Postmodernism

Introduction:

            In order to understand this problem, we first must define it:

“Postmodernism is a philosophical movement evolved in reaction to modernism, the tendency in contemporary culture to accept only objective truth. Postmodernist thought is an intentional departure from the previously dominant modernist approaches. The term "postmodernism" comes from its critique of the "modernist" scientific mentality of objectivity and the progress associated with the Enlightenment.”

If you are like me after reading that, you are like “okay…and that means what?!” Truth be told, postmodernism is difficult to define. This is because it is constantly changing, very complex, and often contradictory as well.  However,  it is what it is: post-modern thought. Thus it came after modernism, so perhaps the first thing we should ask is “what is modernism?”

“Whereas modernism rejected religion and superstition in favor of science and reason, postmodernism repudiates any appeal to reality or truth … and, thus, frowns on those who believe anything with conviction” (McDowell, Josh, with Hostetler, Bob). In other words:  

An entire generation of young people today believe truth is not true for them until they choose to believe it. They believe the act of believing makes things true. Once they believe, those things will be true for them only until they choose to believe something else. As soon as something more appealing comes along, they are likely to begin believing that — whether it is biblical or not” (McDowell, Josh, with Hostetler, Bob). 

To be quite honest that’s scary, for both the youth leader, and the teen! For the youth leader, because we fear they will never listen, never believe and if they do believe, there is always the chance they may one day fall away when something newer or more appealing comes along.

For the youth there is fear because they live in constant uncertainty. Nothing is ever solid. Nothing is ever true for always; what is true for today may not be true tommorrow. Everything is up for grabs, and that is a scary and unstable world to live in!

So how do we overcome this seemingly difficult thought process? How do we shed light, on this dark mind-set? How do leaders help their teens who face this, and how do teens find that solid ground that God innately put the desire in us to find?

Possible Solutions:

As with every problem, there are many possible solutions to it. This is not “new.” We have been fighting this kind of mindset for quite some time, and as with many things that we fight with over time, the supposed “solutions” to it grow more and more as each day passes.

 Take the problem of cancer for instance. It has been around for a long long time. Many possible solutions have been tried to fight it: from chemo, to radiation, to organic and home remedies. The possibilities to fight cancer are almost endless! Yet, still today, research is being done. Right now as you read this, in laboratories all over the world, scientists are still trying to find “The Answer.” That one remedy that stands above the rest, because it cures cancer once and for all.

So what has been tried for the issue of post-modern thought? What are some “possible solutions” to this problem? The following things have been tried to fight Post-modernism:

A) Argumentative approach:

This is one of the most common ones. This is where we make the case for God in an argumentative way. It can take many different forms. It can look like a father talking so long and hard, backing his teen to a corner, not even giving the teen a chance to speak, tell where his heart is, and ask honest questions.

It can look like the mother, who just argues with her teen whenever beliefs and convictions are brought up.

“We just need to argue with them long enough, and hard enough, and make Christianity look and sound right and look “appetizing” enough, as it were, then our teens will believe! Then they will hold fast!” These are the main thoughts to this approach.

B) Brushing over it:

This is the exact opposite of the above approach. Where as the above approach is boisterous and out there, honing in on the issue and shining bright police lights on the teen, this approach totally brushes the problem under the rug.

In other words, it is never brought up in youth group. We just preach a “lovely gospel,” a gospel of peace and God being a God of love. We don’t ask questions, we don’t search too deeply; we stay on the surface, drinking milk, leaving the meat for fear of choking on it. This approach settles for just belief. Their only aim is belief, thus they teach truth as a concept that must be grasp. This is dangerous and goes actually right along side of post-modern thought!

 If we can just get our teens to believe Christianity, then that is enough. No need to bring up the harder issues, no need to discuss deep things with them, no need to push them farther.

C) Immersing self in Post-modern thought

In this approach, instead of studying the real deal, and getting secured in that, we study the unsolid ground, the counterfeit, till we know it in and out, so as to be able to answer to it.

The problem here is that often the counterfeit is just that, counterfeit, thus it always seems right. It is so close to the real deal that it looks just like it.  Thus the temptation to fall into this yourself is HUGE! No one is above falling! In fact the Bible warns us to “take heed, lest we fall.”  No matter your age, it is wisest to study the real deal, so well that you can know and identify the counterfeit.

