
Without out a doubt the Western world is changing in terms of morals, values, and its own understanding of who it is and its place in the world. The West has abandoned the biblical God and the biblical Jesus, something that began with the Enlightenment. Although the Western world held onto Judeo-Christian morals for a couple hundred years, the shackles of Judeo-Christian morals have now been thrown completely off. The Western world affirms all sorts of sexual immorality, divorce, racism, theft, physical assault, and murder (killing babies in the womb). Further, the Western world rejects the ideas of sin, objective truth, traditional marriage as the only legitimate marriage, gender differences, and gender roles.
With the Western world no longer identifying with the God of the Bible or the morals of the Bible, there are less beliefs and practices shared between the church and the Western world than ever before. This is causing many challenges for the church now and will cause many challenges for the church in the near future.
After speaking to several church pastors in the USA and Australia (my home country), I have identified the following eleven challenges that face the Western church.
1. Affirming the Sufficiency and Authority of Scripture
By ‘sufficiency of Scripture,’ I mean that the Bible has everything necessary for faith (doctrine) and practice (how to live one’s life in a way that pleases God). By ‘authority of Scripture,’ I mean that the Bible has authority over what Christians and the church believe and how they organize and conduct their lives.
Affirming the sufficiency and authority of Scripture is a major challenge for the church today because Western culture does not ascribe importance to the Bible and because Western culture disagrees with what the Bible says about what we should believe and how we should live our lives. Churches need to discern where they will go to discern how to navigate the world and how to live lives that please God. Will they go to the government and its official policies? Will they go to prominent social organizations, such as Black Lives Matter? Will they go with the masses and what the masses affirm? Will they go to the individual and determine that whatever an individual believes is truth and right as long as that person is ‘authentic’? Or will the church go to the Bible, which claims to be the Word of God, containing the message of God for all people on what to believe and how to act (2 Tim 3:16–17; 2 Pet 1:19–21)?
I know many churches and denominations that have abandoned either the sufficiency of Scripture, not believing that it speaks to various aspects of our lives, or the authority of Scripture, not believing that it has the right to tell Christians how to live their lives, or both! This has led these churches and denominations to look just like the world in belief, thought, and conduct. If churches do not go to the Bible to determine what to believe and how to live, then they will inevitably stray from the faith and lead others astray with them. We must remember that the Holy Spirit guided the eleven apostles into all the truth (John 16:12–15), which they wrote down and has become the New Testament. If we don’t affirm the sufficiency and authority of Scripture, then our decisions will not be grounded in the truth. If the church is to flourish, it must affirm the sufficiency and authority of Scripture.
2. Consistent Prayer
It will not be a surprise to many that prayer in churches is dwindling at a rapid rate. Whereas many churches used to host prayer meetings on Sunday and Wednesday evenings, now many churches do not host any type of consistent prayer meeting. The bottom line is that churches are not praying as much as they used to pray.
We are told by Jesus to pester God with our petitions and he will give us justice (Luke 18:1–8), but many Christians and churches can barely muster up enough strength to ask once, let alone pester God with our petitions. If the church is to flourish in a Western world that has turned its back on the God, Jesus, and the morals of the Bible, then it must engage in consistent prayer.
3. Hiring Qualified Pastors/Elders/Overseers
The list of qualifications for pastors/elders/overseers is lengthy! The two most prominent passages that list these qualifications are 1 Timothy 3:1–7 and Titus 1:5–9. The qualifications concern two areas: character and teaching ability. First, for a man to be a qualified pastor/elder/overseer, he must be able to know and teach correct doctrine. Second, he must meet a lengthy list of character requirements.
Unfortunately, many churches and denominations do not require or even seek to discern if their current or future pastors/elders/overseers meet the biblical requirements. Within the circles I run, many churches prioritize youth or charisma over every other qualification (note that these are not part of the qualifications for pastors). I once interviewed for a pastorate in an SBC church in the USA and the church’s main requirement was that the new pastor give an altar call after each sermon. For Southern Baptists, an altar call is when the pastor invites the audience to either believe in Jesus or become an official member of the church. These things are great, but they do not make a qualified pastor/elder/overseer.
