Two weeks ago I started a series on why demographic data alone is not sufficient for churches to use for proclamation or evangelism strategies. I wrote about how our Case Study approach differs from what companies offering US Census data can provide.

In this post I want to write about the theology behind what Church Resources does and why you should care.  In addition to offering a unified vision for ministry to older adults, I hope to offer a reason why you and your congregation should give attention to the different needs and gifts that older adults present.

Humans have an equal distribution of original sin (Romans 3) which is what makes the gospel so universally relevant to all, both saved and non-saved alike. This is the main reason for the question, “How helpful is demographic data to congregations?” If the message is the same to both groups, how will knowing the gender, population change, density metrics, median income, etc. of your community help the proclamation of the gospel? If the remedy for sin and unbelief is to proclaim the perfect work of Christ, what else is needed but a clear voice and some ears to hear?

Poor or rich, single or married, apartment or home, rural or inner-city, all are in equal need of a clear gospel message. But young and old hear with different ears. Sure, the same words free from sin and death to both old and young, yet as we age and scripture has its way with us, we hear those words of grace with experiences of death and dying, and they are sweeter still. Age brings with it a breadth and depth of understanding that is often ignored.

The Scriptures often include both old and young in the task of the Gospel, even while making distinctions. Luke quotes Joel 2 in Acts when he writes “And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.” Both young and old are directed to the task of proclaiming the gospel but have been distinguished in their tasks by their age. Psalm 71 also speaks to this, “So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I proclaim your might to another generation, your power to all those to come.”

Paul also deals with young and old in Timothy chapter five, “Do not rebuke an older man but exhort him as you would a father; treat younger men like brothers, older women like mothers, younger women like sisters, in all purity”. Scripture does not negate the distinction of old and young. The lines that mark old and young should be important to us because they are important in scripture. The prayer of the old sinner in Psalm 71 is that they would not die until they are able to proclaim the wonders of God to another generation.

At its core, Christianity is not concerned mostly about living, but with dying. We often forget that after a worship service, many pastors deliver the same words and sacrament to those who are dying, unable to attend: “Take and drink.” The word and sacraments are sustaining, real things, even to the end. Death and dying is the ultimate line of demarcation between the young and the old. Gospel words matter most to those who sit at the edge of heaven. The elderly who have allowed this fact to touch them hear those words “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest” more deeply than I.

Have Your Elders Heard the Gospel?

The Senior Ministry Inventory is a unique research tool in that it provides data about people that can be used for and by the church for the purpose of the church. Although we include detailed demographic data for all our congregations, the congregation report is really about how the gospel message influences body and soul and how death to resurrection is understood through the work of the church.

Our Case Study survey has a different objective than merely identifying how to classify men and women into age, ethnic and income brackets. It asks that people indicate if the word they hear really lives! It focuses on assurance of salvation issues and relates them to the way life challenges our minds and bodies. Christ speaks to us about our minds and bodies when he says in Matthew 11, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”

If it turns out that many in your flock do not hear the Gospel, or that it has not sunk into their understanding, no business model will help.  Demographic data will not be a launching pad for a shiny new program, but our Case Study approach could aid a serious effort to identify who needs pastoral care while there is still time to reach them.  Our data can help you identify who still needs to hear the living voice of the Gospel.

I have one more post in this series that will bring the practical and theological together and provide the way hundreds of congregations are now viewing ministry to older adults. Stay tuned.

Peace

Aaron