Wednesday, March 11, 2009
"The Coming Evangelical Collapse"
This is an adaptation of the writings of Michael Spencer who blogs at InternetMonk.com. He offers a vision for a much different future for the evangelical movement of Christianity. What you think of his predictions? You can read the article here.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Largely I agree with much of what he wrote. It certainly resonates with my experience of evangelicalism: stagnant churches (at best) or dying churches. Only the church plants and the megachurches seem to have vital life and hope.
I totally agree with point 1. Co-opting the Republican party and cooperating with a kingdom of the world/kingdom of the sword approach has damaged evangelicalism. We need to repent of that as much as we need to repent of the Crusades.
Point 2 is excellent and I posted on this just a few minutes ago on another post! Ha! Yes! TOTAL failure in discipleship. Biblically and spiritually inept parents raised biblically and spiritually inept children. Churches sang songs that "Jesus loves me" but failed to teach why obedience to Jesus must be total and kingdom advancement IS Christianity. Instead, evangelicals have succumbed to a "decision" spirituality or a "political" one or seemingly anything BUT the total, radical, sold-out, all-my-life surrender to Jesus and following Him as Lord.
Point 3 was overall true. We MUST church plant rapidly. Efforts in my own denomination lead the nation AND YET we are not keeping up with population growth that is coupled with church decline. Folks are streaming out of churches and not coming back.
NOW... all this is good and bad, as the author pointed out. Frankly many churches DO need to die. Frankly there have been MANY pew sitters for decades. Just 'cause there are butts in the pews doesn't mean there are followers of Jesus.
I'm intrigued to see what the new church will become. Perhaps we'll all move to Africa or China???
REV
Post a Comment