Why Apologetics Matters: The Importance of Knowing the Evidence

Professor of New Testament at Biola University, Kenneth Berding, wrote an article for the school regarding his concerns that biblical illiteracy in Western culture had reached “crisis” levels. His concerns were not just for secular society but also for self-professed Christians. Berding quotes New Testament scholar David Nienhuis in characterizing the scope of the concern:

“For well over twenty years now, Christian leaders have been lamenting the loss of general biblical literacy in America. … Some among us may be tempted to seek odd solace in the recognition that our culture is increasingly post-Christian. … Much to our embarrassment, however, it has become increasingly clear that the situation is really no better among confessing Christians, even those who claim to hold the Bible in high regard.”[1]

 Berding proceeds to list some reasons he believes is contributing to this phenomenon, including daily distractions, misplaced priorities, the pretext of simply being too busy. While those elements may certainly contribute, I suggest that his list disregards the most egregious of reasons: people no longer crave the transcendent because people no longer believe in the transcendent.

Pew Research surveys reflect less than half of all self-professed Christians read the Bible daily. Less than half believe that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation. Most believe in some sort of religious universalism. Less than half believe that the Bible is the authoritative Word of God. Only a slim majority of all people in the US even believe in the God of the Bible.[2]

Further, people do not believe in the accuracy, relevance, or transcendent truth of the Bible because they are unaware of the facts in defense of the Bible, its historicity, its credibility, its veracity, and its transcendent authority. This is where Christian apologetics comes into play.

Christian apologetics (Greek, “apologia”) simply means to give a reasoned defense of the Faith. Paul exhorts readers to always be prepared to give a reasoned defense of the gospel (1 Peter 3:15). Apologetics has been described as a “pre-evangelism,” in other words, God using your faculties of rationality and reason to proper evaluate the evidence in support of God’s truth.

The apostle Paul used apologetics during his speech in Greece at the Areopagus.

The Christian needs to be grounded in the truth and know why it is the truth. Faith doesn’t make Christian claims true. Those of us who are followers of Jesus Christ have faith in the claims of our Savior exactly because the mountain of evidence exists for us to be convinced of its truth. There is no blind faith in Christendom, regardless of the pejorative claims of the enemies of Christianity.

The contemporary Christian church must view apologetics and apologetics training as a fundamental component of their church’s adult education programs. Failure to do so will eventually uncover this very uncomfortable reality; the next wave of apostates may be sitting in your church pews today.

[1] Kenneth Berding, “The Crisis of Biblical Illiteracy,” biola.edu, https://www.biola.edu/blogs/biola-magazine/2014/the-crisis-of-biblical-illiteracy, accessed February 18, 2024.

[2] Gregory A. Smith and Jessica Pumprey, “When Americans Says they Believe in God, What Do They Mean?” pewforum.org, https://www.pewforum.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2018/04/Beliefs-about-God-FOR-WEB-FULL-REPORT.pdf#:~:text=A%20new%20Pew%20Research%20Center%20survey%20of%20more,believe%20in%20God%20%E2%80%9Cas%20described%20in%20the%20Bible.%E2%80%9D, accessed February 18, 2024.

The Great Lie: Culture and the Battlefield of Propaganda

In his 2017 book called The Big Lie, Dinesh D’Souza traced the roots of the American political left back to the National Socialist roots of the German Nazi party. He emphasized, while the political left is always attempts to brand political conservatives as fascists today, in reality, this is a complete inversion of the truth. Truth becomes a lie and the lie becomes truth wrapped in a candy-coating of propaganda.

