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A Weed in the Church
Recent statistics suggest that between 65% and 85% of “Christian” youth leave the church when they enter college. This is a well-recognized crisis, but the cause of this crisis will surprise many. In his new book, A Weed in the Church, Scott Brown identifies the problem — age-segregated youth ministry — and says it is a weed growing in the church that needs to be rooted out. Brown argues that Scripture defines and wholeheartedly encourages ministry to youth, but that the premises of modern youth ministry are at odds with biblical teaching and must be reformed. Discover the problem of youth ministry in its historical context, and find hopeful solutions built on Scriptures’ sure foundation.
300 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
27 people are currently reading
145 people want to read
About the author
Scott T. Brown
44 books22 followers"I help people think through the two greatest institutions God has provided — the church and the family. I desire to learn what is pleasing to the Lord and to work for their continuous reformation according to Scripture." -Scott Brown
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
May 22, 2025
What a thought provoking and convicting (at times) read!
God clearly lays out His desires for how we are to interact with others and how worship services should be conducted. Age segregation has no part in this.
As with any book that is not the inspired Word of God, this should be read with a discerning mind. I did disagree with one small point he kept making, but it wasn't the main point of the book. Overall, I found this to be a good read, and I'll definitely read it again.
God clearly lays out His desires for how we are to interact with others and how worship services should be conducted. Age segregation has no part in this.
As with any book that is not the inspired Word of God, this should be read with a discerning mind. I did disagree with one small point he kept making, but it wasn't the main point of the book. Overall, I found this to be a good read, and I'll definitely read it again.
October 20, 2022
The message is great and sorely needed in the church, but the delivery is not the best. The author seems to hit his stride in the last few chapters, but the first half of the book is a clunky and disjointed writing style.
I wish the elders of every church would read this book and rethink the way the church operates. And yet, it will be extremely difficult to change the way we "have always done things."
I wish the elders of every church would read this book and rethink the way the church operates. And yet, it will be extremely difficult to change the way we "have always done things."
February 22, 2020
A very thought provoking book.
January 22, 2018
Such great truth in this book. This truth is backed up with so many scriptures, all questioning statements are answered and it really does leave you thinking “how have I fallen into this age segregation trap?”
One of my favourite quotes was “What if you corrupt a whole age group, an entire generation, while you are slowly seeking to change the course you are currently on?”
When we a dealing with the spirits of our children and the youth in the body we can’t afford to make change slowly. How many more generations need to be lost because “change is uncomfortable”?
In a different book by Joseph Matters he says if every Christian family who is currently in church managed to keep their own children in faith and in the body, in two generations Christianity would be everywhere.
While we worry about comfort and following he status quo we are losing our children and with 88% of children walking away from the faith, real urgency around this is needed. Even if that percentage was 15% that is 15% too many!!
One of my favourite quotes was “What if you corrupt a whole age group, an entire generation, while you are slowly seeking to change the course you are currently on?”
When we a dealing with the spirits of our children and the youth in the body we can’t afford to make change slowly. How many more generations need to be lost because “change is uncomfortable”?
In a different book by Joseph Matters he says if every Christian family who is currently in church managed to keep their own children in faith and in the body, in two generations Christianity would be everywhere.
While we worry about comfort and following he status quo we are losing our children and with 88% of children walking away from the faith, real urgency around this is needed. Even if that percentage was 15% that is 15% too many!!
April 22, 2020
This is my second time through this book and it has convicted me even more of the harmfulness of the current age segregation as it exists in most churches today. This book will have the reader closely examining modern practices against scripture and find they they are miles apart.
December 12, 2023
Compelling and well-stated. Brown is a bit redundant in the first few chapters but organizes his thoughts well and convincingly addresses all the relevant issues as well as objections. Very worth while study.
September 13, 2011
I found this book to be a mixed bag. On the one hand, I agree with both the underlying premises and the hoped-for end result of this book, and appreciate that the author used ample Scripture references to demonstrate them. I’d love to know that more pastors and others in the church were aware of the problems of highly-programmatic youth ministry and children’s ministry, and were willing to pursue greater biblical faithfulness in exercise of care for the younger generations in the church.
