"Focus on Jesus" by Ron Hutchcraft

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"Focus on Jesus" by Ron Hutchcraft

Reaching the Global Youth Culture: How to Understand
and Rescue Lost Young People (Day 9 of 15)
They are the largest generation of young people in history, the most unreached generation in history, and the most reachable generation in history. If today's young people leave their early years without Christ, they will probably live without Christ, die without Christ, and spend eternity without Christ! No one who has answered Jesus' call to "go into all the world and preach the good news" (Mark 16:15) can ignore half the world - especially the half who are, by far, most likely to come to Christ. It's time to rescue lost young people!
Day 9 - Focus on Jesus
Last time we found that it was always Jesus' strategy to go where the dying people were, not to wait for them to come to Him. You can't save them if you don't seek them! To connect with the young people who need us most, we need to meet them in their world. Once we take the risk to leave the safety of the life-saving station, we will be right where Jesus wants us to be - outside the walls where the dying people are.
Is your focus on Jesus and His cross?
When the Apostle Paul, the master theologian, went to unreached people, his message was simple and uncluttered: "I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified" (1 Corinthians 2:2). That is a powerful model for someone burdened for unreached young people - stick to Jesus and His cross!
Modern young people are not interested in our religion, our denomination, our theology, or our rules. Our message is not an attack on their lifestyle. They aren't going to clean up until they know the Cleaner-Upper! As Jesus moved among some of the most overtly sinful people in His culture, He issued a simple call: "Follow Me."
As I have had the privilege of presenting Christ to young people from a variety of cultures and over the dramatic changes of the last four decades, there has been one constant: Jesus is a powerful magnet for a searching young heart! It's not Christianity, not church, and not religion, but Jesus. I am so grateful that Jesus reduced the central issue to an unmistakable "Follow Me." Many young people have problems with the hypocrites they have seen, with the system of Christianity, and with one religion trying to convert another religion. Jesus' invitation answers all those objections. Jesus didn't say, "Follow My followers" or "Follow My religion" or "Follow My rules." He said, "Follow Me!" It's all about Jesus!
That is a critical factor in bringing hope to dying young people. We need to tell them the stories of Jesus. Many, if not most, don't know those stories; they don't know who Jesus is. I have found it most effective to talk to young people from the Gospels where they can see how Jesus treats people, what He expects of people, and what happens to people when they meet Him. How many young people are like the woman of Samaria, whose lifetime search for fulfillment in a series of disappointing relationships finally ends when she meets Jesus? How many young people are like Zaccheus, the man who felt little all his life until the day Jesus came into his world? How many are like the adulterous woman, surrounded by people with rocks in their hands, desperately needing the love and forgiveness only Jesus can give?
As you tell them about Jesus, make much of the cross. I have spoken in many situations over the years where the young audience was inattentive, rowdy, and sometimes almost out of control. Over and over I have watched an amazing phenomenon occur. As soon as I begin to tell the story of the cross, a holy hush falls across the crowd, and you can hear a pin drop. It was not the power of a human speaker, but the power of Jesus' cross!
When you speak to lost young people, stick to Jesus. Don't encumber the Gospel with anything else. Remember that your central mission as a rescuer of dying young people is to take them by the hand, lead them up Skull Hill to the foot of Jesus' cross, and let them see for themselves how very much God loves them.
Tomorrow, we will discuss how to start with their need in hopes of reaching them for Christ.
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© Ronald P. Hutchcraft Distributed by Ron Hutchcraft Ministries, Inc.