IS GEN Z TRULY EXPERIENCING A RELIGIOUS REVIVAL?

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This post is based on an article by Kevin Brown, the 18th President of Asbury University, in Christian Post on 23/03/2025.

Christianity’s long-documented decline has levelled off. I’ve seen this first-hand with the young adults at Asbury University, where I serve as president. In February 2023, a routine chapel service on the campus led to a 16-day, nonstop worship gathering that brought over 50,000 people to the two-stoplight town of Wilmore, Kentucky. Everything I witnessed during that time ran counter to the prevailing scripts of modern life.

The space was peaceful, unified, apolitical, radically humble, hopeful, and age/class/ethnically diverse. It was nameless and faceless. “No celebrities but Jesus,” we said. I have never seen such deep and penetrating spiritual hunger in my life — a demonstrative ache for a right relationship with God and others. Importantly, though, I saw the “loosened chains” of a younger generation unevenly burdened by the pathologies of modern life (isolationism, digitization, social discord, mental health challenges, and waning institutions). Students from nearly 300 colleges and universities made the trip to Asbury for a transformative spiritual encounter. Their testimonies were raw; unedited.  They embraced strangers like family. They occupied the altar, sometimes for hours. They led, fearlessly. They prayed, zealously. Describing Gen Z, a friend remarked, “They are ready to follow the Jesus whose following is changing the world.”

My Christian higher education colleagues and I are witnessing a trend reversal emerging among Gen Z teens and young adults. In the last few years, we have seen unplanned, over 50,000 college students sing Agnus Dei a Capella at the 2024 Passion Gathering. We have seen a host of revival movements among young adults in 2024, including campuses “pregnant for revival.” Campus ministries are experiencing a spike in spiritual interest.

I (Ron Edwards) have recently written two posts on revival on university campuses: GOD AT WORK ON UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES on 02/03/2025 and 8000 STUDENTS SEEK JESUS IN HUGE KENTUCKY AWAKENING on 04/03/2025, so this article by Kevin Brown was further confirmation that God is doing something new and exciting.

There is encouraging data on Gen Z teens navigating “Digital Babylon,” and younger generations are showing renewed interest in Jesus. Student baptisms — led by students. An international focus on Gen Z and their promise for future ministry. A greater likelihood of church attendance among Gen Z compared to the Boomer generation throughout pockets of Europe, and in the United Kingdom, Gen Z teens are now the least likely generation to call themselves atheists. Describing some of the radical expressions of faith witnessed in our own community by younger generations, my wife made the provocative comment: “Perhaps Gen Z is willing to die because they are already dead.”

Culture is deadening. The scripts handed to younger generations are deadening. The nihilism and malaise of a world optimized around dopamine surges — a “dopamine nation,” as psychiatrist and bestselling author Dr. Anna Lembke puts it — has left Gen Z teens and young adults disoriented and unsettled, no longer “at ease in Zion.” Consistent with data from the Pew’s Religious Landscape Study released in February, younger generations demonstrate religiously oriented sensibilities that attract them to the Christian faith and challenge the status quo.  Christianity’s long-documented decline has levelled off, and we are seeing a resurgence of spiritual commitment among forthcoming generations. 

GOD HAS AND IS USING MUSK TO RESTORE AMERICA

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 The Democratic Party demonstrated that it no longer supports the First Amendment – the constitutional right of freedom of speech. This was the catalyst for Musk’s acquisition of Twitter for $44 billion in late 2022. The revelations of how systematic and structured the censorship really was became clear from the release of the Twitter files.

A free society cannot exist without freedom of speech. And Musk knowingly overpaid for Twitter simply to defend everyone’s constitutional right to freedom of speech. He knows that in the absence of a free society, there will only be a decline.

The threats that half of the users would leave, that Twitter would collapse, and that Musk and his team would fail miserably have been everywhere since the acquisition. But let’s look at the simple facts… Twitter had 229 million monthly active users (MAUs) prior to the acquisition. X now has 600 million monthly active users – an increase of 371 million.

There’s no other way to put it, X is absolutely thriving. It is already one of the greatest turnarounds in history and a representation of what the vast majority of the population wants.