Why are qualified pastors/elders/overseers necessary? They are necessary because they are tasked with preserving right doctrine and guiding Jesus’ disciples in Jesus’ ways and teachings (Titus 1:9). As many churches and denominations in the West stray from calling qualified pastors/elders/overseers, the church and its people will inevitably suffer. At best they will have shallow believers; at worse these unqualified pastors will lead their people astray into unfaithfulness (2 Cor 11:1–15). If the church is to flourish, it needs qualified leaders.
4. Discipling Church Members
The fourth challenge for the church is discipling its people. Many church members are not being discipled in the ways of Jesus. For many church members, the most discipleship they receive is the Sunday morning sermon. The lack of discipleship results in not knowing what to believe and how to live as a Christian, a disciple of Jesus. If Christians are not discipled well, then they will most likely be influenced by Western popular culture, which is what we are seeing happen in the 21st Century. Many Christians in the West (not all of course) are pro-abortion (murder), pro all kinds of sexual immorality, and don’t even believe that God created people with two genders (male and female)! If the church is to flourish, it needs to disciple its people.
So why is the church struggling to disciple its people? There are numerous answers. Some of the chief reasons are:
- Church pastors/elders/overseers are too busy. As the church becomes more like a corporate business, pastors/elders/overseers become more like CEOs than shepherds.
- Church pastors/elders/overseers do not have adequate biblical knowledge to disciple their people.
- Church pastors/elders/overseers delegate discipleship to the laymen (non-leader), who frequently do not have adequate Bible knowledge or training in discipleship. This is a negative result of the small-group movement. Frequently, pastors/elders/overseers do not do the ministry (shepherd the people); instead, they become ‘equippers’ or delegators and delegate shepherding to the congregation.
- Small groups focus more on fellowship than discipleship. Fellowship is biblical and needed, especially in the internet and social media age. However, fellowship frequently overshadows discipleship.
- Many churches billet discipleship out to Bible Colleges and Seminaries. I believe Bible Colleges and Seminaries have a place in the world, but their role is not discipleship. Discipleship is a ministry of the church, not a parachurch organization like a Bible College or Seminary.
- Finally, there is little discipleship in the home. Christian fathers must step up and actively disciple their wives and children. The church needs to equip all fathers to disciple their family!
5. Adopting and Defending Sexual Purity
A mountainous challenge for the church in the West is sexual purity. Sexual purity refers to God-sanctioned sexual conduct, which is sexual conduct only within a marriage between one man and one woman. All other sexual activity and conduct is considered sexual immorality (see my article “What Is Sexual Immorality according to the Bible?”). Note the following areas where the modern church in the West has failed to adopt and defend sexual purity:
- Failure to preach and teach sexual ethics according to the Bible
- Sexual conduct outside of marriage
- Adultery
- Homosexuality
- Divorce (Jesus considers divorce adultery, see my articles on divorce and remarriage)
- Predatorial behaviour/abuse (seduction, manipulation, rape)
- Paedophilia
- Intentional failing to report criminal sexual misconduct
- Intentional Coverups of sexual abuse
- Intentional hiring of sexual miscreants
The issue of sexual purity/immorality is important because a failure to adopt and defend sexual purity can destroy the church from within and/or from without, as is currently being seen in the Southern Baptist Convention, which is facing a federal investigation for sexual abuse and abuse coverups.
When sexual purity is not upheld in a church countless individuals and families are harmed, which in turn hurts the church. Second, God promises to avenge those who transgress their Christian sibling in the matter of sexual immorality (1 Thess 4:3–6). Third, when Church leaders commit sexual immorality or fail to defend sexual purity, it usually results in the churches mission being significantly hindered for a long period and the church splitting. Finally, a failure to adopt and defend sexual purity gives a poor testimony to the unbelieving world at best and brings down the wrath of the unbelieving world to the point the church has to close at worse. If the church in the West is to survive and thrive, it must adopt and defend sexual purity at all costs.
