THE GROWTH OF ATHEISM

 "The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”  Psalm 14:1

You may not have noticed it, but the number of fools in America has been growing significantly over the past three decades.  

"Ryan Burge, a political scientist at Eastern Illinois University and a Baptist pastor, found that 23.1% of Americans now claim no religion...Catholics came in at 22%.  Evangelicals were at 22.5%...Mainline protestant denominations registered 11%...The same questions have been asked for forty-four years...The meteoric rise of religious nones began in the early 1990s and has grown 266% since 1991, he said."  [Excerpts from "There are now as many Americans who claim no religion as there are evangelicals and Catholics, a survey finds."  By Neil Monahan and Saeed Ahmed -Survey: As many Americans claim no religion as there are evangelicals, Catholics - CNN ]

You just read a credible report that the number of those reporting 'no religion' has grown 266% since 1991.  Does this bother you?  Does it cause you any concern?  What do you think this says about our culture?  About the Church?

I've attended two healthy churches since I retired in 2016.  Neither has seemed very passionate about connecting with, helping, or influencing spiritually lost people.  

It's so easy for churches to slip into a maintenance mode.  Enough money is coming in to keep things going.  Attendance is fairly stable.  Programs that seem essential are kept running.  Homeostasis feels good.  New people trickle in from time-to-time.  

Don't worry - be happy!

But outside the walls of our church, in the homes throughout our community, and in our nation in general people are craving answers to questions they can't yet formalize.  They're pursuing something, but they're not quite sure what it is yet.  Something is missing, but they don't know where to turn for answers.  And to be honest, the church is about the last place they would look for answers.

Have you ever gone to a church for the first time?  It's terrifying!  

• You don't know which door to go in.
• You don't know where to go once you're inside.
• You don't know what to expect.
• The readings and songs are foreign and meaningless to you.
• The pastor goes on for close to forty minutes - s/he seems really passionate, but you don't know what s/he's talking about.
• You notice there are very few youth or young families in the church.
• After church, everyone seems to enjoy talking, but they leave you alone.
• You breathe a sigh of relief when you get to your car and vow that you'll never do that again!

Dictionary.com defines ritual as "an established or prescribed procedure for a religious or other rite."

Why do churches rely so heavily on these prefabricated forms?  Why would we so consistently use forms that are only meaningful to those who possess the secret decoder ring?  What about those poor seekers who wander in hoping to hear the words of life?  Hoping to find something real and meaningful.  Hoping to find the resolve and strength to cope with the realities of their lives.  Who cares about them?

Are they likely to try another church?  No.

We serve a Christ who:

• came to seek and to save the lost.
• is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
• is pictured as a shepherd who leaves 99 safe in the fold while He goes out to seek the one that was lost.
• intentionally visited the pool of Bethesda in order to heal a man who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.
• gave time and attention to Zacchaeus, the hated tax collector and changed his heart.
• said to His disciples, "Let us go somewhere else--to the nearby villages--so I can preach there also. That is why I have come."\

You get the picture.  This is a man who was observed to be a friend of sinners.  

Some research I did years ago indicated that when a person becomes closely connected to a church, they will - within seven years - come to a place where they no longer have any non-Christian friends.  Yikes!  Could that be true?  Do we really flip a person's life so radically that we remove them from association with people who desperately need Christ and salvation?

HERE'S AN ASIDE:

Would you like to know the most difficult challenge I had during over forty years of leading churches?

Do I preach for the benefit of those who are established in their faith or those who need to be established in their faith?

I vacillated between these two roles constantly - by intention!  I would preach a series that was designed to minister to those who knew Jesus and were growing in their faith.  Then, I would do a series designed to be outreaching to those who were lost or struggling in their faith and needed to be grounded.  Here's the reality I had to deal with:  if I erred too much in either direction, attendance suffered!  That's the way it was...

I know that a variety of churches exist and some even seem to thrive.

• churches where the worship leaders shout and jump around and where musicians shine...
• churches where things are executed poorly with little planning and coherence...
• churches where liturgy reigns and people yawn...
• churches where the show is great, the videos excellent, the music semi-professional and the pastor uses Andy Stanley's sermons...
• churches where the platform is crowded with instruments and the sermon is spontaneous...

Where is sincerity?  genuineness?  spiritual sensitivity?  the leading of the Spirit?  the creativity that was at the core of Jesus' teaching?  the involvement of 'the body'?  the pooling of gifts and the sharing of the saints?  prayer for the lost?  the opportunity to respond to the message?  [Did altar prayer end with Billy Graham's death?]

Do we have the answer to people's questions?  Is Jesus' love big enough to see them through life's struggles?  Do we care enough to make our worship relevant to these lost souls?  

Right now the indicators are that we're not being very effective at reaching them.  Are we able to change, to adapt, to pursue, to care enough to meet them where they are?  Are we willing to admit that we've failed to get them to come to our buildings to 'get saved'?  If we're biblically astute, we'll know that Jesus told us to 'Go' to them;  He didn't tell us to have a great program so they will come to us.  

It is a PRIMARY role of the church to equip the saints for the work of ministry!  The Apostle Paul speaks specifically of the ministry of reconciliation (II Corinthians 5:18-20):

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation;  that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them [PTL!].  And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.   We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.  We implore you on Christ's behalf:  Be reconciled to God.

Can we turn this atheism trend around?  Do we want to?  Christ is still out seeking the lost.  Do we care enough to join Him?