Growing up, there was often a huge disconnect between what I learned about God and what I experienced in my daily life. In the times we went to church or when I heard people talking about Jesus, they would emphasize how good he is and how much he cares for us. But I couldn’t help wondering: if God is so good, why does life feel so hard?
When I was robbed at gunpoint during my junior year of high school, where was his goodness and protection? When my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer during my senior year, where was his care and faithfulness?
I heard the term “gospel” all the time. I was taught that the gospel is the good news that Jesus came to earth, died on the cross for our sins, was buried, and rose from the grave three days later, defeating sin and death and offering us salvation. But even though I knew that the gospel was supposed to work in our lives, I often wrestled with how it worked. The power of the gospel didn’t fully make sense to me until someone finally showed me how it connects to real-life struggles. And just like the younger me, many of our students today have heard that the gospel works, but they don’t know how it works in the day-to-day realities of their lives.
As ministers, God calls us to join in his work in the lives of students. This bring us to two vital considerations: First, we must ask ourselves how we can present the gospel in ways that tangibly relate to students lives and to the idols they worship. Second, we need to consider how to make the gospel inviting to our students without straying from its core message.
Paul’s Gospel Contextualization in Athens
The challenge with gospel contextualization is that we often think of the gospel solely as a proclamation of what Jesus did for us, rather than seeing it as the answer to life’s most pressing questions. But the gospel is deeply relevant to the struggles, fears, and questions students face. Paul’s ministry in Athens, recorded in Acts 17:16-34, provides us with a powerful framework for understanding how to contextualize the gospel.
In this passage, Paul finds himself in a city filled with idols, spiritual confusion, and competing worldviews—not unlike the world our students are navigating today. After his release from prison earlier in the chapter, Paul embarks on a journey to proclaim the gospel. In Thessalonica (Acts 17:1-9) and Berea (Acts 17:10-15), he shares the message with Jews and Gentiles alike. And in Athens Paul gives a remarkable speech at the Areopagus, showing us how to present the timeless truth of the gospel in ways that speak directly to the culture and context of his audience.
We can understand Paul’s approach in three key steps: he understands the culture, he engages respectfully, and he boldly proclaims the gospel. These steps reveal how Paul tailored his message to address the specific issues, questions, and idols of that particular context while staying true to the core of the gospel.
Understand the Culture
Observing and discerning the context you are serving in is key to presenting the gospel in ways that tangibly relate to students’ lives without straying away from its core meaning. While in Athens, Paul “saw that the city was full of idols” (Acts 17:16) and “observed the objects of their worship” (Acts 17:22). Before sharing the gospel, Paul took time to see what was going on in the city of Athens, noticing their many idols and altars. This became a starting point for Paul. Paul understood the cultural dynamics of the context in which he was ministering.
Observing all that students are navigating helps us to understand their pain points. The proclamation of the gospel is critical—so how does it connect to their pain? Before sharing the gospel, we have to take time to understand the questions, struggles, and idols in the lives of the students we serve. What are students worshipping? Is it success, identity, pleasure, security? No, students are not erecting physical temples and worshiping unknown gods at the alter, but many students are erecting temples in their hearts.
Engage Respectfully
Once Paul understood the culture, he was able to engage the people respectfully. He saw the alter of the “unknown god.” He recognized the people’s spiritual hunger and their worship “to an unknown God” (v. 23). Paul affirms their religiosity and uses their alter to the “unknown god” as a bridge to introduce the one true God. The God of Israel “created the world and everything in it… and does not live in temples made by man nor is he served by human hands” (v. 24).
Paul doesn’t discredit the Athenians’ lived cultural experience. In fact, he speaks to them in terms they understand, referencing Greek poets and philosophers, quotes that they would know like “In him we live and move an have our being” and “For we are indeed his offspring” (v. 28). Paul understood the culture and engaged the Athenians’ lived experience so that he could not only communicate that the gospel works but so that he could communicate how it works.
Like Paul, we should engage our students’ lived cultural experience with compassion and respect, looking for ways to affirm what is true while pointing to the ultimate truth in Christ. This is when the gospel becomes more than just a proclamation but a message that is active in their lives. As youth ministers, we have to understand what students are navigating in their lives, engage their lived cultural experience respectfully so that we can show them how the gospel speaks to their pain points.
For example, lets take the idol of success that is very prevalent in the lives of students. We don’t have to look far to see that we live in a success-driven culture. So much so, we tend to take every moment to highlight those successes on social media. Too many of our young people are erecting temples in their hearts and worshiping at the alter of achievement. Their identity becomes so connected to achievement that any sign of failure leaves them questioning their value and worth. The gospel speaks directly to this pain point, bringing life and freedom. Their worth is not based on what they achieve but on what Christ has already accomplished on their behalf. In Christ, they are fully loved and accepted, not because of their performance but because of his grace which frees them from the bondage of achievement.
Boldly Proclaim the Gospel
Paul does not stray away from truth. He knew that the gods the Athenians worshipped are lesser than the One true God. They created these gods with their own hands, but the one true God is Creator of all things even mankind. God is not “served by human hands as though he needed anything.” The Athenians served an “unknown god;” meanwhile, the God of Israel not only knows them but they can get to know him because “he is not far from them. Paul clearly calls the people to repent and proclaim Jesus as risen Savior and Judge (vv. 30-31). He doesn’t shy away from addressing their idols and misplaced worship, but uses their context to reveal their need for the One true God.
By connecting the gospel to the Athenians’ spiritual hunger, Paul demonstrates how the good news of Jesus is not just relevant but essential. In the same way, we must boldly proclaim the truth to students, showing them that the gospel isn’t just an abstract idea. It’s deeply personal and transformative, speaking directly to their questions, struggles, and pain.
For example, consider students who feel overwhelmed with anxiety. The gospel shows them that Jesus sees their struggles and invites them to cast their burdens and cares on him because he cares for them (1 Pet. 5:7). This acknowledges their very real experience, while pointing them to the truth: They have a Savior who is personal and loves them so much that he gave his life for them.
Give Teenagers Jesus
Looking back, I now see how the gospel answered the deepest questions I wrestled with growing up. When I was robbed at gunpoint during my junior year, I felt abandoned and unprotected. When my mom was battling cancer during my senior year, I questioned God’s goodness. But the gospel taught me that Jesus stepped into our broken world and endured unimaginable suffering, not so we would never face hardship, but so we could know that he is with us in the midst of it. His resurrection reminds us that pain and death don’t have the final word.
What I didn’t understand then but know now, is that the gospel speaks directly to the hardness of life. It tells us that God’s love is not dependent on our circumstances. Jesus meets us in our struggles, offering hope, redemption, and the assurance that we are never alone. As youth ministers, our calling is to help students see that the gospel doesn’t ignore their pain but transforms it. It’s the message that meets them where they are and points them to the One who never leaves them there.
Rooted offers both youth and family ministry mentorships, and our next cohort begins in February. Consider joining us for gospel-centered coaching for ministry!
