Essential Christianity! Series

We are turning to 1st John today, the first epistle of John, and I will explain to you why we are after we read the first chapter and 3 verses of the 2nd chapter, and after I pray…

Let’s pray…I read an article recently that grabbed my attention, but really introduced me to what unfortunately I already new…

The Pulpit & Pen- New Barna Poll: The Christian Church is Seriously Messed up.

August 12, 2020.

A new poll last week released by George Barna’s Cultural Research Center shows that professing Christians are developing more and more decidedly unchristian beliefs, demonstrating that many of these professing Christians are in fact un-professing pagans.

As I looked at that poll directly the pollster George Barna said within it this:

Dr. George Barna, Director of Research, Cultural Research Center -Released: August 4, 2020

Just Have Faith -The context for the changing views on faith in America is exemplified by the fact that almost two out of every three adults (63%) say that having some type of religious faith is more important than which faith a person aligns with. Shockingly, a large majority of people who describe themselves as Christians (68%) embrace that idea, including those who attend evangelical (56%) and Pentecostal (62%) churches.

IN OTHER WORDS, IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT YOU BELIEVE – IT ONLY MATTERS THAT YOU SINCERELY BELIEVE SOMETHING!

Dr. George Barna, Director of Research, Cultural Research Center -Released: August 4, 2020

The Irrelevance of Sin -Concern about personal sin is on the wane in the United States. Even though seven out of ten adults claim to be Christian…, only slightly more than half of U.S. adults (56%) say they consciously and consistently attempt to avoid sinning because they know it offends God.

IN OTHER WORD’S, IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW YOU LIVE – AS LONG AS YOU SINCERELHY BELIEVE SOMETHING!

Dr. George Barna, Director of Research, Cultural Research Center -Released: August 4, 2020

Other widely held views identified in the American Worldview Inventory 2020 that are at odds with biblical teaching.

• there is no absolute moral truth (58%);

• right and wrong is determined by factors other than the Bible (77%);

• the Bible is not the authoritative and true word of God (59%);

• people are basically good (69%);

• and the personal definition of success is not based on consistent obedience to God (79%)

Another disturbing trend this past year is…

CBN- New Barna Survey Finds 1 in 3 Christians Stopped Attending Online or In-Person Church Services During Pandemic - 07-13-2020 -Andrea Morris

So what is the big deal?

Christian Post – 1 in 5 churches facing permanent closure within 18 months due to COVID-19 shutdowns: says Barna Group President -AUGUST 26, 2020

As many as one in five churches could permanently close as a result of shutdowns stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, according to David Kinnaman, president of the prominent Christian research organization Barna Group.

Christian Pilgrim -MANY CHURCHES AND DENOMINATIONS ARE THERE IN AMERICA? August 27, 2017 By Howard Kramer

The estimated number of church buildings accommodating Christian congregations is approximately 37 million. That’s one for every 65 people.

That is 7.4 million empty church buildings in the coming year!

Christian Post – 1 in 5 churches facing permanent closure within 18 months due to COVID-19 shutdowns: says Barna Group President -AUGUST 26, 2020

The disruptions related to giving, and even for those churches that have reopened, they’re seeing much smaller numbers of people show up. So simply reopening a church doesn’t fix the underlying economic challenges that you might have.”

Christian Post – 1 in 5 churches facing permanent closure within 18 months due to COVID-19 shutdowns: says Barna Group President -AUGUST 26, 2020

The NAE survey of about 1,000 churches found that 34% of churches reported a decline in giving by 10-20% or more; 22% reported a decline of 30-50% or more; and 9% reported a drop of 75% or more.

The Citizen - The pandemic and the demise of the Church By David Epps -September 23, 2020

Another disheartening fact is that, for churches that do live stream, fully one-third of the active congregation does not and has not tuned in to watch… There is the danger that people who have broken the habit of church attendance may be tempted to stay absent. It is also possible that those who have only been to “virtual church” during this time will want to stay home in their pajamas and drink coffee as they watch church from the comfort of their recliner. This would be a shame.

The Citizen - The pandemic and the demise of the Church By David Epps -September 23, 2020

A significant portion of church-goers have a “movie ticket mentality.” That is, “If I don’t go to a movie, I don’t pay for a ticket,” which translates as, “If I don’t go to church, I don’t give an offering.” It is a flawed concept of stewardship but is widespread in some circles.