The censorship industrial complex, which opposes freedom of speech, is also why Musk established xAI – his artificial intelligence company that will be the first to achieve artificial general intelligence (AGI).

Musk knows that as these reasoning AIs like OpenAI’s GPT and xAIs Grok become more useful, they will essentially become the operating system for our lives, and for our education. If they are programmed and trained on untruthful information, it would be disastrous for civilization.

That’s why the goal of xAI is to produce an unbiased, “maximum-truth-seeking AI.” Balanced, unbiased, evidence-based, and capable of incredible performance and scientific discoveries.

Pray that Musk’s eyes will be opened to the truth of God’s Word and that he will understand what a good God we have and come to the knowledge of what Jesus Christ accomplished for us with His death on the Cross.

BIBLE SALES ARE SKYROCKETING: WHY?

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God’s truth is reaching new eyes, with Bibles reportedly flying off shelves. In fact, Bible sales were up 22% for the year through to the end of last October when compared to the previous year’s sales, according to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). And here’s why this figure matters. U.S. book sales were up less than 1% during that same period, meaning the Bible’s growth in sales far outpaced what was happening more generally in the print literary space. The WSJ crunched the numbers and found Bible sales increased from 9.7 million in 2019 to 14.2 million in 2023. In the first 10 months of 2024, 13.7 million copies were sold, with still two months left to count. So, why the increase? It seems that chaos and uncertainty in the world, among other factors, could be turning people back to the Lord. “People are experiencing anxiety, and they’re worried for their children and grandchildren,” Jeff Crosby, president of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, told the WSJ. “It’s related to artificial intelligence, wars and rumours of wars, election cycles…and all of that feeds a desire for assurance that we’re going to be OK.”

One bookstore manager told the outlet she’s seeing many first-time buyers come in looking for the Scriptures — people she said are on a quest for “hope.” Young people, in particular, could be looking for answers to some of life’s tough questions, especially as cultural confusion grows. And with new editions and versions of the Bible hitting the market, there are more options than ever for these individuals to engage in Scripture. Some of the other potential reasons for the increase mentioned by the WSJ are celebrities speaking out about faith and influencers on YouTube, TikTok, and other platforms sharing their beliefs with new audiences. As reported in 2023, research backs the idea young people have a growing curiosity about faith. The “State of the Bible 2023” report released at the time did reveal that 44% of Gen Z adults between the ages of 18-26 were either very or extremely curious about Jesus and/or the Bible.

And nearly half of Gen Z said the Bible has transformed their lives. Among older Gen Z adults aged 18-21, 49% reported this transformation, with 52% of those aged 22-26 stating the same. Months later, Dr. John Plake, chief program officer at the American Bible Society, said 21% of Gen Z adults claimed in his organization’s 2024 “State of the Bible” survey — the wave that followed the 2023 data — that “they’ve actually increased their use of the Bible within the last year.” “They’re leaning into the Bible,” Plake said. “They’re really trying to engage in their faith, and they are kind of a bright hope for us as a young generation of American adults.” This fits with my recent posts reporting revivals on university campuses.

WHAT IS PROGRESSIVE CHRISTIANITY AND ITS CAUSE?

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Many critics of the Christian faith have no interest whatsoever in an open-minded exploration of God’s grace. They simply take great satisfaction in annoying believers, because our witness and commitment to the Good News disturbs the natural person. Their aim is thus to eradicate that conviction by pressuring believers to change their minds and accept an impotent version that will alleviate conviction. To some degree, it’s working. Progressive Christianity is a product of cultural compromise, particularly accepting evolution, which relegates God’s Word to myth and fables and the Christian faith to a mere option of self-help. They no longer believe that Jesus is the divine Son of God but just a moral example for us to follow.

A Christian’s journey towards victorious faith must now overcome the mirage of mind games played in culture. It’s necessary for those who know “on whom (they) have believed and (are) convinced that He is able to guard what has been entrusted” (2 Tim. 1:12) to realise what they have with God’s inerrant Word. Our message is “sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit… and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). The Christian has the powerful message of grace that by the Spirit is convicting “the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment” (John 16:8). Pushbacks at every level are reactions to the convicting nature of this spiritual dynamic.