6. Disobeying the Government
As the West moves increasingly further away from biblical truth and biblical morality, laws will be put into place that will attempt to stop the church from obeying God as directed in Scripture. In fact, this is already happening. In 2021, the state of Victoria in my home country Australia passed the “Change or Suppression (Conversion) Practices Prohibition Bill” that makes praying for homosexuals and transgendered people so that they do not engage in homosexual behaviour or change/act like the opposite gender a criminal offense punishable of up to ten years in prison.[1] Even if a member of one’s church approaches and asks the pastor to pray for them because they are having homosexual thoughts is illegal!
Because laws are being enacted that will attempt to stop the church from obeying God, the church needs to decide whether it will obey the State or obey God. This will be a major challenge for many churches because it will result in fines, penalties, jail time, and a loss of tax-exempt status. I fear that many churches will choose to obey the State over God because of the persecution and desire to keep tax-exempt status. On the plus side, persecution has always led to an increase in people believing in Jesus, so it’s not all bad. If the church is to flourish, it needs to know when to obey and when to disobey the government. For more information on civil disobedience, see my article “When Should Christians Disobey the Government?”
7. Rejecting Critical Theory and Neo Marxism (‘Social Justice’ over Biblical Justice)
Critical Theory is unashamedly neo-Marxist and seeks to implement Marxist ideals in a slightly different way than Karl Marx went about it. According to Marxism and Neo Marxism every society has a base and a superstructure. The base consists of the means of production while the superstructure consists of a societies ideology, legal system, political system, religion, etc. The means of production is controlled by the elite who keep the average person oppressed through the superstructure. Marxism taught the average person needs to violently rise up against the oppressive elite and take control of the means of production, which will result in a different, more favourable, superstructure. Critical Theory (Neo Marxism) takes a slightly different approach. Critical Theory (Neo Marxism) teaches that the oppressed (the average person) change the superstructure in order to overthrow their oppressors. By changing the superstructure, the oppressed seek to change societies ideology, legal system, political system, religion, even the language, etc. For a more detailed explanation of Critical Theory, see my article HERE.
Critical Theory has infiltrated the West through various movements and groups, such as Critical Law, modern feminism (third-wave feminism), and Black Lives Matter. These movements and groups are seeking to change the superstructure of the West to free the oppressed majority from the oppressive elite. These groups call this ‘social justice’ (a term I’m sure you’ve heard before). And who are the oppressive elite that need to be overthrown according to Critical Theory? White, heterosexual, male, Christians!
Critical Theory teaches that all white, heterosexual, male, Christians are by nature oppressors, and nothing can free them from the sin of their oppression. They are unable to do anything but oppress everyone else. ‘Social justice’ seeks to implement critical theory throughout the West by overthrowing and removing white, heterosexual, male, Christians (the enemy) from power and bringing the marginalized majority to power.
This ideology has infiltrated the church, which is why white, heterosexual, male, Christians are always apologizing for being white, heterosexual, male, Christians. Not even Jesus can save a white, heterosexual, male, Christian because his sin is being a white, heterosexual, male, Christian. Not even Jesus can stop them from oppressing others. This satanic ideology is anti-biblical and anti-gospel and should be rejected by the church. Unfortunately, it has been adopted by too many churches and denominations under the guise of ‘social justice’ and is causing divisions throughout churches and denominations. If the church is to flourish, it needs to reject Critical Theory and the ‘social justice’ that accompanies it for the biblical gospel and biblical justice. For a more detailed response to Critical Theory and why it should be rejected, see my article HERE.
8. Upholding Biblical Marriage
Western culture has outright rejected biblical marriage (for what a biblical marriage is, see my article “What Is Marriage and Its Purpose according to Scripture?”). Western culture views marriage as a means to self-fulfillment, which is not the biblical purpose for marriage. Unfortunately, many Churches and Christians have adopted this unbiblical belief that marriage serves ‘me’ for ‘my self-fulfillment.’
This selfish approach to marriage has had three devastating results within the church. First, many Christian marriages are not fulfilling their God-given purpose to have children and to image Jesus and the church. Second, many Christian marriages end in divorce (approximately 33% according to Barna), presumably because they are no longer self-fulfilling in some way. Third, many Christians have used the selfish purpose of marriage to indulge in the sin of homosexuality under the guise of ‘marriage.’