You may have seen this dichotomy in action yourself. The violent leftist group Antifa (acronym for “anti-Fascists”) uses blatantly fascist techniques of personal violence and destruction to achieve its objective of intimidation. Many big cities in blue states claim the label of “sanctuary city” but that characterization of virtue signaling has become ridiculed since the open borders policy of the Biden administration has flooded these cities beyond their capacity to support the volume. These cities can’t even support their own citizens properly. Many of the streets of the cities look like some sort of zombie movie with the open drug use, homelessness, and violence…among American citizens, not just the illegals. The propaganda of virtue signaling to feign some sort of moral framework for their ideology fails in the reality that they can’t even responsibly take care of their current citizens, not to mention a massive wave of illegal migrants.[1]

            Leftist students on American campuses regular revolt against conservative speakers, sometimes attending and creating chaos during the events, drowning out the speaker, or outright pressuring school administration to cancel the events. “No free speech for fascists!” Interesting that oppressing free speech is again, a controlling tactic of Fascism itself.

The political left argues for lesser punishment of criminals, yet they support the death penalty for unborn children. They want bigger social programs, but they have no clue how to pay for them. Note the massive growth of the national debt under the Biden administration.

The arguments are seemingly built around a strategy of “bait and switch.” Cynics attack Christianity as an attempt to “force feed” religion onto the secular public, yet they are fine with force feeding principles of critical race theory and transgender ideology (including “Drag Queen Day”) in public schools. While the left objects to psychological counseling for those experiencing true gender dysphoria, they promote irreversible sex-change surgery for minors without parental consent.[2]

Even with all of this snake oil and psychological manipulation in play today, “The Great Lie” today is the same great lie that was proposed in the garden of Eden. Satan told Adam and Eve that if they disobeyed God, they could become like him. Today, following suit just as the enemy of truth prefers, the god of self is worshipped above all. In 2013, most appropriately, the word “selfie” was recognized by the Oxford dictionary as the word of the year. We have been coerced into believing that the greatest god we can serve is the person we see in the mirror every day.

As gullible as humanity has been throughout history to the lure of propaganda, there are some occasional sparks of hope in Western culture coming from the most unexpected of sources. Religious sentiment is showing noticeable change amongst the youngest generations, sociologically labeled “Generation Z” (those born between 1997-2012) and “Millennials” (born 1981-1996). In a recent Fox News Digital interview, author and religious commentator Billy Hallowell called out the constant flood of propaganda in media, the universities, and in leftist politics, the false understanding that everything is about "you." He described this as the "'my truth, your truth' generation" which tells America's youth that they can "decide what you think is right and wrong."[3] Hallowell continues:

“I think what we're watching happen right now is… people have been living this out. Gen Z was brought up with it and they're hitting this wall and they're realizing, 'Oh my goodness, this wasn't true.' This lie that you're the ‘God of the self,’ and you get to decide everything, not only is it not true, it's not fulfilling, it leads us to dangerous places, there's no meaning.”[4]

Jesus also had direct experience with the great lie when he was approached in the desert by Satan. Satan attempted to lure Christ with the promise of instant gratification (turning stone into bread (Matthew 4:1-3), a promise of power and authority (Matthew 4:8-10), and a challenge to put God to the test and expose Him as a liar (Matthew 4:5-7).

Jesus defeated Satan by leveraging the power and authority of the Word of God. Just as Christ demonstrated, Holy Scripture is our litmus test for truth as well. Christ could have defeated Satan in a number of different ways (i.e. he could have destroyed him, taken away his power, or forever restricted his access to humanity), but He chose an option that is readily available to you and me, He defeated him with the Holy Scripture known as the Bible.

“For the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, even penetrating as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).

[1] Erin Dwinell, “Sanctuary Cities, Border Crisis Costs, and a Rude Awakening for the Left,” heritage.org,   https://www.heritage.org/immigration/commentary/sanctuary-cities-border-crisis-costs-and-rude-awakening-the-left, accessed February 18, 20224.

[2] Timothy F. Murphy, “Should Mental Health Screening and Psychotherapy be Required Prior to Body Modification for Gender Expression?” jorurnalofethics.org,  AMA J Ethics. 2016;18(11):1079-1085. doi: 10.1001/journalofethics.2016.18.11.ecas2-1611.