The message of God’s grace and repentance in Jesus is an all or nothing proposition that provokes backlash and antagonism. “If the world hates you,” said Jesus, “know that it hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18). That is part of why Christians are to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matt. 5:44). Believers who represent the message of grace and repentance often become the target of a natural person’s frustrations and rebellion against God.

There are definitely times when honest and fair questions require answers. Conversations should be welcomed, particularly on evolution, as many resources are available from http://www.creation.com and http://www.answersingenesis.org to support creation versus evolution. The Lord Jesus was right that love and mercy should be hallmarks of Christian reaction. Nevertheless, Christians should begin to take our trust in God’s grace much more seriously and realise that cultural scepticism is built on “sinking sand” by flawed human beings.

AT LAST, PALESTINIANS ARE REJECTING THEIR TRUE ENEMY HAMAS

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Thousands of Palestinians have taken to the streets to protest against Hamas in Gaza for a second day, after hundreds protested on Wednesday (AEDT), in a sign of deepening angst at the militant group as frustrations over the destruction of their homes and lives boil over into the open.

The anti-Hamas demonstrations also expose the folly of Western activists, who staged pro-Hamas demonstrations in the name of these same Palestinians.

“Out, out, Hamas out,” crowds shouted in the Shujaiya neighbourhood of Gaza City, echoing chants from Tuesday’s protests, according to a video verified by Storyful.

Some Palestinians appeared defiant in the face of a possible crackdown by Hamas, which has controlled the enclave of about two million people with a firm grip and is unlikely to accept widespread dissent. Hamas tried to suppress Tuesday’s protests, but at least one of its fighters was beaten by the crowd, said Abu Tamer, a resident of Beit Lahiya, the epicentre of Tuesday’s protests in the northern Gaza Strip.

“Hamas did not prevent the protests because they completely disappeared from the streets. They cannot stand up to the population who are against them,” Abu Tamer said.

An Israeli official told local media that fact the protests had expanded on the second day was “an indication that there is a shift in the public’s attitude toward Hamas,” and showed they were authentic.

The astonishing street protests against Hamas in Gaza by thousands of brave Palestinians will hurt the terror group more than any Israeli bomb ever could. The protests, which have grown in size over successive days, speak to the central truth – which so many anti-Israeli activists in Australia cannot admit – that Hamas is the true enemy of the Palestinians in Gaza.

The fact that protests of this size are unfolding among a population which once elected Hamas as their rulers says much about how many Gazans now recognise that the terror group has jeopardised their lives and their future by its ongoing conflict with Israel.

It remains to be seen if these protests, which are so far limited in size, flourish into a broader public movement which would make it difficult, if not impossible, for Hamas to remain in power. This would be the single best outcome for the future of Gaza during the 17-month conflict because peace can only come to the enclave once Hamas has given up military and administrative power.

But the fact that thousands of Palestinians have the courage to take to the streets to label Hamas as terrorists and demand that they should leave Gaza, shows the depth of their anger and desperation.

I do not believe that Hamas could have orchestrated this action to fool Israel and the West.

THE FURY OF GOD’S COMING WRATH

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Biblical end-times prophecy reveals the fury of God’s wrath as revealed in the coming Trumpet and Bowl judgements. For brevity’s sake, I will reveal just the first trumpet judgment and the first bowl judgment. It should be sufficient to show you the magnitude of God’s wrath.

“Now, the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them. The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.” Revelation. 8:6-7

“Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.” So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and harmful and painful sores came upon the people who bore the mark of the beast and worshipped its image.” Revelation 16:1-2

We do not like to think about God’s wrath, but we only need to look back at the times God poured out His wrath upon the nation He established for His purposes, Israel, to realise the wisdom of the Scripture: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Proverbs 9:10

“Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself. And they shall know that I am the Lord—that I have spoken in my jealousy—when I spend my fury upon them. Moreover, I will make you a desolation and an object of reproach among the nations all around you and in the sight of all who pass by… I will send famine and wild beasts against you, and they will rob you of your children. Pestilence and blood shall pass through you, and I will bring the sword upon you. I am the Lord; I have spoken.” Ezekiel 5:13,17

God has given us more than enough signs to show us that we are fast approaching the time of Jesus’ second coming, first to remove the Saints before God pours out His wrath with the Trumpet and Bowl judgments. We can use this information to warn our unbelieving family and friends of God’s coming judgment. Do they really want to face God’s judgment? At least give them the following Scripture.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” John 3:16-21

DENZEL WASHINGTON SHARES A POWERFUL TESTIMONY

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Denzel Washington, the celebrated actor known for his powerful performances in films like Gladiator II, embraced a deeply personal milestone on Saturday as he was baptised and received his minister’s license at Kelly Temple in New York City.

