I was able to get back into 1 Thessalonians today. Began reading through chapter 2 in detail. 1 Thessalonians 2:1-6 stuck out. Paul said he did not try to please men, did not use flattery, and didn't seek praise from men. Many of today's most famous and successful preachers seem to be doing the exact opposite of Paul's example. They water down the gospel and the message the Bible brings to avoid driving people away.
A few of the youth were echoing the same sentiment as some of today's popular preachers. They said, "I can't tell my friend, who is hurting emotionally, about Christ, because it would drive them off." I spoke to them about the fact that Christ and His message would be offensive to unsaved people. Christ promises as much in Matthew 10. We shouldn't be offensive in our speech or behavior. We should only offend when it comes to the word of God.
I don't think it is a widespread attitude in the youth group, but I know it is very hard for the youth to take the chance of alienating themselves. We will cover this in our Becoming an Eagle study on Tuesdays. I am looking forward to the time we will get to spend building leadership skills with the youth.
Jamie
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