Why Students Leave the Church—and What They Need Instead
The current crisis in faith of evangelical youth points to some important truths for all of us.
Today the biblical worldview faces many challenges—both old and new—and Christian students need to be ready "to give a defense" (1 Peter 3:15) to anyone.
Furthermore, Christians should be able to defend the Christian message in a way that does not compromise the authority and absolute truth of the worldview they are seeking to defend.
Christians believe that the Bible is certainly (not probably) true, that Jesus certainly (not probably) rose from the dead, and that God is certainly (not probably) real.
In spite of the certainty that the Bible teaches, not everyone “gets it.”
The Problem: Alarming Church Drop-Off Rates
The statistics about students who attend a Protestant church for at least a year during high school are alarming:
66% of them leave the church between the ages of 18-22.
Only 31% of those who left (or 20% of the total) come back by age 30.
That means 46% of students who attend church during high school leave and never come back.
Why does this happen?
Top Reasons Students Leave
There are a number of reasons why this happens.
One of the top reasons given by those who leave the church is that church members seemed too judgmental or hypocritical.
Another top reason is disagreement with the church's stance on political or social issues.
In other words, they thought the teachings of Christianity are harmful—which we will also address in this course.
But the number one reason people leave the church after high school?
They simply moved to college and stopped attending.
A Crisis of Shallow Roots
Now there are plenty of reasons people give for abandoning Christianity. But just leaving it because you changed locations is not a good one.
Why does this happen?
Could it be that their faith was never really that real to them?
And all it took was a skeptical college professor, or just to be surrounded by other college students who didn't believe, to collapse what little faith they had?
The fact is, we live in a world that is hostile to God, the Bible and the Christian faith, and every day we are inundated with anti-Christian messages.
What Students (and All of Us) Really Need
To make it through, you need God's unstoppable grace, and you need a strong and solid foundation.
You need to know what the Christian message is, and why it is absolutely—not just probably—true.
You need a method for defending the Christian message that can overcome every hostile message, every objection, and every doubt that rises up in your own hearts.
That is what you will get in this Substack.
What You’ll Gain from This Substack
If you read this blog for all its worth, it is my hope that by the time you finish it:
You will know exactly why the Christian message is true.
You will know how to confidently and skillfully defend it against every challenge.
You will see that there is no challenge that the Christian message cannot overcome.
What do you think? Is it possible to reverse the tide of young people leaving the church? Do you think it will happen? What’s it going to take? Share your thoughts in the comments.