Kelly Temple Church Of God In Christ has been in the community of Harlem for over seventy-five years. Its Statement of Faith is sound: We believe the Bible to be God’s inspired and only infallible written Word. We believe that there is only One God, eternally existent in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We believe that the only means of being cleansed from sin is through repentance and faith in the precious Blood of Jesus Christ. We believe that regeneration by the Holy Spirit is essential for personal salvation. We believe that the redemptive work of Christ on the Cross provides healing for the human body in answer to believing prayer. We believe that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, according to Acts 2:4, is given to believers who ask for it.​ We believe in the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit, by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a holy and separated life in the present world.

Addressing the congregation with humility and gratitude, the 69-year-old actor shared: “It took a while, but I’m finally here. If [God] can do this for me, there’s nothing He can’t do for you. The sky literally is the limit”, as reported by Geo News.

Dressed modestly in a gray T-shirt and black sweatpants, Denzel posed for photos holding his minister’s license and baptism certificate, marking a moment of profound transformation.

This spiritual milestone follows Washington’s candid remarks about his faith during a recent interview with Esquire in November. Reflecting on his beliefs in an industry often hesitant to discuss religion, he stated: “When you see me, you see the best I could do with what I’ve been given by my Lord and Saviour. I’m unafraid. I don’t care what anyone thinks.”

He continued, “Faith isn’t often talked about in Hollywood. It’s not fashionable or sexy. But that doesn’t mean people here don’t believe.” Washington dismissed assumptions about Hollywood’s collective stance on faith, adding, “There’s no ‘Church Actor Meetings.’ Faith is personal, and I carry mine openly.

Washington’s wife of 41 years, Pauletta Washington, also spoke emotionally during the ceremony, expressing her pride in her husband’s spiritual journey.

“Forty-six years later, here I’m still standing next to him as only God will have it,” she said, adding, “You are the head of our house, and you have set a great example for our children, who are now adults and understand the difference because we’ve shown them.”

“Denzel and Pauletta have four children: John, 40, Katia, 37, and twins Olivia and Malcolm, 33.

Pray that God will use Denzel Washington mightily as he seeks to build God’s Kingdom here on earth.

JESUS KINGDOM WILL COME, AND HIS WILL WILL BE DONE ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN

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“Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” This statement is up front in the only prayer our Lord Jesus Christ taught us to pray to our Heavenly Father. How many times has this prayer been prayed, and yet it has not come to pass? But you can rest assured it will, and Biblical end-times prophecy reveals it is not too far off.

Before 1948, Israel did not exist as a nation, so all the Biblical end-times prophecies about Israel and of Jesus returning to Earth on the Mount of Olives to rescue the nation of Israel made no sense. Hence, the miraculous rebirth of Israel was the first major Biblical end-times prophecy that was fulfilled.

The Bible reveals God will regather the Jews from all the Nations, and on Jesus’ return, with Him ruling and reigning, Israel will realise her destiny as head of the Nations. 

“Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone and will gather them from all around, and bring them to their own land. And I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. And one king shall be king over them all, and they shall be no longer two nations, and no longer divided into two kingdoms. They shall not defile themselves anymore with their idols and their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions. But I will save them from all the backslidings in which they have sinned and will cleanse them, and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.” Ezekiel 37:21-23

At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry on this earth, He recited Isaiah 61:1-2 in the synagogue:

“He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.” Isaiah 61:1-2

But note what He did then. “And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. “And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” Luke 4:20-21

Jesus did not read the rest of Isaiah’s prophecy because it refers to His second coming. Look at the incredible amount of detail it provides about what will happen at Jesus second coming to earth and during His Millennial reign.

