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Find some books!By James Jeffery
Why are most kids from Christian families abandoning their faith once they enter university? (And is there anything we can do to reverse this trend?)
Are children’s programs and youth group sufficient to disciple our children?
What does ‘family worship’ look like in practice?
In Family Driven Faith, Voddie Baucham addresses these questions head on. They are questions all Christians parents should consider — even before they marry or have children. Preparation is always better than trying to mend broken pieces later on.
This book is raw and personal, rich and Biblical. In many respects, Family Driven Faith is a rebuke of the contemporary church, a call to repentance, and a blueprint for God’s vision for the family. While some parts are hard to swallow, it is a message all Christians today desperately need to hear.
Under the influence of secular humanism, the West has become increasingly individualistic, pluralistic, and pagan. Without intentional discipleship, children inevitably absorb the worldview and customs of the unbelieving culture that surrounds them. This tragic reality is reflected in research Baucham cites: “70 to 88 percent of Christian teens are leaving the church by their second year in college." (p. 12)
Baucham asks a confronting question:
“Imagine the alarm if nearly 90 percent of our children couldn’t read when they left high school. There wouldn't be room enough at school board meetings to hold all of the irate parents.” (p. 13)
What causes this mass-exodus? Baucham is convinced it has to do with the way we approach family discipleship. He explains:
“Our children are falling away because we are asking the church to do what God designed the family to accomplish. Discipleship and multi-generational faithfulness begins and ends at home. At best, the church is to play a supporting role as it “equips the saints for the work of ministry” (Ephesians 4:12).” (p. 10)
Elders are called by God to shepherd the flock of God, which is the church (1 Peter 5:2). Similarly, parents — especially fathers — are called by God to disciple their children (Eph. 6:4). Far from being an occasional affair, discipleship is all-encompassing as it involves the transmission of a Biblical worldview from one generation to the next.
Intergenerational discipleship is critical for the survival of the church. Yet, Baucham suggests that parents have handed neglected this responsibility and assumed that it can be achieved by youth ministers. Baucham cites Alvin Reid, who highlights that “The largest rise of full-time youth ministers in history has been accompanied by the biggest decline in youth evangelism effectiveness.” (p. 187).
Michael Lawrence, another reviewer of Family Driven Faith, summarises it well: “[Baucham offers an] excellent critique of a consumer church culture that has produced passive parents and pagan kids.” This has shaped everything from the way believers view contraception to our understanding of gathered worship.
To be clear, Baucham doesn’t blame youth ministers. Rather, he challenges the church to consider that no one can replace the pivotal role of a parent in the discipleship of their children. This is because parents must realise that they have the most potent influence over their children, as to whether they continue or reject the faith they were raised with.
Viewing Christians in such a way causes us to relate to others not merely as individuals, but as members of households. Pastors are challenged to understand that it is their responsibility to equip, train, and support fathers as they carry out their calling to shepherd their families.
Christ calls His people to submit every aspect of our lives to His Lordship: work, relationships, leisure, and education. Knowing how to surrender every part of our lives to Christ requires a Biblical worldview.
Christians living in the Western world have witnessed a rapid shift from cultural Christianity to secular humanism over the past 60 years. This worldview — manifested in Darwinian evolution, feminism, Marxism, postmodernism, materialism — dominates media, education, and culture.
Secular Humanism |
Christian Theism |
|
---|---|---|
View of God |
Atheism |
Theism |
View of Man |
Evolution |
Special Creation |
View of Truth |
Relative |
Absolute |
View of Knowledge |
Scientific/Materialism/ |
Scientific/General/Natural, Revelation |
View of Ethics |
Cultural |
Absolute |
Comparison of Secular Humanism and Christian Theism (p. 79)
If Christians are to resist the tide of secular humanism, we must understand the world through God’s eyes and help our children do the same. This all starts in the home.
Undergirding Family Driven Faith is the conviction that our children belong to God. Parents are stewards, entrusted by God to raise their children to know the love of Christ. The family is the foundational sphere in which God has chosen to accomplish this task.
Whether you are a new Christian, newlywed, or parent of children, this book is for you. It offers a diagnosis of our culture, how we got here, and what we can do to reverse the trend. A study guide in the Appendix encourages reflection, digestion, and implementation of changes.
Whether you are single or married, a parent or childless, Family Driven Faith is for you. Baucham’s Even those without an immediate biological family can contribute to this life-transforming mission to raise another generation of mature disciples of Christ.