[3] Kendall Tietz, “Campus religious Groups Report Greater Interest from Students Trying to Find Meaning in Crumbling Culture,” foxnews.com, https://www.foxnews.com/media/campus-religious-groups-report-greater-interest-students-trying-find-meaning-crumbling-culture, accessed February 18, 2024.

[4] Tietz, “Campus religious Groups Report Greater Interest from Students Trying to Find Meaning in Crumbling Culture”.

Deconverted: Why People Turn Their Back on God

In my 2022 book, Deconverted: The Deconstruction and Dismantling of the Contemporary Church, I interviewed a number of former self-professed Christians who turned their back on the Christian faith and had embraced the ideology of atheism. Some had even become anti-theists, claiming the religion was not just a worldview to be rejected, but that religion as an institution was innately evil. There were a number of things learned from these interviews that I’d like to share.

Nobody Rejected Christianity Based on the Evidence 

            While I attempted to raise questions of historicity, archeological evidences, and scientific evidences confirmed in the Bible, there was not a single person who pursued religious deconversion as a result of evidential evaluation. All of the deconversions from my interviews were based on experiential events in their lives. A man who lost his son to a horrible accident which eventually led him to question God. Events or relationship in church that sourced or became toxic. There were people who lost jobs, experienced the death of parents, and other life events that instigated a re-evaluation of the transcendent. As a follower of Christ, the most disconcerting to me were the stories of apathy by the church as to the deconversion process occurring in their lives. Some of the deconversions occurred over the course of years as they struggled through the possibility of stepping away from the community of church that had become such a big part of their lives. For these people, experience trumped historical evidence, so they turned their back on God.

Cognitive Dissonance: God Versus Culture

Another common thread was evident among the interviewees; almost all were politically left leaning, even while they considered themselves to be a Christian. They supported key tenets of leftism in today’s moral culture war including abortion, LBGT activism, feminism, and gender/identity ideology; all of which conflict with the objective moral framework of historic Christianity and biblical scripture. Thus, was the basis of their cognitive dissonance (the perception of contradictory information and the mental toll of the attempt to reconcile the differences).

Eventually, for those interviewed for my book, culture and postmodern thinking won a war of their mind. Even one gentleman who had been politically conversative before his deconversion, switched his politics with his faith and said to me, “I never knew how racist Republicans were before I became an atheist.” He even used the pejorative as a descriptor of the “Christian God” as well.[1]

There’s Only Two Worldviews

Even in a world of seemingly endless opinions and ideologies, they all boil down to only two: Either God is God, or I am God. The first recognizes something transcendent and greater beyond themselves. With the second, people simply elevate themselves, their perspectives, their experiences, their rejection of transcendent and objective truth, and in doing so, their own version of reality becomes their ultimate deity.

Harry Emerson Fosdick once said, “When a man is wrapped up in himself, he makes a pretty small package.”[2] One needs to look no further than the latest psychological literature to see evidence of the disastrous impact on modern society of the god of self. As God is slowly eliminated from relevance in modern society, psychosis, anxiety, mental health drug prescriptions, and suicides are at all-time highs. More than 50,000 Americans died by suicide in 2023. More than any other year on record.[3]

Originally written in 1882 and reprinted in English countless times since, German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche famously wrote of a speech on a crowded street corner by a “madman” declaring the death of God and placing the blame on society:

“Have you not heard of that madman who lit a lantern in the bright morning hours, ran to the marketplace, and cried incessantly: ‘I seek God! I seek God!’—As many of those who did not believe in God were standing around just then, he provoked much laughter . . .”

“The madman jumped into their midst and pierced them with his look. ‘Whither is God?’ he cried; ‘I will tell you. We have killed him—you and I. All of us are his murderers. But how did we do this? How could we drink up the sea? Who gave us the sponge to wipe away the entire horizon? What were we doing when we unchained this earth from its sun? . . . . Do we hear nothing as yet of the noise of the gravediggers who are burying God? Do we smell nothing as yet of the godly decomposition—Gods, too, decompose. God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him.”

