It’s not that most churches haven’t tried to be relevant to this generation and their communities. It certainly isn’t because they have lacked creative resources or high-impact Christian events in the past decade. Churches and Christian families have been inundated with books, seminars, courses and events for parents and youth. While these efforts may have had elements within them that were worthwhile, by and large they have left the church and most of a generation unchanged by the message of the gospel they have presented.

The truth is that the current culture, as bad as it is, isn’t the main problem in raising up a transformed generation of Christ followers. Today’s young people are perhaps the brightest and most spiritually and socially attuned generation ever. The youth of this generation see the problems of global hunger, the plight of the homeless, injustice and hypocrisy, and they want to make a difference in the world. The problem isn’t as much with our youth culture as it is with us—Christian adults.

These early Christians had a mindset vastly different from our western 21st century world. They saw prayer, walking in the Spirit, working at their jobs, caring for their families, ministering to those in need and the rest of their lives not in compartmentalized facets, but as a whole—integrated and continuous. These early Christians embraced what we call a Hebraic faith, and one characteristic of a Hebraic faith that it’s holistic.

So the emerging church in the first century and again in the 18th century tended to see prayer, faith, worship and loving others as Christ loved as an integrated whole. Church wasn’t a weekly event, separate from daily living. They were the church. That is what defined them. So they didn’t just think and talk about Christ one day a week in a particular building. They didn’t think in terms of participating in a church program or just attending a series of events. They experienced the totality of what Jesus was about and modeled it daily before their children and within their community. They understood the mission Jesus gave them as a journey, a relational pilgrimage of becoming more and more like their Lord, a mission that was to be lived out in every aspect of their lives within their local community. It was an experiential relationship with Jesus that transformed their attitudes and actions. Their corporate prayer and worship in a fellowship was borne out in attending to the physical and emotional needs of people by caring for the sick, feeding the hungry and befriending the outcasts and rejects of Jewish society.

I realized that if we are going to make an impact in the generation, we must get back to the model of the early church. It didn’t take thousands of people to launch God’s transformational kingdom movement in Jerusalem during the first century. There were only 120 in that upper room pouring their hearts out to God in agreement when His transforming Spirit empowered them to engage their city. From Jerusalem, they turned the known world upside down. What did they do, and how did they do it? A study of the early church reveals how they grew and stayed focused on the mission Christ gave them. There were many factors involved, and we must practice these, as well. I must proclaim a transformational message. The new kingdom is not about changing the government; it’s about transforming each individual life. I must have a burden to reach the lost and truly seek to help students find the transforming power of Christ.

I believe God is raising up a new breed of Christ followers who want nothing more than a mighty move of His Spirit. God is calling each of us to return to the purity of the early church. I believe people around us need to experience a face-to-face encounter with God, be united as a body in continual prayer and engage their communities with a culturally relevant message and lifestyle. We must heed the call of the apostle who said, “I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind He will accept. When you think of what He has done for you, is that too much to ask? Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world—not even the behavior of the religious world—but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do.” (Romans 1:1-2).

Instead of leading people to pray to accepting Christ, we must come out of our upper rooms of prayer empowered by God’s Spirit to lead them to a face-to-face encounter with God and a spiritual formation process played out in the cycle of believing, behaving and belonging. This establishes a grid by which we measure our lives in relationship with Jesus. Rather than focusing on church attendance, donations and the number of programs and events, my journey must focus on getting to know Jesus intimately for who He really is and becoming shaped and formed by the power of God’s Spirit in very specific areas of my lives.

Our culture today has similarities to that of the first century. The needs of people are the same now as then. People in our community will respond and can be changed by the same message of transformation. They will respond to the same missional focus, and they will be attracted to authentic models of transformation.

In order to fulfill God’s missionary purpose, we need to join Him where He is working. It should not be a sense of duty, but a passion for those who are lost. We should have such a passion for God’s glory to be revealed that we willing to go to great lengths to share with others. We should have the purist of motives and work together to accomplish the task. We should integrate evangelism and social interaction into every event we plan. Our passion should be like a wild fire that spreads when fanned by the wind of the Holy Spirit.