On the other hand, I found the tone and spirit of this book very off-putting. The author is quite aggressive in his attack of conventional youth and children’s ministries, and condescension is frequently employed with force. Most of the book is spent complaining of “what is wrong with conventional family ministry” and erecting elaborate portrayals of the horrifying— or at least disappointing— inevitable ends of these. Only at the very end does the author offer a constructive approach to how to “do” family ministry in a more biblically-faithful way.
The reason this is so disappointing is that the author is clearly able to articulate sound biblical ideas about family ministry, and how a church ought to execute it more faithfully. But the ethos with which he approaches his articulation means that few will read to the end who aren’t already convinced of his perspectives (at least to some degree).
If the author means to convert others en masse to a new, more biblical view of family ministry, his approach has sunk his attempts for the most part. If, on the other hand, he simply intends a ranting polemic that will “preach to the choir” and do little to make positive change, I wonder why he bothers.
The book has some very good content, if you can sift through the tone and attacking posture to get to it.
On the other hand, I found the tone and spirit of this book very off-putting. The author is quite aggressive in his attack of conventional youth and children’s ministries, and condescension is frequently employed with force. Most of the book is spent complaining of “what is wrong with conventional family ministry” and erecting elaborate portrayals of the horrifying— or at least disappointing— inevitable ends of these. Only at the very end does the author offer a constructive approach to how to “do” family ministry in a more biblically-faithful way.
The reason this is so disappointing is that the author is clearly able to articulate sound biblical ideas about family ministry, and how a church ought to execute it more faithfully. But the ethos with which he approaches his articulation means that few will read to the end who aren’t already convinced of his perspectives (at least to some degree).
If the author means to convert others en masse to a new, more biblical view of family ministry, his approach has sunk his attempts for the most part. If, on the other hand, he simply intends a ranting polemic that will “preach to the choir” and do little to make positive change, I wonder why he bothers.
The book has some very good content, if you can sift through the tone and attacking posture to get to it.
December 24, 2013
What has caused our churches to become so age-segregated and youth ministry to be almost untouchable by even the most Christ-centered of critics? In this book Scott takes an in-depth and often painful examination of age-segregation, what has led to it in today's churches, and the immense ramifications it has played. This book bases itself not on the pragmatic principles of a single man but on the sole sufficiency of Scripture. Grab your Bible and prepare to be challenged.
October 9, 2018
"Every generation has its prevailing weeds. They differ from season to season and century to century, but until the triumphant return of Jesus Christ, they persist." (263)
In this book, Brown builds the case that age segregation in the church is the particular weed of our generation. He specifically levels his attack at youth ministry, though all age / life stage groups are caught up into the argument. And while it seems radical, I found myself nodding along. His biblical foundation for family integrated churches is well explained.
And honestly, so many of his arguments are exactly what we talk about in homeschool circles. Socialization with every age and not just peers; parents directing the instruction; building deep relationships within the family. I'd never really transferred these thoughts - so easily accepted regarding education - to the church.
This quote well summarizes what I'm getting at, and I found it personally relevant based on my own youth group experience: "Consider the infuences that youth group exposed us to because of the concentrated immaturity that afflicted the group ." (226) Our youth group was a cesspool of sin with a shiny veneer on the top. The leaders genuinely loved us, but there were only two of them (and newly-weds themselves still figuring life out) overseeing 20 or so of us, with all our drama - everything from normal teen confusion to serious trauma to drug use. We were an example of Proverbs 13:20 - "He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed." The love of 2 Godly believers for a couple hours a week couldn't come close to overriding the foolishness within the group, much less in the rest of our week.
I'm still not sure how I feel about Brown's conclusions, but I've definitely been given a lot to think about and ponder over. His case is clearly made.