“How shall we console ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? . . . Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods if only to appear worthy of it? There has never been a greater deed; and whoever is born after us—for the sake of this deed he will belong to a higher history than all history hitherto.”

“Here the madman fell silent and looked again at his listeners; and they, too, were silent and stared at him in astonishment. At last, he threw his lantern on the ground, and it broke into pieces and went out. “I come too early,” he said then; “my time is not yet. This tremendous event is still on its way, still wandering; it has not yet reached the ears of men . . . . This deed is still most distant from them than the most distant stars—and yet they have done it themselves.”[4]

Nietzsche’s point about wiping away the horizon is that man unknowing eliminates humanity’s frame of reference for their reality. In doing so, we would become psychologically distorted and disoriented. There is ample evidence in the 21st century that Nietzsche was right on the mark.

Humanity needs God. Our soul thirsts for Him. Our psyche depends on Him. Meaning, purpose, destiny, and justice are meaningless words without Him. God is not dead, nor is He silent.

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose trust is the Lord. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream, and does not fear when the heat comes; But its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought, nor cease to yield fruit (Jeremiah 17:7-8).

[1] Jeffery Childress, Deconverted: The Deconstruction and Dismantling of the Contemporary Church (Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, 2022), 32.

[2] Although commonly attributed to Fosdick and others such as Banjamin Franklin and John Ruskin, n evidence has been found to identify the original source of the quote.

[3] Staff Article and Video, “More Than 50,000 Americans Died by Suicide in 2023,” nbcnews.com,   https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/video/more-than-50-000-americans-died-by-suicide-in-2023-more-than-any-year-on-record-201161285832, accessed February 17, 2024.

[4] Friedrich Nietzsche, The Gay Science (Mineola, NY: Dover, 2012), 125.

The Authority of Scripture: Why It Should Matter to You

In 303 AD, Roman emperor Diocletian issued an edict that eliminated the rights of all Christians in an effort to eliminate the religion from the empire. Bibles were specifically targeted as a critical element of eliminating Christianity because the emperor knew of the power of the written word as a catalyst in spreading the message of the Christ.

Even though Diocletian’s strategy would seem to be a particularly effective mechanism of social construction, he obviously was not aware of the transcendent power of the Bible. Diocletian did not realize he targeted a book whose power and authority extended beyond just the physical pages. He failed miserably in his attempt, because within 10 years, emperor Constantine had issued the Edict of Milan that formally recognized Christianity. 10 years after that, Christianity became the official religion of Rome. How could the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ have endured years of persecution and direct attempts at its elimination, and yet, it not only survived, but it thrived? Today, 1 out of 3 people walking on the face of the earth consider themselves to be followers of Jesus Christ.[1]

Attacks on the Bible have continued throughout history, and they certainly continue today. At a macro level, these attacks have also failed miserably. The Bible remains as the highest selling book in the history of the world at over 7 billion copies sold. The question remains, why has this book proven to be so resilient, reliable, and indestructible? Could something else be involved? Could its seemingly immortal and ineradicable existence shed light on its self-proclaimed supernatural origins?

As followers of Jesus Christ, we are very clear as to the source of biblical authority. First and foremost, the Bible proclaims itself as the perfect and true written Word of God. (Psalm 19:7, Psalm 119, Psalm 111:7, Deuteronomy 4, among many others). The Old Testament has over 3800 claims of speaking the very words of God.

New Testament writers refer to the OT as scripture over 320 times and make over 1000 references to the OT. The apostle Paul claims the source of his writings are directly from Christ. “For I would have you know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel which was preached by me is not of human invention. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ” (Galatians 1:11).

Numerous writers refer to letters of other NT writers as scripture. (i.e. Paul, referring to Luke’s writings in Luke 10:7; Peter, referring to Paul’s writings, declares them as scripture in 2 Peter 3:15, 16. John wrote the book of Revelation and repeatedly claimed the source was Divine. The writers were confident in their understanding that they were writing the very Word of God.