If you were a shepherd, looking for the wolves in sheep’s clothing, would you go out and study the wolves? Would you go up to them and say “hey, just wondering…might I just take some real close look at you…get some pictures, that way I know what to look for when you come around.”

NO! That’s the last thing you would dream of doing. Why? Well first off, you would more than likely become lunch yourself, and thus not even be around to protect the sheep from the wolves. Secondly, because you know that when the wolf does come, and no doubt he will, he won’t look like himself, he will look almost exactly like your sheep.

Thus, what should you study? Is there yet hope? Yes! You would need to study your sheep, because they are all the real deal! That way when the wolf does come, dressed as a sheep, you will more easily pick up that misplaced patch of wool, that slightly askew walk, you will be more likely to smell that different scent. Why? Because you have studied your sheep! You have studied the real thing, and you know exactly what sheep are supposed to look like and walk like and smell like.

In much the same way, we need to look at post-modernism. Post-modernism is the wolf in sheep’s clothing. You, as the youth leader are the shepherd, are supposed to look out for the sheep, and the sheep are your youth, the teens in your youth group.

Is the wolf just about as dangerous to the shepherd as it is to the sheep? Yes! Sure the shepherd is a bit better protected and not as susceptible, but the danger is still there for him to be attacked like a sheep. So in the same way, the danger, though not as great perhaps, is still there for the youth leader to fall into post-modernism, as it is for the youth themselves. So don’t waste your time, and put yourself in danger, by trying to study the wolf (post-modernism), instead study the real deal, so that you will be able to detect when there is a wolf in sheep’s clothing in your midst!

Argument for Correct Solution

There must be a better approach then to argue with teens, or to just plain old speak the truth and aim for belief only. There must be a better approach then just the fluffly “love them” approach as well.

Truth is teens need both! They need to have the truth spoken to them and laid out there plainly for them to see and grasp, and yet they also need love, they need to know that Christ loves them. They need that age old balance that God always knows we need: “Speaking the truth in love.”

In today’s day and age, many parents fear what their teens will end up doing.  They fear things like drug abuse, suicide, or getting caught up in wrong friendships, relationships with the opposite sex, or alcohol use. These are all fears that parents have of their teens falling into. It’s true, parents should fear these things, but more so than that, they should fear something deeper than the externals, they should fear these things at their root, within the heart of their teen.

“While parents need to fear what their children could be tempted to do, they need to be more concerned with what their children are led to believe.” (McDowell, Josh, ).

For what you believe in, you live for, and what you live for drives your actions. So the greatest fear we should have for our teens is, a fear for what they place their faith in, what they believe in!

A. Satan’s Counterfeit

 God has warned us (believers) that we are in a battle! He said that it is different than any battle we have ever known, because it is a battle where our enemy is not seen with the average human eye. Our battle is hidden: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12).

Post-modern thought, is a weapon that Satan uses. He is our hidden enemy, and sometimes his weapon of choice is post-modernism. Like a wolf, circling its opponent, looking for their opponent’s weakness, so Satan does the same. He knows that post-modernism is attractive to our teens, and he fluffs it up and makes it look way good. But the problem is that teens don’t see that it’s fake! Satan’s tactics are always to offer a counterfeit of something good that God offers us first.

You see God offers us so much more, and yet Satan seems to offer us the very same things that God does. But truth be known, is that Satan’s offering is slightly askew,  it costs him nothing and it costs us everything! God’s gifts, however, cost Him a great deal, but cost us nothing. Satan has a way of making his counterfeit look so real, we buy into it as if it is the “real deal” and are left broken and alone when we discover that it is worth nothing. It was a mere imitation, and a poor one at that, of what God’s real and good gifts are.

So you see post-modern thought, though attractive to youth, though promising so much, is a seemingly flowery and peaceful path, that leads only to death and hell:
“There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death” (Prov. 14: 12, 16:25).

God knew that we would struggle constantly with the ways that “seems” right, thus this verse can be found twice in proverbs, and only a chapter apart! That is saying something! As the old saying goes: “when God repeats something, we had better pay attention!”

