Covenanter Witness Vol. 86 - Rparchives.org

One in a series on evangelismConfronting YouthMemberBy Mr. Arlan Ramsayof Synod's Board of EvangelismIn recent years we have been hearing of the politicsof confrontation, and confrontation has been used as ameans of negotiation in areas other than politics. A groupof people will march to a government building or theoffice of a college or corportation president and present alist of demands, which may be described as nonnegotiable.This face to face interaction usually is intendedto bring about changes thought impossible toachieve by other means. There is a suggestion that thegroup is desperate and so is forced to this sort of coercion.Violence seems quite possible, and the risk of it isjustified by the urgency of the demands.We approach the suggested topic with this kind ofconfrontation in the background. We are of coursethinking of a Christian confrontation. Now all of us whohaye become new creatures in Christ are in fact ambassadorsfor Christ (II Cor. 5), standing face to face with arebellious and troubled world and responsible for confrontinglost persons with Christ. We also minister to ourfellow Christians by confronting them with the demands ofChrist. He has legitimate demands upon everyone, andthey are in fact non-negotiable. The changes they requireare certainly urgently needed, and there is truly no otherway to achieve these changes than by submitting to Christ(John 14:6). However, II Corinthians 5:20 gives no encouragementto coercion or violence. In bringing a wordof reconciliation we are to beseech a person to bereconciled to God. This passage evidently refers to unbelievers,but it is also important for believers to confrontone another with the truth, "speaking the truth in love."So far we have compared the confrontation of theworld with that of God's kingdom, and the differences arevast. Next we ask how confronting youth differs fromconfronting nonryouth. Of course, young people varyamong themselves, but the common characteristic offewer years is our concern here. First, we should emphasizethat in many ways there are no essential differences.In particular, the basic message is the same:repent, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and follow Him.We shall therefore content ourselves with suggesting a fewgeneral possibilities where the factor of being young inyears is pertinent.A desire for independence is common in youth andcan lead to a delusion of self-sufficiency, though this is byno means confined to youth. A Christian who has beendelivered from this delusion can confront such a personwith the truth by means of a personal testimony. Many ofus can tell of experiences which exhibit our own lack ofself-sufficiency, and can contrast that with the abundantlife in Christ. It is perhaps more important to bring to bearthe Word of God. Many passages speak of the frailty ofman, Ephesians 2:8 and 9 destroy any hope of salvation byworks, and John 14:6 leaves us only one way.Youth have ahead of them more decisions thanolder persons, and again the testimony of experience andthe Word are appropriate. These favor the making ofthese decisions in the light of Scripture and its principlesand with the goal of really serving God. The example of aGodly life is also relevant here. Confrontation on thissubject seems particularly appropriate for Christianyouth.All youth are forming living patterns for a lifetime,and Psalm 119:9 says that a young man can purify his wayby heeding God's Word. We can confront youth with thisfact, and again the example of one dwelling in Christ ismuch to the point.All youth are to some extent interested in aphilosophy of life. They ask, "Why am I here?"; "What isthe point of it all?"; etc. To bring them face to face withGod's answers to all of the important questions is a favorto them and a real privilege, as well as a duty.• • •Evangelism And The A.A.GS.Rev. Raymond JosephMinister at West Lafayette, IndianaR. P. FellowshipScripture instructs us to begin with the righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost if hisevangelization of the individual. Evangelization of the sins are not forgiven? Rom. 14:17.)individual always comes first in the order of priorities.And to abandon this scriptural priority results in blindspots and limited vision and a truncated concept of whatthe Kingdom of God really is. (How can a man experienceBut the spokesmen from the Association for theAdvancement of Christian Studies at Toronto apparentlythink otherwise. They believe that you must "evangelize"societal structures first, then the individual.COVENANTER WITNESS