            Finally, Jesus quoted Holy Scripture repeated, declaring it an entire, unbreakable unit (John 10:35). He proclaimed the writings of scripture as prophetic of His ministry. “You examine the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is those very Scriptures that testify about Me” (John 5:39-44). His view of scripture was that it was the very Word of God.

In the first and second centuries, after Jesus’s death and resurrection, the early church grew throughout Palestine, Asia Minor, and the Roman empire. It grew because of the early apostles, early missionaries, and early church fathers, and it grew on the back of the earliest texts of scripture duplicated and distributed, and again, duplicated and distributed until it was virtually impossible to destroy them all. We now know of over 5800 Greek manuscripts of the New Testament. We know of over 10,000 copies of Latin manuscripts and 9,300 copies of other texts.[2]

It is somewhat understandable for the enemies of the faith to believe that if they attack and destroy the Bible, they could destroy Christianity. However, after thousands of years, the Bible remains the most reproduced book in the history of humanity. It will not be destroyed.

It is attacked because it contains the evidence that declares humanity guilty in the eyes of God. The Bible is the proverbial smoking gun in the trial of man. It is the story of man’s sin. It is the story of man’s fallen condition; It is the story of our guilt before God.

Would they try to destroy it if they only understood that it is also a story of redemption? The entirety of the Christian Bible is the story of God’s desire to reconcile man to Himself. And it is the story of Christ’s sacrifice of His own life so they we can live as new creatures. Unbelievers still attack it because the grand story of the Bible is a story of a creation that is subject to a perfect Father, whom they will one day have to answer for their sins. But thank God that it is also the story of a Savior that will one day stand on our side, as our public defender, in declaring us sinless before Him.

The Bible is hated because it matters. The Bible is hated because it is life-changing, full of truth, incontrovertible, and uniquely authoritative. The non-believers and anti-theists attack it because they know the power of its claim to authority. We can only hope that one day, the church wakes up to this same reality.

[1] Staff Report, “Global Christianity: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World’s Christian Population,” pewresearch.com, https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2011/12/19/global-christianity-exec/#:~:text=A%20comprehensive%20demographic%20study%20of%20more%20than%20200,the%20estimated%202010%20global%20population%20of%206.9%20billion, accessed February 12, 2024.

[2] Staff Article, “Where Is the Original Bible?” hc.edu, https://hc.edu/museums/dunham-bible-museum/tour-of-the-museum/past-exhibits/biblical-manuscripts/, accessed February 12, 2024.

The Powerful Relationship Between Apologetics and Expository Preaching

In 2021, the Christian Post reported of a Nashville-based church whose pastor proclaimed online, “The Bible isn’t: the Word of God, self-interpreting, a science book, an answer/rule book, inerrant or infallible. Rather, it is: a product of community, a library of texts, multi-vocal, a human response to God, living and dynamic."[1] Many evangelicals have become familiar to the tenets of so-called “Progressive Christians” (as the Nashville church describes its congregation) as they define a new religion that has little in common with historic, traditional Christianity and very little dependence on Holy Scripture for guidance. However, while not surprised with secular rejection of the spiritual authority of a sacred text, one may be surprised with how this perspective is growing among self-identified evangelicals, themselves.

Evangelical Christianity has long been defined in its foundation of the Bible as the authority of God’s revelation to humanity. Deviant variations continue to spring up, bearing only a feint shadow of historic Christianity, which has happened throughout history. Mainly motivated by an attempt to create the perception of theological legitimacy of culturally biased and heretical ideologies, a snapshot of this movement displays the embrace of heresy among these “neo-evangelicals.” Not surprisingly, surveys in 2022 suggest that only 40% of this segment believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God.[2]

The Bible clearly predicts this widespread affirmation of propaganda and rejection of biblical truths. Apostle Paul writes, “For the time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires, and they will turn their ears away from the truth and will turn aside to myths (2 Timothy 4:3,4).