Biblical marriage and families are the bedrock of society. If the church does not uphold biblical marriage, then most relationships in the church will breakdown, causing harm and division within the church, resulting in the church stagnating and not fulfilling its purpose to bring believers to full maturity in Christ.
9. Valuing Children
This entry may seem strange at first, but here me out. I believe that most churches seek the welfare of their children and do their best at providing quality programs for children. However, I still question how much churches in the West value children. Allow me to give three examples.
First, many churches in the West do not encourage their married couples to have children, even though this is one of the purposes for marriage (see my article “What Is Marriage and Its Purpose?”). If churches valued children, then the church would encourage its people to have children.
Second, many married Christian couples in the West either do not want to have children at all (a reflection of Western culture) or only want to have one or two. Usually, not wanting to have children is for selfish reasons. For how many children married Christian couples should have, see my article “Should Christians have Children? If So, How Many?” For the record, my wife and I have four children and hope to have more.
Finally, many churches in the West put children out of the main church service and into crèche or children’s church. At the same time, many parents who opt to keep their children with them are stigmatized by the wider congregation or asked/told not to bring their children into the main service. For example, while in the USA, my wife and I would sit in the front of an SBC church with our 18-month-old son. The pastor said our son was distracting and asked us to sit in the back of the church. We did. But then a month later, the pastor said he didn’t want our son in the service at all and we would have to sit in the foyer if we didn’t put him in children’s church. This does not sound like a church that values children.
I personally believe that one reason many teenagers and young adults stop going to church is because they have been relegated to the outskirts of the church community and not allowed to join and participate with the main body of believers for most of their life. Further, where do young people fit in at church? Children’s church or Sunday School has been designated for children in many churches, and the main service has been designated for adults, so where do teenagers and young adults fit in? We have effectively told them, “nowhere” by not valuing them enough as they were children. Some churches intentionally transition their children from Children’s Church to the main service. And some churches have special sections in the main service for families to teach their children to worship with the larger body of believers, but these churches are far and few between. For the church to flourish, it must value children in deed, not just word. For more information on this topic, see my article, “The Eightfold Purpose of Children in Society according to the Bible.”
10. Upholding Biblical Gender and Gender Roles
Western culture dispensed with gender roles quite some time ago. As such, many denominations have also dispensed with biblical gender roles as seen in the hiring of women pastors and elders in defiance of passages that apply to the church, such as 1 Timothy 2:12–15. Western culture has taken its egalitarian beliefs to the extreme in that they now declare there is no such thing as man and woman, male and female, and that both women and men can get pregnant and have babies. So, what was once the role of women—giving birth—is now said to be the role of women and men.
The dispensing of biblical genders (male and female) and biblical gender roles (male headship, women giving birth, etc) will sow confusion, dissension, discord, and chaos in the church. For the church to flourish, it must uphold genders and gender roles as set forth in the Bible.
11. Preparing for Persecution
The last challenge the Western church faces is persecution. I believe that as Western culture continues to turn its back on the biblical faith and biblical values and becomes increasingly hostile to biblical Christianity that persecution will arise. It won’t just be the government (see point 6 above), but the populace will begin boycotting Christian business, companies will not want to hire Christians, companies will not want to do business with churches or Christians, Christians will be banned from social media sites, churches will be vandalized at a greater rate and to a greater degree, and Christians will be physically threatened and attacked.
The church needs to be ready for persecution and it needs to prepare its people. Otherwise, many Christians will be blindsided when persecution arises, and many will fall away from the faith. It is better to prepare Christians for persecution now so that they can decide now whether or not following Jesus is worth the promises and the trials they will go through as a disciple of Jesus. Hebrew 6:4–8 may become a more popular passage in the pulpit in the upcoming years and decades. For the church to flourish, it must prepare for persecution.
[1] For the contents of the “Change or Suppression (Conversion) Practices Prohibition Bill” see, https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/publications/research-papers/download/36-research-papers/13979-change-or-suppression-conversion-practices-prohibition-bill-2020; For the Presbyterian churches response, see https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/18/presbyterian-church-head-says-victorian-ban-on-gay-conversion-practices-should-be-ignored.