What do Americans think about Jesus Christ, the Bible, truth, and ethics? These are questions explored in the recently released study, The State of Theology, by Ligonier Ministries and Lifeway Research.
Based on a quick reading of the study released this week, we have much work to do:
1) helping believers understand the fundamentals of the faith, and
2) helping unbelievers understand what it means to have a relationship with Christ!
Here are a few highlights from the study.
Who Is Jesus Christ?
Was Jesus God, or was He merely a good teacher?
Among adult respondents, 52% agreed that Jesus was a good teacher but was not God. Shockingly, 30% of professing evangelical Christians also said Jesus was merely a good teacher but was not God!
Not surprisingly, over half of the general population rejects the deity of Christ. However, it is more than a little disconcerting to see that nearly a third of evangelicals deny the deity of Christ since the Bible often testifies to Jesus’ divinity (John 1:1, Romans 9:5, Hebrews 1:1-4).
Who Should Learn About God?
Is the study of theology (learning about God) for pastors and scholars only?
Among adult respondents, 75% disagreed, saying “no” the study of theology is not just for pastors and scholars! Happily, 85% of evangelicals also agreed that the study of theology is for everyone.
So, in drawing a conclusion from these first two questions, it seems that while many adults don’t believe in the deity of Christ, they still have an interest in learning more about God.
Is The Bible True?
Like all sacred writings, the Bible contains helpful accounts of ancient myths but is not literally true.
Among adult respondents, 48% agree that the Bible details helpful myths but is not literally true. An additional 11% are not sure whether the Bible is literally true or not.
Of concern is that the number of people who reject the inspiration and inerrancy of scripture has increased 7 points from 41% in 2014 to 48% in 2020!
Is All Truth Relative?
Religious belief is a matter of personal opinion; it is not about objective truth.
Over half (54%) of adult respondents believe truth is relative. While this is concerning, the number of people who claim truth is relative dropped slightly from 60% in 2018 to 54% in 2020.
The reason for the drop is not apparent, but perhaps the chaos of the last two years has caused people to seek the Christian faith.
Does the Holy Spirit Have a Role in Salvation?
As noted above, a disturbing number of evangelicals deny the deity of Christ. Additionally, many evangelicals are confused about the role of the Holy Spirit in salvation.
The Holy Spirit gives a new birth or spiritual life before a person has faith in Jesus Christ.
Among evangelicals, 57% agree that the Holy Spirit has a role in salvation. However, this is down from 62% in 2016. Of concern is that over 40% of professing evangelicals do not understand the role of the Holy Spirit in salvation.
Does Science Disprove the Bible?
Modern science disproves the Bible.
Among evangelicals, 69% disagree (up from 60% in 2018) that science disproves the Bible. However, 17% of evangelicals agree that modern science disproves the Bible.
Do People Have a Sin Nature?
Everyone sins a little, but most people are good by nature.
Nearly half (49%) of evangelicals disagree that people are good by nature. Another 5% are not sure. However, of concern are the 46% of evangelicals who reject original sin, believing instead that people are good by nature. Somewhat encouraging is that the evangelicals who agree with the doctrine of original sin increased from 43% in 2016.
Conclusions & Next Steps
In this brief review, I’ve touched on only seven of the study’s 35 questions. Overall, the balance of the survey responses reinforces the issues noted above:
- Many believers do not adequately understand Christian doctrine. And,
- Many unbelievers, who may have an interest in religion, remain unconvinced about the Christian faith.
Based on these conclusions, it is evident that:
- We need pastors to step up and do a much better job explaining the Christian faith’s doctrines from the pulpit. The hellfire and damnation pastors of the 1800s may be over the top today, but the squishy feel-good, progressive pastors need to step out of the pulpit and make way for strong, honest, uncompromising teachers of God’s Word.
- As a church body, evangelicals need to educate themselves like the Bereans “who examined the scriptures daily” so they are prepared to profess their faith. Additionally, and just as important, Christians need to reflect their faith and the love of God through their daily lives.
- Leaders, understanding the critical doctrines of our faith is especially important for us. We need to set an example for believers and unbelievers in our workplace. As leaders, the way we live out our faith is, as Jesus said, the light that shines, drawing others to the Father (Matthew 5). Be the light every day!
More Articles
I have written several articles recently on character. You can find them by typing “Character” in the search bar. Meanwhile, here are a few of my favorites.
- #444: Is It Important to Follow the Right Leaders?
- #443: The Folly of Wasting God’s Gift of Discernment
- #442: What We Do Matters. Who We Are Matters More!
- #440: If You Are Green with Envy, You Are Ripe for Trouble!
- #435: How Do Good Leaders Exercise Their Authority in The Service of Others?
Join the Conversation
As always, questions and comments are welcome. What is your reaction to the findings in the State of Theology study? Does anything surprise you or concern you?
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Category: Personal Development | Character
I’m about half-way through an interesting book, “Believing Is Seeing” by Michael Guillen, PhD, who is a physicist, media journalist, and Christian. He talks about how science has become its own religion, and that scientists believe in things they can’t prove, in order to construct explanations for things. Much like atheists say Christians believe in things they cannot prove. The book goes into much more depth, but it’s worth reading based on today’s post.
I had to kinda laugh…scientists have been making claims and working backwards to develop theories that explain their claims in a lot of fields for a while now. I guess that scientific method you and I learned about in school doesn’t apply anymore!! Thanks for the book recommendation – I’ll check it out