 With Jesus’s prayer in John 17:15 (“I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one”) and His promise to Peter regarding the church in Matthew 16:18 (“the gates of Hell will not prevail against it”), it is evident that God will not allow evil to destroy His church, ultimately; however, legitimate followers of Jesus Christ must understand their role in combating this plague (see Revelation 2 and 3 for the apostle John’s various warnings to the churches in Asia regarding deviant ideologies infiltrating the church at that time). Likewise, there are a number of areas the church must address in standing against this phenomenon.

Start a Christian Apologetics Training Program in Your Church

Christian apologetics (Greek, “apologia”) simply means to give a reasoned defense of the Faith. Paul exhorts readers to always be prepared to give a reasoned defense of the gospel (1 Peter 3:15). Given the incredibly small percentage of evangelicals who believe in the authority of the Bible as the written Word of God, the apologetic illiteracy level for the contemporary Christian surely must be at its highest point in modern history.

The average Christian lacks basic understanding of the historicity of the Bible with less than a third of Protestant churchgoers who even bother to read the Bible daily.[3] Sadly, many are unaware of the mountain of archaeological evidence supporting innumerable data points in the Bible. They are unaware of the scientific fine-tuning evidence that screams out in defense of a Creator-God.

Probably the most famous atheist of the twentieth century, Antony Flew, on his eventual conversion to Theism, wrote, “There were two factors in particular that were decisive. One was my growing empathy with the insight of Einstein and other noted scientists that there had to be an Intelligence behind the integrated complexity of the physical Universe.”[4] Similarly, many others are unaware of the clinical research evidence that supports the positive mental and physical health of believers versus those who claim no faith, and therefore no hope or meaning in the world.[5] [The fruits of toxic, narcissistic existentialism]

Most importantly, they are unaware of the evidence that supports the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. (See the latest from Gary Habermas, who just released the first volume of his 5000+ page magnum opus on the evidence for the resurrection of Christ.[5]) The church must understand that formal apologetics training programs are necessary for current believers to understand the historicity and viridity of the claims of Christianity and by doing so, establish the evidence for the authority of Holy Scripture.

Shift to Expository Preaching in the Pulpit

Expository preaching is the process of interpreting and explaining the Biblical text in its original context, understanding that the Bible written to and about others, but on our behalf. This discipline differentiates from topical preaching, the other method of preaching common today, by its traditional verse by verse analysis of the text. Of the many benefits of expository preaching is its high view of scripture. Jason Allen, President of the Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, explains:

It’s one thing for theological liberals who disavow the inerrancy of Scripture not to preach the Word, but it’s altogether another thing for evangelical preachers to neglect the Scriptures. To do so is illogical, and it undermines one’s claim to believe in the inspiration, inerrancy, and authority of Scripture. Consistent exposition affirms a Bible that is true, powerful, and life changing.[6]

Topical preaching does not require a tight tether to scripture, and it can promote personal perspectives as a basis of biblical interpretation. This is not always the case, of course, as many biblically-sound ministers use topical preaching because it is perceived to offer a sense of modern relevance to scripture. However, it is rare to see those who devalue the authority of the Word of God when using the method of expository preaching.

Many of these sects steal the term “Christian” and apply it to their  clearly non-Christian ideology (usually driven by political and/or social movements—i.e., Progressive Christians, Christian Socialists, “the Christian Left,” etc.) Such groups are forced to reference Holy Scripture (via circular reasoning) only marginally in order to claim justification for their deviant beliefs. A church that is anchored in expository preaching has correspondingly prioritized its preaching to be anchored in the singular power and authority of the Word of the Living God.

