In The Meeting of the Waters, the first Global Current I discuss is Mercy — that is, various forms of witness and testimony other than verbal proclamation. Today’s emerging generation of believers wants to serve the poor, care for AIDS patients, steward creation, rescue slaves, produce art and beauty, and create businesses of transparency — and thereby earn opportunities to talk about the Author of all that is good. I call these younger believers the Mercy Generation, because of their deep desire to be incarnational witnesses to Christ.
In the last half of the 20th century, evangelicals often expressed their faith in propositional statements, leading with their personal testimony and supporting it with apologetics. I believe that the tendency of today’s emerging generation to express its Bible-based faith through acts of mercy and justice is generally a healthy and vibrant development. And if at times younger believers soft-peddle or undervalue evangelism, the good news is that they are generally eager and receptive to older Christian mentors. That places a priority on older believers to keep younger ones balanced on both acts of mercy and also proclamation.
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