Church for Atheists

Nearly 6 % of Americans are atheists or agnostics. But, they still want to go to church! A year ago, two British atheists were inspired to start a church “without the God bit.” Their so-called “Sunday Assembly,” provides like-minded unbelievers with a community and a message to “live better, help often, wonder more.” The budding movement is growing, now with 35 chapters around the world, many in the U.S.

Of course those of us who are ‘believers’ can see the contradiction of an Atheist Church. The meaning of “church” is the “called out ones,” referring collectively to Christians, the body of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23). Yet, you can hardly fault the atheists; over the years, the word “church” has come to mean a building.

Not unlike many Christians, however, the atheists have confused “going to church” with “The Church.” In 1957, the founder of the “home church” movement in England, Canon Southcott, said, “We don’t go to church; we are the church.” Not unlike the atheists, unfortunately, many Christians need to stop thinking of the Church as a building or a service. Nor as an organization, but a living organism.

Does Anyone Believe in the Bible Anymore?

As a 5-year old Sunday Schooler, I sang “The B-I-B-L-E, yes that's the book for me; I stand alone on the word of God, the B-I-B-L-E.” That was 60 years ago.

Today, disbelief that the Bible is the inerrant WORD of God is on the rise among evangelicals. A George Barna Research study, exploring the religious beliefs of adults in the 12 largest denominations, revealed that only 41% believe in the total accuracy of the Bible. And more alarming, 85% of students at America's largest evangelical seminaries do not believe in Scripture's inerrancy. In the 18th century, Voltaire declared, “If we would destroy the Christian religion, we must first of all destroy man’s belief in the Bible.”  

Disregard for doctrinal soundness is prophesied for end times. Preaching contemporary ‘how-to-be-better’ messages, born out of the 1960’s “felt needs” and “seeker sensitive” movements, has become common fodder in most pulpits. As one pastor said, “you have to scratch people where they itch.” Perhaps he hadn’t read Paul’s warning against preaching to “itching ears” (1 Tim 4:4).

Who DefinesYou?

I was talking with a friend the other day about the problems caused by other people’s expectations of us. This becomes problematic when we allow their expectations to define us. But this should not be so; we are not defined by others’ desires, needs, expectations or opinions.

Several years ago, there was a significant turn in the discussion on gay marriage. Evangelical Christians had been opposing gay marriage on moral grounds. But when the advocates for gay marriage succeeded in re-defining the issue as a matter of civil rights, I knew the battle was lost. The same thing has happened with abortion—it has been defined as a ‘rights’ issue rather than a moral issue. How you define something determines how you will respond to it.

In the last few decades, enemies of the gospel have attempted to re-label the evangelical church as a bunch of self-righteous hate-mongers trying to impose their moral standards on everyone else, e.g., Jerry Falwell’s “Moral Majority.” Since then, “Seeker-sensitive” churches have tried re-define the evangelical church as more open, loving, and less political. Time will tell if this effort to re-define ourselves will work.

But speaking more personally, each one of us is lives in a world that tries to define us: parents, children, relatives, friends, co-workers. The question of “who am I?” is too vast for a blog posting. So let me just say this: self-definition is not arbitrary. Our identity is anchored in who we are “in Christ” and who Christ is “in us.” Paul's identity was Christ-centered: it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me (Gal. 2:20). How you define yourself determines what kind of life you live. Does Christ define you?

Do You Have Enough Salt in Your Diet?

Have you been reading all the news articles about the health risk of too much salt? In short, Americans eat too much of it. It's called the silent killer!

Spiritually speaking, American Christians are not getting enough “salt” in their diets. The “seeker sensitive” movement—that began in the 80’s—unintentionally ‘dumbed down’ the average church’s teaching to themes of how to live a better life, have a good marriage, how to raise your children, etc. None of these is wrong, and certainly not heretical. But the church needs a revival of the Word: expository teaching of sound doctrine—more salt, not less.

Giving birth to a new ecclesiastical movement (the “Emerging” church) is a perception that the Church has lost its impact on a disaffected world. Their objective is to be “missional”—seeking new ways to be the salt of the earth. Unfortunately, some of these “emerging” churches have rejected sound doctrine along with stale methodologies. But perhaps they are right about this one thing: the Church is losing its saltiness.

What can you and I do about this problem. Make sure your spiritual diet is full of salt! Too little of it will silently kill you! Center your life, your thoughts, and your decisions around the Word of God: Be salty.