You have probably heard that Christianity in America is on the decline and is on its way out; that it is just a matter of time until it disappears completely. We often hear that church attendance is declining and fewer people are becoming Christians. Are these statements true? The cultural Left and the so-called Elites in our society are surely championing such an idea. But is this factual? It does seem that there are more churches sitting vacant or being converted to other uses such as clubhouses, recreation centers, or other public buildings. A recent study by Professor Tyler J. VanderWeele of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health proves that Christianity is not in decline.
Yes, many mainline denominations are losing members in droves. The ones that are hemorrhaging those congregants are the ones that have left their first love. They have questioned the veracity of the Scriptures, the historicity of Jesus and the Disciples; they deny that sin is real, ordain homosexual ministers; they disdain marriage between one man and one woman, support and encourage extramarital sex and abortion; they have stopped teaching, preaching, and believing in true Christianity and have opted to become worldly.
Those members are not leaving Christianity, just the liberal and left-leaning churches. They are moving to churches that adhere to the basics of Christianity. Growing churches are the ones that believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God and preach it joyfully and earnestly. They are the ones that provoke their members to true discipleship, encourage their members to pray and study the Bible daily, and preach Christ and Him crucified and Resurrected. They “preach the word, stand ready in season, out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching” (2 Tim 4:2). Those churches are not declining, they are growing.
Here are some statistics from the Harvard study:
In 1989 39% of people who were serious in their faith attended churches with strong Christian beliefs and standards. Today that number is 47%.
30% of Americans believe that the Bible is the true Word of God. In other countries similar to the USA, only 10% do so.
33% of Americans pray more that once a day. In countries similar to the USA only 7% of the people do so.
Leftists and progressives cheer the fake news that churches are in decline. They are almost unanimous in their desire for Christianity to become extinct. They have been predicting the decline and extinction of Christianity since its inception at Pentecost in the first century. The Sanhedrin called Peter and John before the council and commanded them not speak or teach in the Name of Jesus. They replied, “We cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20).
Saul of Tarsus tried to eradicate Christians. Nero tried to stamp out Christians by making torches out of believers and feeding them to the lions in the arena. Several other emperors tried unsuccessfully to stop Christianity. John Lennon said “Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink.” Throughout history regimes tried to destroy Christianity. As long as this world remains, Christianity will never go extinct. The Author of Christianity is an All-Powerful Being that can do anything. His Name is Yahweh. As long as Yahweh desires it, Christianity will never die out. God has told us so: Christianity will end when Jesus returns and gathers His faithful to be with Him forever.
Do you know Jesus Christ as your Savior? He is going to return to the world soon. Are you ready? When He does if you do not know Him as your Savior, you will join all those who do not know Him in “Outer Darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Mat 22:13-14).