In this book, Brown builds the case that age segregation in the church is the particular weed of our generation. He specifically levels his attack at youth ministry, though all age / life stage groups are caught up into the argument. And while it seems radical, I found myself nodding along. His biblical foundation for family integrated churches is well explained.
And honestly, so many of his arguments are exactly what we talk about in homeschool circles. Socialization with every age and not just peers; parents directing the instruction; building deep relationships within the family. I'd never really transferred these thoughts - so easily accepted regarding education - to the church.
This quote well summarizes what I'm getting at, and I found it personally relevant based on my own youth group experience: "Consider the infuences that youth group exposed us to because of the concentrated immaturity that afflicted the group ." (226) Our youth group was a cesspool of sin with a shiny veneer on the top. The leaders genuinely loved us, but there were only two of them (and newly-weds themselves still figuring life out) overseeing 20 or so of us, with all our drama - everything from normal teen confusion to serious trauma to drug use. We were an example of Proverbs 13:20 - "He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed." The love of 2 Godly believers for a couple hours a week couldn't come close to overriding the foolishness within the group, much less in the rest of our week.
I'm still not sure how I feel about Brown's conclusions, but I've definitely been given a lot to think about and ponder over. His case is clearly made.
October 22, 2019
In this book, Scott Brown argues for the family-integrated church model, which, Brown shows, follows the example we see throughout the Bible. He contrasts the family-integrated church with the more common model today of segregating into age groups.
When the generations worship together and learn from one another, it is beneficial to everyone, especially youth.
Children and youth can understand more than we give them credit for. Often youth programs water down the message to the point that the children are not fully receiving the gospel.
What often happens when it comes to youth ministry is that parents leave the responsibility of teaching their children with the youth pastor and don’t do the work themselves. Brown says pastors should train fathers to be leaders in the family to train their own children as God has commanded them.
Our church went through this book for a book study and discussion. I thought Brown did a good job addressing the topic, as well as counter-claims and opposition to his writing.
One of the points of opposition that I myself wondered about revolves around children who have unsaved parents or perhaps only one parent in their lives. Brown addresses that, but it really stood out to me when a woman in our fellowship, whose unsaved husband is currently separated from her and her kids, said that because of the family-integrated church model, her children get to be around the men in the church and see what a godly man, husband, and father are like, whereas if they were in children’s church, they wouldn’t get that valuable opportunity.
Overall the book gives interesting insight to a topic that is often not even considered in the church today, and I would encourage others to read this book to learn about and consider it themselves.
When the generations worship together and learn from one another, it is beneficial to everyone, especially youth.
Children and youth can understand more than we give them credit for. Often youth programs water down the message to the point that the children are not fully receiving the gospel.
What often happens when it comes to youth ministry is that parents leave the responsibility of teaching their children with the youth pastor and don’t do the work themselves. Brown says pastors should train fathers to be leaders in the family to train their own children as God has commanded them.
Our church went through this book for a book study and discussion. I thought Brown did a good job addressing the topic, as well as counter-claims and opposition to his writing.
One of the points of opposition that I myself wondered about revolves around children who have unsaved parents or perhaps only one parent in their lives. Brown addresses that, but it really stood out to me when a woman in our fellowship, whose unsaved husband is currently separated from her and her kids, said that because of the family-integrated church model, her children get to be around the men in the church and see what a godly man, husband, and father are like, whereas if they were in children’s church, they wouldn’t get that valuable opportunity.
Overall the book gives interesting insight to a topic that is often not even considered in the church today, and I would encourage others to read this book to learn about and consider it themselves.
August 8, 2011
Some of my favorite quotes as I finished A Weed in the Church by Scott Brown
"Titus 2 does not describe a one-to-many ministry of the church that requires a program to fulfill; rather, it pictures a personal, one-on-one ministry of Christians to one another – older men teaching younger men and older women teaching younger women. There is no indication that systematic, age-segregated, peer-group-oriented training was involved. This is simply a command to Christians to participate in personal, intergenerational discipleship."
