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Wednesday, May 13, 2015
The prophetic decline of Christianity in America
We don’t need a poll to show us the decline in Christianity in America. Just turn on the television. What would have been considered soft porn a decade ago permeates commercials and prime time TV. Public school systems aren’t debating allowing same sex restrooms, they are doing it. The idea of same sex marriage hardly whispered 15 years ago is now supported by several mainline churches. Sacrificing the unborn on the altar of personal convenience, American babies are being aborted by the millions. The local-state-federal government is successfully removing God from the public square. So when Pew Research says Christianity in America has declined to 70.8% of the population, no surprise here.
Since 2007, the US Christian population declined 7.8 percentage points, or about 10%. Meanwhile the largest increase in religious affiliation was noticed in Muslims, experiencing a 50% growth rate and becoming nearly 1% of the population. The outflow away from Christianity since 2007 essentially was matched by an increase in atheism, agnosticism or nothing at all. Pew writes: “While the drop in Christian affiliation is particularly pronounced among young adults, it is occurring among Americans of all ages. The same trends are seen among whites, blacks and Latinos; among both college graduates and adults with only a high school education; and among women as well as men.”
The research indicates that the median age of those becoming unaffiliated with Christianity is dropping each year. We are losing the young folk. This research is a condemnation of the job the church is doing. The Great Commission as given by Jesus Christ in Matthew 28:19-20 says, “Go you therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” Jesus didn’t tell us to go out and make disciples of manmade doctrines of emotionalism, self-indulgence and extra-biblical precepts.
The church has in general moved away from teaching and holding accountable to sound doctrine. It is not in the business of making disciples of Christ, but rather of other strange things. The Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 4:3-4, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they draw to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto myths.” And it is true. Paul’s solution is found in verse 2: “Preach the word; be diligent in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.” This comes by knowing the word, holding to Christ’s standard. That’s how the church grows.
Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson
For God’s Glory Alone Ministries thanks Bill Wilson and www.dailyjot.com
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