A spiritual wasteland
The growth of evangelical Christianity is in jeopardy — but not everywhere.
In 2010, Operation World published a map showing the growth of evangelical Christianity throughout the world. In the vast majority of countries, including ostensibly secular Europe, the growth in the numbers of believers was outpacing population growth. But in Canada and the United States, the increase in the numbers of Christians was lagging behind population growth, apparently defying global trends. Thus our continent appears to be a spiritual desert as compared to the rest of the globe.
North American Christians can easily become discouraged at these statistics. I have recently learnt of four congregations closing their doors after decades of existence, three in the Hamilton area and a fourth in my hometown near Chicago.
How can we reverse this decline? Many North American Christians believe that the church is not keeping up with the larger culture and is slow to embrace change. This is a frequent complaint familiar to those with connections to the oldline protestant churches. However, we need to recall that these older denominations have all but collapsed over the past 60 years precisely because they sought to keep up with the world, thereby parroting its message in their pulpits and effectively making themselves redundant. Why bother getting up on Sunday mornings to hear a message we could just as easily access on television or the internet?
Sad to say, even many evangelical congregations are following this failed strategy, implicitly conceding sovereignty to the dominant ideological narratives while trying to come up with clever ways to retain their young people. With growing numbers of Canadians and Americans checking the “none” box in surveys of religious affiliation, our churches have adopted a market approach: no one has to come, so we need to develop means to entice people into our sanctuaries. How? Perhaps by organizing praise bands and singing more contemporary music. Perhaps by avoiding those biblical teachings that our postmodern world finds offensive. Perhaps by adjusting the message to what we think people want to hear.
Speak up
But then we need to look at the map again. Christians are multiplying in those countries that are among the least free in the world. In China and India, Christians have little incentive to tone down the gospel message. To be a Christian at all entails paying a sometimes steep price. In Indonesia, for example, to confess Christ means to stand athwart the larger Muslim culture as a permanent minority.
Those of us living in comfortable circumstances would do well to learn from our fellow Christians overseas what it means to live as a minority in an alien culture. Our spiritual desert will not be revived by pandering to our culture’s prejudices, but by openly proclaiming that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners.
RE: ” However, we need to recall that these older denominations have all but collapsed over the past 60 years precisely because they sought to keep up with the world.” I am reminded of a ‘third way’ besides ‘keeping up with the world’ and ‘telling the old, old story.’ Eugene Peterson long ago noticed people’s eyes glazing over when he read the scriptures during worship. He started a fresh translation/paraphrase which has become known as THE MESSAGE these days. No gimmicks, but speaking words that people understand. Sometimes it means communicating better with those who are more visual learners as we did last Sunday by creating a tableau to help understand Jesus walking on the water, and Peter’s almost-failed attempt. Our music, incidentally was led by an old pump organ, a trumpet, and accordion, but three songs were sung a cappella.
I suggest that effectively preaching the gospel involves living it by learning how to ‘speak the Lord’s tongue in a strange land,’ which is different from pandering to trends in a wider culture.