"Biblical discipleship of youth utilizes several resources. It begins with the family submitting to Christ. It includes following God’s patterns of instruction during the corporate gatherings of the people of God. It is part and parcel of a family’s devotion to the church, and it involves biblically ordered, personal relationships. Getting our children out of youth groups is not enough if it is not replaced with the rich contours of true discipleship. The family alone is not the answer. If the family is the only tool that we use for youth discipleship, it falls short of the whole counsel of God. If families neglect the local church and exempt themselves from the instruction by the elders, the building up of the saints, the “one another” relationships, and the maturation that church life provides, they do so at their own peril and to the demise of the next generation."
“Something has to change because this youth group is destroying our young people.” When these words left his mouth, he knew that he was calling into question the whole methodological foundation of the church. The church gave him a few months to ponder his position, but after a while, the board of elders declared that Mike no longer bought into the vision of the church and he was laid off.
"Its roots are wrapped around the financial priorities of the church, the strategic plan and vision of the church, and the budgeting process that is connected to them. Not only are you pulling on much of the church’s structure, but you are also pulling on people’s affections. When you pull on the weed of age segregation, you pull on the desires of parents who want to worship on Sunday mornings with no children to bother them. And you pull on the desires of the youth themselves: they like their media center, gymnasium, and coffee bar."
"First, Scripture alone is sufficient for faith and practice. Choosing our own inventions over the practices of biblical revelation has disastrous consequences. As Isaiah has noted: Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own sight!...Therefore, as the fire devours the stubble, And the flame consumes the chaff, So their root will be as rottenness, And their blossom will ascend like dust; Because they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts, And despised the word of the Holy One of Israel (Isa. 5:21, 24). Second, systematic, age-segregated youth ministry as defined in this book is not a biblical practice. No exegetical case can be made for this method of raising up the next generation in the ways of the Lord. Rather, arguments for it largely center on pragmatic and experiential considerations. Third, the practice of systematic age segregation is pagan in its origin. While it is not found in Scripture, its origins are easily traced to the writings of ungodly philosophers and educational theorists. Fourth, age-segregated youth ministry has failed because it is inherently destructive by its nature. Yes, it has accomplished some good things, but the overall spiritually harmful methods and bad fruit of youth ministry are well documented. Good fruit is the exception and not the rule. Fifth, God has given us in the Bible a treasure trove of wisdom for how to minister to the rising generation. Scripture is filled with commands, patterns, and principles for youth discipleship. God’s program is the best youth ministry program on the planet. Sixth, a tragic blindness exists in Christian culture regarding the discipleship of youth. While God has spoken clearly about how to minister to youth in His Word, modern church life almost completely ignores that Word, while replacing it with an invention of man."
"If we are going to effectively disciple the next generation, it must be done in the context of strong families and a church that is committed to building strong families. In other words, we must build family-integrated churches where both the family and the church work together closely to create the optimal setting for training young men and women for Christ. We must deliver our young people from the corrupting effects of peer-inspired youth culture and raise up godly families and intergenerational churches which will provide what young people so desperately need - mature adults who will be their examples and their teachers."
"Bring the children into the worship service; eliminate youth programs; cancel Sunday school, children’s church, and the nursery. Taking this step does not mean that all staff members are now fired. If the staff members are biblically qualified, then re-deploy the youth pastor, the Christian education director, the children’s minister, or the other staff members."
"The proposition of this book is that the philosophy and practice of systematic, age-segregated youth ministry as defined in this book is indisputably unbiblical in its pattern, inherently destructive in its impact, and undeniably unchristian in its origin. We believe that it was adopted in the church as a result of a departure from Scripture, and that it was embraced for erroneous and pragmatic reasons. Now, after decades of practice, it has proven to be harmful to youth, to the family, to the church, and thus, to the communication of the gospel and the glory of God."