            This problem is never easy to spot, because it “seems” right. It looks almost exactly like the real deal, but is slightly off, and if we but take the time to look, we would soon discover the discrepancies behind post-modern thought.

            So we know that it is a hard problem to spot, and we have established that it is a counterfeit of God’s REAL DEAL. We have also looked at how some have approached post-modernism. So the question remains: what is the right answer? What is God’s answer to “post-modern” thought?

        

            B.  God’s Real Deal

            To answer these questions, I must first present to you the real deal: God’s gift, that Satan tries to counterfeit using post-modern thought. Satan counterfeit teaches that truth is a concept, God tells us that truth is a Person, His Son Jesus Christ: “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17).

Satan teaches that truth constantly changes and is different from person to person. God tells us that truth does not change, for Jesus is God incarnate and He “never changes or casts shifting shadows” (James 1:17) “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).

Finally, Satan teaches that all truth is equal, while God says that truth is truth for all. For Jesus did not say that He was “a truth” but rather “THE TRUTH!”: “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6).

Thus God’s real deal is: truth is a person, and truth is truth for all people at all times.

            Now that I have gone through God’s real deal, what is God’s answer to post-modern thought? I believe it can be found in the following steps.

   1) Know what you believe:

First and foremost we as leaders must have more than beliefs, we  must have convictions! How can you help someone that is falling, if you yourself are falling as well?  I mean, let’s say you are climbing a mountain, and your climbing partner is above you. You are struggling a bit, and he notices, and even knows the solution to the problem, having had more experience than you. Reaching out his hand, he asks you to grab it so he can pull you up, but both of your ropes are insecure. How stupid would it be if you grabbed his hand, you would be no more secure than he, because neither of you have really secured ropes in the first place!

So it is in the Christian walk. Sure you may have been a Christian for a long time, you may even know the answers and the right paths to take, but if your rope is not secure, if you don’t even know what you believe and are not absolutely convinced of it, how can you even help your teens?

Some may say, well we should just know post-modernism. We should just study and know it well. Problem there is that what you saturate yourself in, you may yourself fall into! Like I said before, it is almost just as easy for a youth leader to fall into post-modernism, as it is for a youth. Don’t be arrogant thinking that you are above Satan’s traps, take heed lest you fall! Know what you believe, saturate yourself in it and move beyond belief to convictions! Be grounded in it, so that you may have a firm hold and be able to help another up!

 2) Be ready and open to listen

To believe in something is to “accept it as true, genuine, or real.”¹⁷ But as we have pointed out, teens are conditioned by today’s culture to believe nothing is objectively true, universally genuine, or real in an absolute sense. They think something is true, genuine, or real only when they accept it, subjectively, for themselves.

            Teens today are bombarded by so many beliefs and systems of supposed “truth.” Whether from school, the internet, television, magazines or even parents, friends. So we see the avenues for doctrine are endless. Often times they receive conflicting and contradictory messages. This is what it is to live in a fallen and cursed world where Satan’s counterfeit and lies are rampant. Thus teens are going to have questions, and they may even question their own faith. We need to be there to listen to their questions, and to hear them out as they wrestle against things unseen: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12). We must  be ready to listen and then be also be prepared to help them to put on their amour and protection :

Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵ and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶ above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. ¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; ¹⁸ praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints” (Eph. 6:14-18).

3) Get the teens from belief to conviction

                  To believe is not enough! Our teens need to be deeply rooted in their beliefs, they need to have firm, and strong convictions, and be standing on them. Josh McDowell puts it this way:

“If teens are to withstand the pressures and temptations in today’s dangerous world, we must help them move beyond subjective believism … to firm convictions. They need to be so thoroughly convinced of what they believe they will take a stand for it regardless of the consequences” (Josh McDowell,).

To believe is not enough because belief is go just accept something as true, genuine or real. They need to have convictions because to have convictions takes things a step farther: “to have convictions is to be thoroughly convinced that something is true.” It goes far beyond just personal preferences or subjective opinions. It is absolute!

Obviously to be this way is to go totally against post-modern thought. In other words we need to help equip our teens to go against the flow. This will be a very difficult task. It will be much like sticking them into a down stream canoe and asking them to head upstream. The flow of water will be pushing hard against them, it will take all of their energy and they will be tempted to just stop rowing and head with the flow of the river.

