Elegy for a Moribund Church
Some go to church to take a walk; some go there to laugh and
talk.
Some go there to meet a friend; some go there their time to
spend.
Some go there to meet a lover; some go there a fault to
cover.
Some go there for speculation; some go there for
observation.
Some go there to doze and nod; the wise go there to worship
God.
Charles H.
Spurgeon (1834-1892)
This is a painful post to write. I have played my part in the decline. I bear responsibility. As someone who is responsible for the
decline, it is my duty to do what I can to reverse the decline.
It is no secret that the Mainline Denominations are losing
membership. A recent (October 17, 2019)
report from the Pew Research Center on Religion and Public Life notes a decline
of 12% in the number of people who identify as “Christian” in the past decade.
While one statistic from a longer research project means little, I encourage
you to read the entire report, along with the supporting tables which break
down the demographics to smaller groups. All can be found at: https://www.pewforum.org/2019/10/17/in-u-s-decline-of-christianity-continues-at-rapid-pace/
In its Religious Landscape Survey, the Pew Research Center
found among Mainline Protestants:
66% are absolutely certain there is a God
54% Pray at least daily
29% Look to religion to determine right and wrong (51% rely
on common sense)
32% Believe that there are absolute standards of right and
wrong (65% believe it depends
on the
situation)
24% Believe the
Bible as the literal Word of God; 35% believe the Bible but not as literal.[1]
28% Believe the
Bible is not the Word of God.
80% Believe in
Heaven
60% Believe in
Hell
The Church, both local and universal is in decline. Attendance at worship is declining.
Opportunities for Bible study and learning outside of worship is
declining. Programs that once thrived
have either dwindled or ceased entirely.
I can speak directly of one program that I led. One day,
after the pastor of the church belittled me in front of guests, I decided to
end the program. Lest you think my decision was hasty I was previously told by
a program overseer that the same pastor did not consider my program as
celebratory of God. I also asked those
non-guests who were present at the belittling if I heard what I thought I
heard. I was assured that the comment was made to put me down and to build her
up. Pardon the digression, but I put
included the situation to reach my final point: No one outside of the
participants noticed that the program had ended.
The culmination of all of this was when I was asked to leave
the church. And for that I thank God. As
so often happens when we ignore God, God takes the steps necessary to get our
attention. I am now blessed to be
attending a growing church. A church that faithfully believes the Bible to be
the inspired (we should say “expired”) Word of God, subscribes to its
traditional confessions of faith, and hears the Word preached
expositorily. Expository preaching is
essential, because it forces the pastor and the congregant to deal with
difficult passages; passages that expose our sinful nature.
To the moribund church, I beseech you, listen to God!! The signs are all about you. You have replaced the God of the Bible with
the God of self. When only 66% believe
in God, there are 34% who have replaced God with something else. When 51% rely
on common sense, they have replaced God with themselves. If only 80% believe in Heaven and 60% believe
in Hell, they have no hope in salvation and no belief in damnation.
God is forgiving and God is patient. In the Old Testament
covenant, God gave His people a law to establish a relationship between them
and God. To paraphrase, if you obey God and observe his laws, God will set you
above all nations, but if you do not obey God and observe his laws, God will
send on you cursing until you are destroyed because of your wickedness. (Deut.
28:1-20). I and II Chronicles and I and II
Kings are replete with stories of curses visited upon rebellious people and
blessings visited upon those who obeyed.
In the New Testament, Jesus tells us, “If you love Me, keep
My commandments.” (John 14:15).
The answers to your situation are clear. Return to God. Seek
Him out. Read and believe His Word. Pray and give thanks at least once a day.
Cleanse your temple of the gods of self and the secular world. Find teachers
who “preach the word… for the time is coming when people will not endure sound
teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers
to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and
wander off into myths.” (II Tim 4:2-4). May God bless you in your journey.
[1] This is
problematic. The chart itself does not take into account the use of
personification, hyperbole, and metaphor.
If you read the Bible like you read any other book, you know that you
don’t read poetry like you read history. The writers of God’s word used poetry,
narrative, proverb, epistle, sermon and many other styles. I bring this up to
posit that you may not believe the Bible is not the literal Word of God simply
because of the use of textual devices.