"Titus 2 does not describe a one-to-many ministry of the church that requires a program to fulfill; rather, it pictures a personal, one-on-one ministry of Christians to one another – older men teaching younger men and older women teaching younger women. There is no indication that systematic, age-segregated, peer-group-oriented training was involved. This is simply a command to Christians to participate in personal, intergenerational discipleship."
"Biblical discipleship of youth utilizes several resources. It begins with the family submitting to Christ. It includes following God’s patterns of instruction during the corporate gatherings of the people of God. It is part and parcel of a family’s devotion to the church, and it involves biblically ordered, personal relationships. Getting our children out of youth groups is not enough if it is not replaced with the rich contours of true discipleship. The family alone is not the answer. If the family is the only tool that we use for youth discipleship, it falls short of the whole counsel of God. If families neglect the local church and exempt themselves from the instruction by the elders, the building up of the saints, the “one another” relationships, and the maturation that church life provides, they do so at their own peril and to the demise of the next generation."
“Something has to change because this youth group is destroying our young people.” When these words left his mouth, he knew that he was calling into question the whole methodological foundation of the church. The church gave him a few months to ponder his position, but after a while, the board of elders declared that Mike no longer bought into the vision of the church and he was laid off.
"Its roots are wrapped around the financial priorities of the church, the strategic plan and vision of the church, and the budgeting process that is connected to them. Not only are you pulling on much of the church’s structure, but you are also pulling on people’s affections. When you pull on the weed of age segregation, you pull on the desires of parents who want to worship on Sunday mornings with no children to bother them. And you pull on the desires of the youth themselves: they like their media center, gymnasium, and coffee bar."
"First, Scripture alone is sufficient for faith and practice. Choosing our own inventions over the practices of biblical revelation has disastrous consequences. As Isaiah has noted: Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own sight!...Therefore, as the fire devours the stubble, And the flame consumes the chaff, So their root will be as rottenness, And their blossom will ascend like dust; Because they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts, And despised the word of the Holy One of Israel (Isa. 5:21, 24). Second, systematic, age-segregated youth ministry as defined in this book is not a biblical practice. No exegetical case can be made for this method of raising up the next generation in the ways of the Lord. Rather, arguments for it largely center on pragmatic and experiential considerations. Third, the practice of systematic age segregation is pagan in its origin. While it is not found in Scripture, its origins are easily traced to the writings of ungodly philosophers and educational theorists. Fourth, age-segregated youth ministry has failed because it is inherently destructive by its nature. Yes, it has accomplished some good things, but the overall spiritually harmful methods and bad fruit of youth ministry are well documented. Good fruit is the exception and not the rule. Fifth, God has given us in the Bible a treasure trove of wisdom for how to minister to the rising generation. Scripture is filled with commands, patterns, and principles for youth discipleship. God’s program is the best youth ministry program on the planet. Sixth, a tragic blindness exists in Christian culture regarding the discipleship of youth. While God has spoken clearly about how to minister to youth in His Word, modern church life almost completely ignores that Word, while replacing it with an invention of man."
"If we are going to effectively disciple the next generation, it must be done in the context of strong families and a church that is committed to building strong families. In other words, we must build family-integrated churches where both the family and the church work together closely to create the optimal setting for training young men and women for Christ. We must deliver our young people from the corrupting effects of peer-inspired youth culture and raise up godly families and intergenerational churches which will provide what young people so desperately need - mature adults who will be their examples and their teachers."
"Bring the children into the worship service; eliminate youth programs; cancel Sunday school, children’s church, and the nursery. Taking this step does not mean that all staff members are now fired. If the staff members are biblically qualified, then re-deploy the youth pastor, the Christian education director, the children’s minister, or the other staff members."
"The proposition of this book is that the philosophy and practice of systematic, age-segregated youth ministry as defined in this book is indisputably unbiblical in its pattern, inherently destructive in its impact, and undeniably unchristian in its origin. We believe that it was adopted in the church as a result of a departure from Scripture, and that it was embraced for erroneous and pragmatic reasons. Now, after decades of practice, it has proven to be harmful to youth, to the family, to the church, and thus, to the communication of the gospel and the glory of God."