But we must not allow them to give up, we must help them see that their desperate situation and call out to God for strength and help! We must help them to see that God can equip them with the things they need (an upstream canoe) to push against the flow of post-modern thought so that they can head in the direction God has for them.

Post-modernism can be attacked firstly just by taking the focus off of the “what” and onto the “who.” It is so easy to get distracted by things and never get to the real heart of the issues.  This often happens with teens and youth leaders when they place their focus on truth as a concept that must be grasped.  We must remember that truth is a Person (Jesus Christ).

This will change our whole approach to Christianity and how we teach others about it as well! Literally it takes down the three main points of post-modernism: for when we realize that Christ is the embodiment of truth, truth is no longer subjectively created.  It is objective!  Second, truth can no longer be relative and change from person to person. What is true for one is true for all! And finally when we realize that truth is a Person suddenly all truth can not be equal, there are not several ways to God, there is one!

Thus, when we teach truth as a concept, we are buying into post-modern thought! But how it is rejected when we turn around and teach truth for what it is: a Person! I think this is one of the main things we can do according to scripture.

Another thing we can do is to help them to know what they believe and why they believe it.  Many teens do not even know simple doctrines and why we hold to them. Many do not even know where to find in the Bible the basis for their own beliefs. We can begin by helping them to see from God’s Word what they believe and why:  

It is not enough to have convictions. The actions of terrorists and suicide bombers demonstrate it is possible to have deep, abiding convictions and still be tragically wrong. That is why evidence is crucial to Christian convictions. Christianity is a verifiable faith based on clearly recognizable and accessible historical facts. To move teens beyond belief to conviction we must guide them through an examination of the evidences for what they believe. Only then will they be equipped with the conviction that Christianity is objectively true. (McDowell, 2002).

4) Hold forth the importance of application

            In a world where truth is a concept, it is kind of meaningless to apply it to everything. However, when truth is realized as a Person, suddenly application can be everywhere and it is endless in its opportunities! God has forewarned that belief is not enough, we must have actions to back up our faith. In James chapter one verse twenty one, God says that yes it is true, we need to receive and believe His Word. However, He does not stop there, He takes it further by saying that we need to apply what we know to our lives:

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ²³ For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; ²⁴ for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. ²⁵ But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a” forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. (James 1:22-25).

Thus to show teens the evidences, to show them from the Word the truth, is not enough! They must be encouraged to apply these truths!

Deep convictions are built not only on what the mind believes, but also around what the heart has experienced. Christian faith is intended to be a personal experience; it should have a profound and relational meaning for each of our lives.Most young people, however, do not understand how their faith can be meaningful in their everyday lives. They may have been told faith in Christ results in eternal life and involves a call to right living. But most teens see little correlation between what they believe (about God, truth, or the Bible) and their relationships with friends and family, or their future in life. (McDowell).

We offer them so much more than a concept, we offer them a Person, a relationship, and that in turn can affect every part of their lives! What an opportunity lies before us!

Conclusion

The main thing is that we must present truth not as a concept, but rather as a Person. I believe this will change our whole approach and it easily tackles the basic thoughts of Post-modernism: Truth is subjective. Truth is discovered not through God’s Word but through looking at philosophy, religion, art and science. Truth is created by culture, and people are the products of their culture, thus what is true for one may not be true for all. When we realize that truth is a Person truth becomes subjective, truth is discovered in God’s Word, truth is created by God, not culture, and thus applies to all people at all times!

Regardless of what we think or feel, God and His Word are absolute truth:
“Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” (John 17:17) His Word lasts forever, it is for all people of all time:

“The entirety of Your word is truth, And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.” (Psalm 119:160). “The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever” (Isaiah 40:8).

Thus the truth is something we can know beyond a shadow of a doubt that what we believe is true. So regardless of what man thinks, understands to be true, or believes or is convicted of, God’s Word stands on its own; it is and always will be the only truth! Whether we believe and hold to it or not!

Bibliography:

Mcdowell, Josh, with Hostetler, Bob “Today’s Youth Need Our Help To Go … Beyond Belief”

McDowell, Josh with Hostetler, Bob “Beyond Belief to Convictions.”2002