The Most Amazing Statistic©

The Most Amazing Statistic© 
by Milton Jones 1

"Ninety-five percent of the people in America who become Christians do so before the age of 25. Think about that. If we don't reach people with the gospel before they reach the age of 25, we are going to miss 95 percent of them."

Numbers -- God must love them or else we wouldn't have a book in our Bible with that name. There are times when I really love numbers in evangelism. That's usually when the church is growing. And then.. there are the other times. How much should we pay attention to numbers? God does mention the 3,000 in Acts 2. And yet he mentions the shepherd leaving the 99 to look for the one. I try to be careful with numbers. There have been times when I declare their unimportance simply because I don't want to see reality so clearly. And yet there have been other times when I tended to mention them more out of pride than out of a passion for the lost. When it comes to trends, how important are the numbers? I certainly think that we should be wise and shrewd in how we approach outreach. Devoting myself to a method that doesn't work can hardly be justified. But writing someone off just because they are in the minority hardly seems loving. On the other hand, if a certain group of people are open to the gospel, shouldn't we be there more than ever? Having stated all this, let me tell you the most amazing statistic on evangelism that I have heard of in years. When I first heard it, I didn't believe it. In fact, my skepticism was so great that I had to prove it to myself in order to believe it. After traveling around and testing this statistic, I now believe it to be true. It was just a few years ago when Paul Tans wrote his study entitled "Signs of the Times," that I became aware of this overwhelming statistic. What is it? Ninety-five percent of the people in America who become Christians do so before the age of 25. Think about that. If we don't reach people with the gospel before they reach the age of 25, we are going to miss 95 percent of them. Why aren't we very evangelistic anymore? This is what so many people are asking. Why aren't churches growing more? Maybe the answer is simple-we aren't reaching young people. When I examined most of our outreach methods, events, and programs, they seemed to be designed for people much older than 25. If that is true, we are only going after five percent of the most open group of people. I certainly want older people to be saved (I like people my age), but the truth is most people my age and older have already made decisions one way or another. Should we still try and reach them? Absolutely. But what are we doing about the young? Why are we not more evangelistic? Ask someone young at church to tell you what they think. I'm afraid that many of our styles from preaching to music to programs may eclipse the gospel from young people. To be evangelistic today, we will have to communicate the gospel in such a way that young people will actually hear. Young Christians need a voice in how we minister and worship if we are going to be serious about reaching their peers. And those of us who are older will have to decide if we will allow change for the sake of the mission. I heard another statistic recently that was more current and even more sobering. Thom Rainer in his book, Closing the Back Door, states that in America, 82 percent of the people who become Christians do so before the age of 20. It just keeps getting younger and younger. And if that wasn't enough, he expanded his study and found that 75 percent of Americans who become Christians do so between the ages of 9 and 14. If we do not reach the young, we will not be seeing many people come to the Lord in our country. These statistics prompt us to reconsider the importance of children's ministry, youth ministry, and campus ministry. And it also calls us to examine whether these ministries in our churches are designed simply for "us" or do they also have an evangelistic thrust. If our ministries in the church for young people aren't outreach-oriented, when will evangelism happen? Many of our churches are waiting until it's too late. Paul teaches us to preach the word "in season" and "out of season." In America the most "open" season seems to be very related to a person's age. I want everyone to hear, but I especially want to get the word out where it is "in season." 1 Milton Jones is from Seattle, Washington. This article was first printed in 21st Century Christian Magazine then in Church Growth Magazine 15 (April - June): 3.