Return to Personal Ministry

Approximately 70% of evangelical churches in America today have congregations of 100 or less.[7] This number reflects a challenging dynamic financially, considering the need to employ a full-time pastor (the percentage of bivocational pastors, those who have primary employment outside the church, averages roughly 26 percent) [8] and a modicum of other church staff. As a result, church growth is an understandable priority, even considering the church’s Great Commission mandate (Matthew 28:19-20).

There is evidence that suggests, in the era of “the seeker” (those not committed to single church but desire a home base for Christian worship), it seems the evangelical church may be inappropriately prioritizing the allure of slick marketing in place of the hard truth, yet life-changing message of sin and redemption. The allure is illusory.

Even when evaluating the reasons “seekers” look to change churches (the most common reason is physical relocation), it seems the influence of cultural norms dominates.

As Christians navigate these changes, discussions within the faith community, such as those surrounding controversial topics like LGBTQ+ inclusion, continue to provoke reflection and debate. Individuals like Alistair Begg, whose recent remarks on attending same-sex weddings stirred controversy, prompt broader conversations about the intersection of faith, culture, and personal convictions. The experiences and perspectives shared in these discussions underscore the dynamic nature of Christian fellowship and the ongoing quest for spiritual authenticity and relevance in contemporary society.[9]

Interpretation: Seekers desire a church that will affirm twenty-first century societal norms, not the transcendent, objective, immutable truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I challenge the contemporary church to keep their faith rooted in the calling and the commission: Keep your message focused on Jesus Christ. There is no promise of volume, grandeur, or fame as a result of your calling.

There is a promise that Jesus Christ will honor your ministry when it is focused on His truth and on His people (Matthew 22:37-39), However, there are indeed people sitting in the church pew’s todays who are spiritually starving. Worship can happen corporately (as a group) but ministry happens on an individual basis. Go back to ministering to your church, one child of God at a time.

May we pray that God’s church has the backbone to stand against evil, hatred, and deceit and eventually become worthy of the declaration, “Well done, my good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21).

[1] Leonardo Blair, “Nashville Church Says the Bible Isn’t the Word of God, Then Draws Ire,” christianpost.com, https://www.christianpost.com/news/nashville-church-says-bible-isnt-the-word-of-god.html.

[2] Staff Article, “Gallup: Less Than Half of Evangelicals Believe the Bible is ‘The Word of God,’” decisionmagazine.com, https://decisionmagazine.com/gallup-less-than-half-of-evangelicals-believe-bible-is-actual-word-of god/#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20random%20telephone%20survey%20of%201%2C007, the%20Bible%20as%20the%20%E2%80%9Cinspired%20word%20of%20God.%E2%80%9D.

[3] Aaron Earls, “Few Protestant Churchgoers Read the Bible Daily,” lifeway.com, https://research.lifeway.com/2019/07/02/few-protestant-churchgoers-read-the-bible-daily/.

[4] Bejamin Wilker, “How the World’s Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind,” strangenotions.com,  https://strangenotions.com/flew/?_ga=2.30826679.948443674.1707160459-1193725818.1707160456.

[5] Gary Habermas, On the Resurrection: Evidences (Nashville, TN:  B&H Academic, 2024).

[6] Jason Allen, “12 Reasons to Commit to Expository Preaching,” lifeway.com, https://research.lifeway.com/2019/09/18/12-reasons-to-commit-to-expository-preaching/.

[7] Aaron Earls, “Small Churches Continue to Grow but Not in Size,” lifeway.com, https://research.lifeway.com/2021/10/20/small-churches-continue-growing-but-in-number-not-size/.

[8] Aaron Earls, “Most Pastors Started Their Career Outside the Church.” lifeway.com, https://research.lifeway.com/2019/01/11/more-than-half-of-pastors-started-their-careers-outside-the-church/.

[9] Richard Rosales, “American Christians Opt for Different Churches in Search for ‘Authenticity,’” msn.com, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/american-christians-opt-for-different-churches-in-search-of-authenticity/ar-BB1i5PCR?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=5cb8359bb534479f982ebea24c64edca&ei=8, accessed February 10, 2024.