ways to
impact the world for Christ. This is what they’re all about.
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