“And the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified. They shall build up the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations. Strangers shall stand and tend your flocks; foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers; but you shall be called the priests of the Lord; they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God; you shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their glory, you shall boast. Instead of your shame, there shall be a double portion; instead of dishonour, they shall rejoice in their lot; therefore, in their land, they shall possess a double portion; they shall have everlasting joy. For I the Lord love justice, hate, robbery and wrong; I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Their offspring shall be known among the nations, and their descendants in the midst of the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge them, that they are an offspring the Lord has blessed. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations.” Isaiah 61:2-11

To fulfil Isaiah’s and Ezekiel’s prophecies 37:21-23, as well as the many other O.T. and N.T. prophecies on Jesus’ second coming, the Millennium Kingdom is a necessary transition before the new heaven and new earth. God tells us He will make Israel one nation and make a new covenant with them. He will ensure they never backslide again. The saved and the unsaved alike will behold Jesus’ rightful place as the divine sovereign of the universe.

For more on Jesus’ coming Millennial Kingdom, go to http://www.millennialkingdom.net and http://www.millennialtemple.tv

GROK 3 AND JESUS MILLENNIAL KINGDOM

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I typed into Grok 3: Next on God’s agenda is Jesus ruling and reigning on Earth for 1000 years – Jesus Millennial Kingdom.

Grok 3 responded: Yes, that’s correct! According to the biblical teachings, after Jesus’ second coming, he will establish his millennial kingdom on Earth for a thousand years. During this time, Jesus will reign as the rightful King of Kings and Lord of Lords, bringing peace, justice, and prosperity to the world. The millennial kingdom will also serve as a time for the restoration of all things, as God will finally put an end to sin, sickness, and death, and creation will be fully restored to its original glory.

Grok 3 got the last sentence wrong. The Millennial Kingdom is a transition period; it is not the time for the restoration of all things. In fact, whilst Satan is bound in the Abyss for most of the thousand years. God releases him at the end and he is still able to raise an army like the sand of the sea to come against Jesus and the glorified Saints.

“And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them.” Revelation 20:7-9

The restoration of all things takes place after this earth is destroyed by fire. Then, the second resurrection of the dead occurs, followed by Jesus’ White Throne judgment. Only after it, does John see the magnificent new Jerusalem descending from the new heaven onto a new Earth where only the righteous dwell.

PS: In case you do not know Grok 3 was developed by xAI under Elon Musk’s leadership. It represents a significant leap forward in artificial intelligence technology. Launched on February 18, 2025, this advanced AI model combines cutting-edge natural language processing with real-time data analysis capabilities. For more, I posted Introducing AI Grok 3 on 23/02/2025.

CHRIST IS KING

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Candace Owens, one of the biggest promoters of “Christ is King,” is simultaneously propping up Andrew Tate — a serial pimp, abuser, and pornographer — while claiming to be anti-pornography. Meanwhile, she’s slapping “Christ is King” on water bottles to sell to her followers. These people aren’t leading a spiritual revival. They’re running a business. The first time she tweeted Christ is King was in November of 2023.

Just like BLM turned righteous anger into a profit machine, these so-called Christian influencers are using faith and political resentment as a marketing gimmick — leveraging Christ’s name, not to glorify Him, but to glorify themselves.

“These people honour me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.” Matthew 15:8

Why this matters

The Church should have learned from the past decade of leftist manipulation. We saw how a movement. Black Lives Matter, used an agreeable phrase to dupe millions into supporting destructive ideas. And yet, many on the Right are falling for the same trap, wrapped in different rhetoric. Satan is the master deceiver.

The phrase “Christ is King” should be a proclamation of genuine faith — not a blasphemous rallying cry for internet grifters, power-hungry opportunists, or those seeking to revive failed, morally bankrupt political models. The Church’s mission is to preach the Gospel, disciple the nations, and proclaim Christ’s rule through spiritual transformation, not force.

We can’t let another movement hijack Christian language to manipulate well-meaning believers. If we don’t learn from the past, we’ll fall for the same deceptions — just repackaged for a different audience.