It's the Bible You See!

In a recent blog, my friend Bob Russell, retired senior pastor at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky, articulated several reasons why youth are abandoning their Christian faith. Bob’s blog is an excellent read, and I have included a link to his blog which discusses several stumbling blocks for young people’s faith.  https://bobrussell.org/when-a-child-is-worshipped/.

I certainly believe that backsliding in the Christian Walk is not limited to just our nation’s youth. My wife Cathy and I recently attended a workshop on King David in the Book of Second Samuel of the Old Testament at the Billy Graham Evangelical Association Training Center in Asheville North Carolina. The workshop was outstanding, but the most remarkable thing was the age demographics. At 68 and 72 respectively, Cathy and I were obviously two of the youngest attendees at the workshop! Why would this be the case? Let me attempt to shed some light on this below.

When I first began my professional career in 1979 with the Bell Telephone System, it was commonplace to discuss what church one attended; what was happening at a particular church; the importance of prayer; and in many cases some sharing about one’s Christian faith. Church and Christianity were widely embraced and held in high regard with colleagues. But all that began to change in the 1990s. By the 1990s, I would characterize church attendance and Christianity as being accepted but not discussed publicly in any meaningful way. Sort of an unspoken requirement to keep your religion and politics to yourself! By the time I retired as a corporate attorney in 2024, I think it would be fair to say that being a Christian with active involvement in an Evangelical Church was not something to be shared openly. This would only be shared and discussed with those in the workplace you were sure shared your Christian faith and Christian Walk. By the time I retired, for much of Corporate America, Sunday was just as much a regular workday as any other day of the week with conference calls and meetings routinely scheduled on Sunday mornings at a time when church services would be held. I discuss this dynamic and how I sought to address it in my book Almost Finished with a link included. https://a.co/d/0hZ7x5Fu.

But it would be an incomplete and unfair conclusion to just blame Corporate America for the decline in church involvement and the practice of Christian faith by adults. It has been my experience that much of what one might consider backsliding or lack of involvement in the practice of Christian faith is a practice I would call cultural Christianity. What I mean by cultural Christianity is an undertaking by many in society whose Christian commitment is at best quite nominal and sporadic. It can be described as more like involvement in a civic organization or a hobby. Something nice to do when time and interest permits, but certainly not something that one has any strong passion or commitment to undertake on a regular basis. To be sure, this development is not surprising as the Gospel message in many mainline churches has been reduced to a lecture regarding social justice, self-help improvement, or an initiative to improve some aspect of society. None of these endeavors are bad and some do indeed add positive value to society. But none of these practices are an end in themselves and will likely not be sustainable long term unless done in conjunction with the teaching of God’s Word in Holy Scripture. You can be sure that these initiatives will soon be replaced by the latest and greatest undertaking which society endorses as the next best thing. Just wait and see.

So where does Christianity and strong church attendance exist and have staying power? I am here to tell you that you that will find robust church attendance with youth, and adult men and women committed to the Christian faith in churches where the Bible is preached and taught diligently each week without reservation or apology. This statement might come as a surprise to some, but I would maintain that it should not. Because if anyone intends to take Christian faith seriously at home, work, and other life station venues, one must take the initiative to study and understand the Word of God in Scripture. There is no shortcut to understanding who God is. God reveals Himself in His Word. Hebrews 4:12 makes clear that “The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of the spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” It should also be clear that much of the motivation to study God’s Word comes from fellowship with other like-minded Christians in a local church which places a high regard on preaching and teaching Holy Scripture.  

God bless you and thank you for the privilege of your time in reading my blog.