Skip to main content

The Greatest Threat to Christianity

Right now we are hearing a lot about different things that "threaten Christianity" in our world and culture. It seems that almost daily I see Christians post on Facebook or on Twitter about CRT (critical race theory), the LGBTQ+ agenda, or Democrats' anti-Christian hostility and their attempts to undermine and eradicate churches from America. Still other Christians I know frantically post that actually Donald Trump, bigotry, or a lack of belief in science is the real threat.

Are these things, no matter which side you are on, important to discuss? Yes! They are all a part of the culture we inhabit and are called to witness to, so we Christians should engage thoughtfully and graciously with all of it. We desperately need to have the brutal, rigorous, and honest conversations about all of these divisive topics. Still, none of these things are the greatest threat to Christianity. NONE. Not even close.

The greatest threat to Christianity is, always has been, and always will be one thing; CHRISTIANS.

Whatever threats we perceive attacking the church, from without or within, the biggest danger to the witness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ has always been Christians who do not live faithfully to the calling they have received. The one thing that does more harm to our ability to minister to our communities is Christians who proclaim Jesus with one breath and curse their neighbor with the next.

No group of people or ideology has come close to hampering the witness of Jesus than the Jesus followers. The term "Christian" has become synonymous with hypocrite. Is this fair? Maybe, maybe not. While there is no place on this planet you can go to escape hypocrisy, Christians are supposed to live up to higher standard.

Christians have commodified, simplified, and individualized the faith to such an extent that it has generally lost all power. We've watered down the Gospel to merely a feel-good message that there is nothing of worth left to offer, or we've yoked Christian faith to something foreign to it such as politics or a certain cultural ideal of what success is.

So the next time someone says CRT or Donald Trump is the greatest threat to the Gospel or Christianity, don't buy it. Those things may be things that need to be discussed seriously and their impact on Christians examined rigorously, but they aren't the real threat. It has always been those who bear the name of Christ failing to live out their calling with humility and faithfulness.

Still, I have hope. Christianity isn't about Christians. It's always been about Jesus. In the midst of all the hypocrisy, power grabbing, and fear there has always been and always will be a remnant faithfully pursuing life with Jesus. Things are not worse now than they have ever been. Sin is still just as nasty, and Jesus is still reigning supreme in glory. 

I encourage you to pray for the Church. Pray that we keep our eyes ever focused on Jesus. Pray for faithfulness, humility, and wisdom for all Christians. Pray for growth and the obedient spirit to submit to it when the moment comes. As always pray for the return of Jesus.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thankful

Today is Thanksgiving, the day that we are supposed to celebrate all the things we are thankful for. It is a time of family reunions, football, and turkey eating. I sincerely pray that each and every one of you has a good day today. I'll admit that being thankful has not been easy for me this year. As pretty much all of you know, my mother passed away December of last year. Though she had been in the hospital for months, we were not expecting it. In fact I was sure she would be finally able to come home within a matter of weeks. Instead she peacefully passed on into the arms of Jesus, whom she loved more dearly than anyone else. As you can imagine, the entire family was heart broken. After what can easily be described as the worst Christmas ever, I returned to home to Illinois. It was here that I finally broke down. I spent the next months doing everything except being thankful. I cursed God, wept, screamed, begged to have her back, and was generally not the nicest person to be...
3 comments
Read more

We Need More Images

What is your favorite way to describe God? Is there a particular name of God in scripture that you are drawn to? What images and pictures come to mind when you think of God? These are questions I don't think we ask often enough. We all have an image of God in our heads that we work with. It may not be a literal picture, though it might be, but ideas and concepts we tend to associate with who God is. Some of those images and associations may come from the Bible, but some may not. These things are influenced by our upbringing, Bible reading habits, personalities, relationships, culture, and more. The way we picture God has a dramatic impact on the way we live our lives. For example, if the primary idea you have of God is "Healer," when you hear or read that you are made in God's image you will likely feel called to heal, be it physical ailments or spiritual wounds. But, if your primary image of God is "Judge," that changes things. You very likely might tend to...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Early Middle Ages: Historical Friday

The next segment of history that we are going to overview is the Early Middle Ages. This dates roughly from AD 450 to AD 1100. This is intended to be a very general overview. There are probably historians that would classify some other time period as the "Early Middle Ages" or a more specific time period. For our purposes this will cover the aforementioned time period. This was a very influential period in the history of Christianity. It saw the formation of what we now call the Roman Catholic Church and its separation from what we would now call the Eastern Orthodox Church. Before this time there was only ONE church. There weren't different denominations or groups. It is hard for us to think about in our modern context, but there was a time when Christianity was visibly unified. Brief History The first major thing to happen during this time period is the remaining three ecumenical councils. We discussed the first four several weeks ago. These councils discussed va...
Post a Comment
Read more