March 21, 2018
I think this book may need to come with a trigger warning for many modern American evangelicals. Scott Brown tackles a very important topic here, a topic that is entangled in sentiment yet devoid of Scriptural support, it is the topic of age-segregated programs (aimed at "discipleship" e.g. youth ministry). Sound the alarms, sit back, and buckle up.
To keep it brief: Many American families walk through the doors of their church building, only to be pulled in multiple directions, depending on their size and ages. Why? How did we come to the place where the fragmentation of the family is commonplace? P.R.A.G.M.A.T.I.SM | If it works, do it. If offering myriads of programs draws families in, then fire up the marketing team. At the root of it all is the aversion to covenantal responsibility. Fathers, as the federal head of their family, have been given the responsibility to educate and disciple their children, Scripture has made that evident. Youth ministry, as it is common today, usurp the father's role and responsibility (with his permission of course). What a mess.
Pragmatics has crept into the church. This is a product of that. Sadly, pragmatics finds its roots in secular humanism (Brown covers this at length). I do not want to give it all away. Just know you will probably walk away angry if you hold age-segregated programs near and dear to your heart. But what will happen when Scripture corrects?
At the bottom of all this is an abandonment of the sufficiency of Scripture. God does not need our help, He already created the ideal youth minister, the father...
*Oh, and Brown addresses the common objections "What if?" questions too...
To keep it brief: Many American families walk through the doors of their church building, only to be pulled in multiple directions, depending on their size and ages. Why? How did we come to the place where the fragmentation of the family is commonplace? P.R.A.G.M.A.T.I.SM | If it works, do it. If offering myriads of programs draws families in, then fire up the marketing team. At the root of it all is the aversion to covenantal responsibility. Fathers, as the federal head of their family, have been given the responsibility to educate and disciple their children, Scripture has made that evident. Youth ministry, as it is common today, usurp the father's role and responsibility (with his permission of course). What a mess.
Pragmatics has crept into the church. This is a product of that. Sadly, pragmatics finds its roots in secular humanism (Brown covers this at length). I do not want to give it all away. Just know you will probably walk away angry if you hold age-segregated programs near and dear to your heart. But what will happen when Scripture corrects?
At the bottom of all this is an abandonment of the sufficiency of Scripture. God does not need our help, He already created the ideal youth minister, the father...
*Oh, and Brown addresses the common objections "What if?" questions too...
October 6, 2024
An excellent critique of age segregation at church. I already thought youth groups are a terrible idea, but it's nice to have access to a more cohesive and thorough argument against them. The editing could have been better. I was often distracted by words smooshed together, extra periods, and occasional sentences that didn't make sense. The biggest strength of the book is that it encourages Christians to question culture and trust God, which in practice really just means applying the regulative principle of worship to discipling our kiddos.
December 11, 2019
This is a fantastic book! Brown clearly explains the problem of age-segregated ministry as a departure from God’s Biblical model of ministry. He lays out the history of the problem and outlines numerous objections to his argument, only to counter them with reason informed by Scripture. He even offers steps forward and encouragement to those moved to pull the weed. Well done. Much needed.
August 23, 2020
Pleasantly surprised at the content of this book. It is interesting to learn how the modern church has really convoluted and even ignored the biblical mandate and structure of discipleship. If families and churches are really wanting to disciple young people so that they grow into biblical leaders in their family and church, I would recommend this book to be considered.
March 12, 2023
Decent book, repetitive, could have been half as long and one section was literally copied and pasted in another section. I don’t agree with his conclusions and think the Family-Integrated Church is extreme in the 21st century. Read with discernment…
January 17, 2020
Helpful resource for anyone looking to think biblically about youth discipleship and how to lead your church to a biblical model of ministry.
April 17, 2013
We live in an age where the plain Gospel of Jesus Christ is not good enough for people. The church has become an entertainment mecca with the primary focus on the "youth". I still believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God unto salvation! I still believe that the Bible is the only rule of faith and rule to govern our lives. Sadly, the Gospel has taken a back seat to the "modern" ministry techniques.
