In the last chapter of Matthew, followers of Christ were given what is known as the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20, KJV). This Commission commands Christians to teach about Jesus to all nations and make everyone aware of Him, but it seems that following this commandment has become increasingly harder to accomplish.
Because of the way American culture has developed and how it’s affecting current generations (Gen Z specifically), there is a huge gap between those who are saved and those who are not. This has led to two major problems that have hindered Christians from obeying the Great Commission.
First, because of advancements in our modern age, children are raised completely differently than they were in the past. To spare their children from the world, parents have taught this generation to believe that everything they do is right if it makes them happy instead of teaching them the difference between right and wrong regardless of how they feel. Being disconnected from reality has made them soft to the truths of the world.
This has created people who cannot handle criticism or anything that remotely goes against their feelings. They are easily offended whenever someone acts and believes in a different way than them; and most of the time, they are too stubborn to consider a different viewpoint even if theirs is proven to be factually incorrect. People can no longer have a healthy debate between opposing opinions since one side is likely to become unstable and triggered.
Along with the inability to take criticism, people also want to avoid confrontation. While this is understandable, there is more to the issue. Going deeper into the problem, people want to avoid others in general. Everyone wants to stay in their own social bubble and not start a conversation with a stranger unless they are making content for a social media channel.
While there are many reasons why people are not as social as they were in the past, one reason goes back to confrontation. Because people are more sensitive, almost anything can be taken as offensive whether it was intended that way or not. This makes striking a discussion hard to do since no one knows which conversation topics are safe or a trigger.
Criticism and confrontation are like chemical substances that cause an explosive reaction when mixed. It’s this kind of reaction that makes Christians apprehensive to converse with others. To avoid criticism and backlash themselves, Christians no longer witness in fear of confrontation that is stemmed from another person’s fear of criticism for his lifestyle.
All of this results in Christians being afraid to speak up about biblical truth. Christians and churches are either becoming apathetic to the rise of immorality or accepting of it. This “can’t beat them, join them” mentality not only harms the message they spread to nonbelievers but also those who are in church finding their core beliefs being challenged in favor of appealing to the world.
If Christians want their values back and to be accepted by others, they need to follow what is in the Bible. Jesus already warned about being a lukewarm Christian to the church of Laodicea in Revelation 3:15-16, and Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:58 to stand strong in the faith because biblical work is not in vain.
The Bible also mentions in multiple verses that Christians are peculiar (Deuteronomy 14:2) and encourages us to be different (Proverbs 1:15). It’s this deviation from the social norm that has resulted in many Christians being persecuted throughout the Bible and history, showing that conflict is not a new part of Christianity. Because Christians have begun to fear more, they forget Matthew 5:10-12 since they are more concerned about their earthly life.
Christians do not need to fear the judgment of others, but rather, they need to stay strong and knowledgeable in their beliefs. If we continue to be fearful of confrontation, we will never be confident enough to share our faith, and the Great Commission will not be fulfilled in the way God intended. It is better to spread the true gospel of Jesus with the risk of criticism and confrontation than to tell people a version that will not benefit their spiritual well-being.
