Love It Don't Leave It: Why Young Adults Need To Be Involved in Church in 2025

Surveys show that between 60-90% of young adults who are raised in church end up dropping out of church after high school.  That's a huge problem.  

Why is this happening?  Most Christians don't have a Biblical understanding of the church.  Below are seven common misunderstandings that lead young adults to become church drop-outs.    

1) The church is not important.

Some people don't think the church is very important.  They rank institutions like the school, the government, and other charities as higher in importance and impact.  

Wrong!  The church is very important.  Think about how important it is to Jesus; it is His bride!  Jesus loves it, provides for it, and cares for it.  Jesus is committed to building the church.  The church is also the body of Christ, His hands and feet in the world.  That means that when Christ wants to gets something done in the world, He does it through the church.  God's primary concern today is not world peace, or world hunger, or climate change; it is world redemption.  And God's primary method for accomplishing His mission is not government, or academia, or the media; it is the church.  

2) Church involvement is optional.  

"Okay, so the church is important," you reply.  "But just because it is important doesn't mean that I have to be involved in it.  I'm too busy doing other things."  

Wrong!  Church involvement is not optional, it is obligatory.  All Christians are required to be involved in church.  I can demonstrate this in several ways.  First, there is the example of the early church in Acts who were devoted to the fellowship and to meeting together every day (Acts 2:42-47).  Second, there is the clear admonition in Hebrews to not neglect gathering together (Heb 10:24-25).  And third, there are the many commands in the New Testament that are simply impossible to obey apart from church involvement.  For example, the Bible says to pursue unity in the church (Eph 4:3) and to submit to church leaders (Heb 13:17).  How are you going to obey those commands if you are not involved in church?  

3) The church doesn't need me.  

Many people drop out of church because they don't think the church needs them.  They don't think the church will miss them.  The reason many young adults feel this way is because they see themselves as the church of tomorrow.  They think that the adults are taking care of the church today, and that they will do their part when they grow up.  

Wrong!  The church does need you, and it needs you today!  The Bible teaches very clearly that every single believer is needed for the health of the church -- no matter your age or abilities (Eph 4:16).  Whether you know it or not, you have much to offer.  You can make a big difference today.  Your giving (no matter how small), your presence, your kind words, your prayers, your example, your love, your acts of service (whatever you can do) are all needed for the church to be healthy and effective.  

Church Acadiana is unique in that we are a family-integrated church.  We don't have a children's ministry or a youth ministry.  We put all of the ages together, and we tell students from a young age, "You are not the church of tomorrow, you are the church of today.  Church is not for your parents, it is for you."  We don't put the kids in a separate room.  They worship with us, serve with us, and fellowship with us.  Our hope is to teach them that contributing to the church is not for adults, but for Christians of all ages.  

4) I don't need the church.  

Many young people drop out of church because they don't see how the church benefits them.  Hebrews 10:24-25 is normally used to exhort people to not neglect going to church, but there's something else in that passage.  It tells us why church involvement is so important.  It says that we need to motivate one another to love and good works, and to encourage one another.  In other words, to be a healthy Christian you need a regular dosage of motivation and encouragement, and the place to get it is at church.  

I say this to my church all the time.  You don't need to be involved in church to go to heaven, but you do need to be involved in church to be a healthy Christian.  

5) There are no good churches.  

There are many reasons why you might come to this conclusion.  There might not be any churches with a good young adult ministry, or with other people your age.  Or there might not be any churches in your area with a cool praise band.  Or you may have noticed that all the churches in town are filled with sinners.  

The truth is that while there are no perfect churches, there are plenty of good churches.  If you ever find a perfect church don't join it, because it won't be perfect anymore.  You don't need a church with a cool praise band, or a thriving young adult ministry, or a bunch of people your age.  You need a church family who preaches sound doctrine, who loves Jesus, who loves you, and who wants to reach their community for Christ.  That's a good church.  The only perfect church is in heaven, and you can't go there until you die.  For now, find a good church and jump in.  

6) The BCM is my church.  

Some Christian college students are highly involved in their campus ministries, such as the Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM), Chi Alpha, or Campus Crusade.  I wholeheartedly encourage this.  That was me; I was the president of the BCM when I was in college.  But if you aren't careful, two things can happen.  First, you can get so involved in the BCM that you don't have time for church.  Second, you can substitute the BCM for church and stop going to church altogether.  Let me address both of these.

First, if you are too busy for church involvement, even if it's because of your involvement in the BCM, then you are too busy.  If you don't have time to attend church, be in a small group (or Sunday school), and serve, then you need to cut back on other things.  Remember that the enemy of the best things are often good things.  

Second, the BCM is not a church.  In fact, your BCM director would be the first to tell you that.  One of his goals is to help you plug in to church.  The last thing he would want is for the BCM to interfere with church.  A true church has biblically qualified leadership, preaches the gospel, observes baptism and the Lord's Supper, practices church discipline, and is intergenerational.  The BCM has some of the elements of a church, but not all, and therefore is not a church.  

7) Church is just an event.

The reason many young people drop out of church is that they just see it as a weekly event.  And if church is just an event, then all you need to do is attend.  And if church is just an event to attend, then you can just watch it on YouTube.  And if you can just watch it on YouTube, then it's probably not a big deal if you don't watch it at all.  Before you know it you've dropped out of church.  

But there's so much more to church and to church involvement.  Church is not an event, it is a ministry.  It is a missions organization.  It is a community of believers on mission together to reach unbelievers and build believers.  And for the church to be healthy and effective, every Christian needs to contribute.  Every Christian is commanded to contribute.  Every Christian has been gifted to contribute.  

Your involvement in church should include at least the following:  (1) Attend the Sunday worship service.  (2) Get involved in a small group or Sunday school class so you can experience biblical fellowship.  (3) Find a place to serve, such as working in the nursery, or being a greeter, or cutting the grass.  (4) Tithe by donating a tenth of your income to the church.  If you are doing all four of these things, you are a fully-functioning member of the church.  Until and unless you are doing all four of these, you and your church will miss out on the benefits of your church involvement.

The local church is the body and bride of Christ.  Christ loves the church, is building the church, died for the church, and provides and cares for the church.  If it's that important to Jesus, then it should be that important to you.  If anything in this world is worth your time, effort, and commitment, it is the local church.  So, don't be a church drop out.  Love it, don't leave it.