A recent study by the Pew Research Center found that mainline church membership is shrinking by a cool million per year. Ouch. For a country that gained its independence from England and based its founding principles around God, the church is losing its place in society. This study believes this decline is tied to the liberal theological shift of mainline denominations such as Methodists and Presbyterians. They have apparently moved away from teaching a literal interpretation of the Bible. This shift has seemingly backfired, thus the decline.
This is not to say that a church or denomination can’t appear to thrive while having faulty theology. Look no further than the prosperity movement in many American churches that seems to monopolize the airwaves and TV these days. Their whole “faith” revolves around twisting Scripture to turn God into a genie who is waiting to grant their every wish, instead of the One who asks us to lose our lives and serve others. Rest assured, when personal and/or corporate hard times come, these individuals will struggle and their churches will fall to the wayside like ash in the wind.
Seeds sown among thorns.
Now, back to the study. It presents hard evidence that liberal theology leads to a dying church, thanks especially to those in charge of their flocks. 93% of clergy in conservative churches believe Jesus rose from the dead, in contrast to 56% in liberal churches. Only 44% of clergy in these declining churches believe God performs miracles. In short, if your pastor has a narrow view of God, you’re in a dying church that has a dying faith. You’re receiving both a shallow faith and one that has no real root.
Seeds sown on the path and on rocky ground.
Remove a belief in the power of God, and a church cannot thrive. Also, find a church that is focused mainly on expanding their membership, padding the pews, and seeking material blessing, and you’ll find a church that won’t last either.
If you think about it, both types of church—theologically liberal and those teaching the prosperity gospel—have a similar disregard for solid scriptural teaching, using a few verses here and there (often out of context) to justify their positions. The former values social justice over solid doctrine, and the latter just seems to want good things in their lives here and now.
The Apostle Paul once said, “I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead” (Philippians 3:10–11). God is looking for those who believe in His resurrection and are willing to give their lives to the point of death. In fact, if we truly believe, we have already died to ourselves (Galatians 2:20). Serve God by humbly serving others. Feed their stomachs and souls.
Seeds sown on good soil.
Give this kind of life a try. You have everything to lose.