Crisis in the Church: Called out or fitting in?

Remember the frog that landed in a pan of water and stayed until it boiled? Had the pan been hot, the frog would have noticed and hopped out. But the water felt cool at first, and the frog sensed no danger. It simply relaxed and conformed to the gradual change. Subdued by the rising heat, it grew too sluggish to act. By the time the water boiled, the frog was dead.

I want to share the burden of my heart with you concerning the alarming trend of Biblical illiteracy and state of discipleship in today’s church. I want to encourage you by saying that with every problem there is an opportunity and to envision the church as the Lord sees it. Jesus will build His Church (Mth. 16:18).

Discipleship Begins In Leadership

The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization was held in Cape Town, South Africa, 16-25 October 2010. The Congress, held in collaboration with the World Evangelical Alliance, brought together 4,000 leaders from more than 200 countries to confront the critical issues of our time. The following is an excerpt from the proceedings: Christ-Centered Leaders.

Christ-Centered Leaders
The rapid growth of the Church in so many places remains shallow and vulnerable, partly because of the lack of discipled leaders, and partly because so many use their positions for worldly power, arrogant status or personal enrichment. As a result, God’s people suffer, Christ is dishonoured, and gospel mission is undermined. ‘Leadership training’ is the commonly-proposed priority solution. Indeed, leadership training programmes of all kinds have multiplied, but the problem remains, for two probable reasons.

Jelly-filled kids

American children are physically obese and spiritually starved. And yet, we continue to serve up unhealthy food at home, school, and church.

I’m no nutritional expert, but let’s do the math:

• Junk food + inactivity + no accountability = jelly-filled donut

We are what we eat.

Back in the day before social media, I remember climbing trees, biking with friends, all-night camp-outs, sword drills, and actually going door-to-door to visit with people face-to-face. Comparatively, seems our kids today are addicted to electronic media and adrenaline-producing-rollercoaster-events and popcorn diets.

Children’s Church Curriculum: What are the kids learning?

Once upon a time, Christian parents asked their children after church, “What did you learn about God?” Today, the question is often, “Did you have fun?” Not too long ago, wanting to fully equip children to serve Christ, churches offered extensive Bible training for all ages. Today, wanting to keep kids happy and to make recruiting easy, many churches offer high-energy, entertainment-based programs. Children rarely use their Bibles. What’s needed is a comprehensive children’s discipleship system that helps equip kids to reach their peak potential as Jesus’ disciples, a children’s church curriculum that partners with teachers and parents to transform children into dynamic disciples of Jesus Christ. Kids need to learn to Know God intimately, love God passionately, and to serve God selflessly.

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Crisis In The Church: Biblical Illiteracy And Discipleship

Crisis In The Church: Biblical Illiteracy And Discipleship

Remember the frog that landed in a pan of water and stayed until it boiled? Had the pan been hot, the frog would have noticed and hopped out. But the water felt cool at first, and the frog sensed no danger. It simply relaxed and conformed to the gradual change. Subdued by the rising heat, it grew too sluggish to act. By the time the water boiled, the frog was dead.

I want to share the burden of my heart with you concerning the alarming trend of Biblical illiteracy and state of discipleship in today’s church. I want to encourage you by saying that with every problem there is an opportunity and to envision the church as the Lord sees it. The following statistics reveal a crisis in the church.

Regarding Biblical illiteracy and discipleship, Christian researcher and author George Barna reports:
* Fewer than half of all adults can name the four gospels.
* Many professing Christians cannot identify more than two or three of the disciples.
* 60 percent of Americans cannot name even five of the Ten Commandments.
* 82 percent of Americans believe “God helps those who help themselves” is a Bible verse.
* 12 percent of adults believe that Joan of Arc was Noah’s wife.
* A survey of graduating high school seniors revealed that over 50 percent thought that Sodom and Gomorrah were husband and wife.