This brings me to "A Weed in the Church" by Scott Brown. I just finished it and it hits hard. It is principally a "back to basics" in ministry tool. Since I first came to the Lord, 10 years ago, and read the Bible through I have struggled with the many titles that churches grant people. I struggled with the question "If we take the book of Acts church and put it in front of our church, would it match up?" The answer is a resounding "no". I have tried to champion this thought, and have met major resistance all across the board.
This author hits you between the eyes with the problems in modern youth ministry, but to be honest, it is necessary. This will shake the foundations of the modern youth movement, and I think it is a must read for every pastor. Read it for yourself and then give it to your pastor.
This brings me to "A Weed in the Church" by Scott Brown. I just finished it and it hits hard. It is principally a "back to basics" in ministry tool. Since I first came to the Lord, 10 years ago, and read the Bible through I have struggled with the many titles that churches grant people. I struggled with the question "If we take the book of Acts church and put it in front of our church, would it match up?" The answer is a resounding "no". I have tried to champion this thought, and have met major resistance all across the board.
This author hits you between the eyes with the problems in modern youth ministry, but to be honest, it is necessary. This will shake the foundations of the modern youth movement, and I think it is a must read for every pastor. Read it for yourself and then give it to your pastor.
April 2, 2014
If you actually do the research you will find out that it is likely Jesus was a youth pastor. His disciples would likely have been teenagers except for Peter who was probably around 20.
1. People in Jesus' time were considered adults at age 12
2. Peter is the only one married
3. Peter is often noted speaking first which is a sign of respect for elders
4. Only four-drachma coin paid for the temple tax in Mat 17:24-27 and if you read Ex. 30:14 you know that only people over 20 have to pay that tax
5. Matthew was a tax collector and tax collectors were children or young adults in that time so that people would be less likely to kill them
6. John was called an "adolescent" which indicates that he was under 12
If you believe in Jesus and His ministry then it is impossible to believe that youth ministry is wrong; however, many youth ministries do need to refocus away from "stuff" to focusing on Jesus!
1. People in Jesus' time were considered adults at age 12
2. Peter is the only one married
3. Peter is often noted speaking first which is a sign of respect for elders
4. Only four-drachma coin paid for the temple tax in Mat 17:24-27 and if you read Ex. 30:14 you know that only people over 20 have to pay that tax
5. Matthew was a tax collector and tax collectors were children or young adults in that time so that people would be less likely to kill them
6. John was called an "adolescent" which indicates that he was under 12
If you believe in Jesus and His ministry then it is impossible to believe that youth ministry is wrong; however, many youth ministries do need to refocus away from "stuff" to focusing on Jesus!
April 5, 2013
I agree with other reviews I've read of this book. While I think the general thought is, indeed, accurate, I found the author a bit heavy-handed with it. A good read, but read it with a grain of salt. Unfortunately, rather than writing disclaimers in the beginning, the writer tends to throw the baby out with the bath water and then go searching for the baby. If you are planning on reading it, know that ahead of time. Understand that after he bashes everything we are doing, he then goes back and gives the occasional, "...that's not to say it's all bad, or all youth ministers are satan..." type of line.
July 27, 2016
"As I have watched what has happened in most of our churches, I have become convinced that Scott Brown is far more right than wrong on this matter. I, for one, am extraordinarily grateful that he has gone to the trouble to write this book and articulate the position. May God grant that many will listen to it before our families are totally lost and with them the churches also. Our families simply must have some time when they worship and study together.”
Dr. Paige Patterson, President of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Dr. Paige Patterson, President of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
October 27, 2011
I borrowed this book from a friend and just skimmed through it. I read some sections thoroughly and skipped others, as they are not relevant to me at this time. But here are a couple great points I took from the book:
*"It is crucial to avoid compromising the message of Scripture, both in what we say and in how we say it." (pl. 49)
*Siting Leviticus 10: 1-3 "God did not say, 'I told you not to do that.' He said in effect, 'I did not tell you to do that.' Consider how many things the church is doing today that God did not tell it to do. Does that bother us?" (p. 87)
*"It is crucial to avoid compromising the message of Scripture, both in what we say and in how we say it." (pl. 49)
*Siting Leviticus 10: 1-3 "God did not say, 'I told you not to do that.' He said in effect, 'I did not tell you to do that.' Consider how many things the church is doing today that God did not tell it to do. Does that bother us?" (p. 87)
December 4, 2010
Slightly disappointing. I had hoped that this book would carefully seek to break new ground in the debate between "family-integrated," "family-based," and "family-equipping" models of youth ministry. Instead, it is designed to popularize the views of the family-integrated proponents. The book raises good points to consider; however, I would criticize it for historical inaccuracies and biblically questionable assertions.
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August 11, 2012A great book! This book is very challenging. I initially picked it up thinking I needed to read something out of my comfort zone and I am sure glad I did. though it has brought me to a point where I have re-evaluate pretty much everything I do for a living (at least how I do it) I am glad to have read it and am prayerfully considering its implications to my life and ministry. I would strongly recommend reading this book to anyone in youth ministry and/or church ministry in general.
October 24, 2014
Over all tone could be less argumentative and more love for those whom he disagree's with could be shown. However, the arguments are sounds and need to be dealt with if you are taking an age segregated approach.
June 17, 2011
I am about 40% done and it has been a compelling read thus far.
July 31, 2012
Prescient and relevant. The case made in the book is solid.
October 16, 2012
Talk about a weed!
October 6, 2013
Important thoughts on the way we do youth ministry and make disciples.
September 11, 2017
I began reading this a couple years ago, but didn't finish it. I came back to it to finish it in light of a study committee I'm on at my local church.
I tend to agree with the thesis of the book and on the majority of observations and conclusions offered. Our segregated style of community has plagued the church and finds the majority of it's influence from secular culture. There is no doubt in my mind that God's intention is for covenant family worship and discipleship. The scriptures make that clear.
The main point I took away from this is the accusation that even having some type of segregated Sunday School movement or youth ministry can undermine even solid home discipleship. Instead complimenting each other, they can be in competition with each other. the other concern is does it excuse father's from doing their duty at home, and does that alone warrant consideration for removing Sunday Schools?
Does this same attitude of dropping of children off at Sunday School, Children's Church, or the nursery manifest itself in families doing the same outside of church with Day Care?
I look at my own church and I can see how this may be true. There is always a call for more help in the Sunday Schools. There is even some training. Lots of resources are poured into this. I see very little resources put into encouraging father's to discipling children. Or showing them how to do it.
We will not change the trajectory in the church in America until father's humble themselves, sacrifice some of their ambitions, and disciple there homes. May God turn the hearts of father's toward their children.
I tend to agree with the thesis of the book and on the majority of observations and conclusions offered. Our segregated style of community has plagued the church and finds the majority of it's influence from secular culture. There is no doubt in my mind that God's intention is for covenant family worship and discipleship. The scriptures make that clear.
The main point I took away from this is the accusation that even having some type of segregated Sunday School movement or youth ministry can undermine even solid home discipleship. Instead complimenting each other, they can be in competition with each other. the other concern is does it excuse father's from doing their duty at home, and does that alone warrant consideration for removing Sunday Schools?
Does this same attitude of dropping of children off at Sunday School, Children's Church, or the nursery manifest itself in families doing the same outside of church with Day Care?
I look at my own church and I can see how this may be true. There is always a call for more help in the Sunday Schools. There is even some training. Lots of resources are poured into this. I see very little resources put into encouraging father's to discipling children. Or showing them how to do it.
We will not change the trajectory in the church in America until father's humble themselves, sacrifice some of their ambitions, and disciple there homes. May God turn the hearts of father's toward their children.
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