Cultural Issues – BiblicalCulture

In my previous article (found here), I listed eleven of the most pressing challenges facing the Western church in 2024 based on my own observations and those from several church pastors in the USA and Australia. Based on the great response from the pastors I contacted, I have decided to put together a second list of nine more challenges that face the Western church in 2024. 1. Maintaining Orthodox Beliefs In a culture that no longer believes in or tolerates the gospel, the temptation to dispense with orthodox beliefs and accept heterodox beliefs is ever present. In every class I teach, I ask two questions: (1) what is the gospel? and (2) who can be saved without believing in Jesus? The answer to the second question should be “no one!” But more often than not, most of my students have at least one people group that can be saved without ever believing in Jesus. The most popular answers are: those who never heard the gospel, Jews, children, and everyone because God is merciful. The core of orthodoxy is that only belief in Jesus will save a person from sins and eternal damnation. I remember I was teaching a course on Revelation and made the comment that Jesus is the only way a person can enter the New Jerusalem, all others will be cast into the lake of fire. This caused an uproar as my class was not going to believe that Jesus is the only way. After citing some more Scripture, such as Acts 4:12 (a favourite of mine), I asked the class to defend their position from Scripture; “give me at least one Bible verse that says a person can be saved without belief in Jesus,” I said. No one could, but they would not relent. If the church is to flourish, it must maintain orthodox beliefs and distinguish itself from the world and the world’s beliefs, including the false belief that everyone will be ok regardless of their sin and their stance toward Jesus. 2. Teaching Christians to Defend the Gospel and the Faith As mentioned above, I ask all my students “what is the gospel?” Unfortunately, many of them cannot answer that question. Further, many of them don’t even mention Jesus in their answer! For the record, the gospel can be found succinctly put in 1 Corinthians 15:1–6. Being able to defend the gospel and the Christian faith rests on the shoulders of the pastors/elders. Every Christian in every church should know the gospel and be able to defend it and the basic tenets of the Christian faith (such as the Trinity, etc). If the church is to flourish, churches must teach their people the gospel and the basic tenets of the Christian faith and how to defend it. 3. Accepting Penal Substitutionary Atonement In relation to orthodox beliefs and defending the gospel, I want to mention one specific doctrine that is falling by the wayside: penal substitutionary atonement. This doctrine states that Jesus died in the place of sinners, taking the punishment due the sinner, resulting in the sinner’s restored relationship with God the Father. Two passages that clearly teach this doctrine are 2 Corinthians 5:21 and Galatians 3:13. Without substitutionary atonement, the sinner is still dead in his/her trespasses. That is, the sinner would still have to take the punishment for his/her own sins. Although this doctrine is not in vogue in much of Western Christianity, it must not be dispensed with because of its soteriological implications. For a more detailed analysis of this doctrine, see my article entitled “Jesus’ Death: A Substitutionary Atoning Sacrifice.” 4. Pairing the Gospel with Social Activism and Community Service The Western church has rightly taken an interest in social activism, such as marching for the rights of the unborn not to be murdered, and in community service, such as helping victims of natural disasters. However, too often the gospel is never mentioned during social activism and community service. Many more would come to faith in Jesus if the church took seriously the pairing of the gospel with social activism and community service. Without the gospel, the church is only helping out with the temporal needs of people. Temporal needs are important, but not at the expense of eternal salvation, which is what happens if the gospel is neglected. 5. Instilling Passion for the Faith within Believers Instilling passion for the faith within believers is another challenge for the Western church. Put simply, there are too many apathetic believers in the West. Too many believers live their lives without nary a thought about Jesus or the Christian faith throughout the week. I personally believe this is a result of shallow teaching and preaching. If believers grasped how the gospel impacts their present and future (near future and eternal future), I believe we would have many more passionate believers. Further, if the church showed believers how to live as Christians in their everyday lives, we would also instill a great passion for the faith within most believers. Unfortunately, living for the Lord is frequently associated with traditional church ministries. Not every Christian is able or desiring to teach a Sunday School class or greet people at the door on a Sunday morning, but this is usually all we offer our people. If the church is to flourish, churches must instill a passion for the faith within believers. 6. Avoiding Individualism The Western world is centred around the individual, specifically ‘me,’ without much attention to one another or the kingdom of God. My rights and my needs come first according to Western culture. My views are paramount. My pleasure is most important. Anyone who lives in the West is bombarded with this individualistic way of thinking through media and politics. This way of thinking has infiltrated many churches in the West, which is one reason Christian needs are not being met and the lost are not coming to faith in Jesus. The church must avoid this individualistic mindset if it is to flourish. Unsurprisingly, the New Testament speaks directly against selfish individualism. Note the following three passages: “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt 6:31–33, emphasis added). “And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need” (Acts 2:45, emphasis added). “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Phil 2:4–5). 7. Rejecting Materialism Western culture not only promotes individualism, but also materialism. Those who live in the West are constantly bombarded by advertisements that claim we need more stuff. This is not true, of course. All we really need is shelter, food, and clothing. Unfortunately, many Christians and many churches have bought into the myth that we need things that are bigger, better, and newer. Churches in the West frequently go into debt for new buildings they do not need, new sound systems they do not need, etc. Many Christians do the same. The time may be coming when Christians are so persecuted that we won’t be able to take out loans and/or purchase the things we desire. Because of the emphasis on earthly possessions, the loss of these will coincide with many professing Christians losing faith in Jesus (they will be the second and third soils from Matt 13:1–23). Rather, the church must heed Jesus’ command: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.” MATTHEW 6:19–20 For the church to flourish, it must reject materialism and lay up treasures in heaven. 8. Raising Up Pastors/Elders and Missionaries The sad truth is that less and less Christians are entering into vocational ministry. I think there are two reasons for this. First, Christians are not seeing the blessings of pastoral and missionary work. It is certainly difficult work, but it is also tremendously rewarding work. Leading people to Jesus for eternal salvation and shepherding people in the ways of Jesus to full maturity is the highest calling a person can have, but the church is not communicating this. Second, pastoral and missionary work does not pay. As churches get smaller, pastors make less money and missionaries need to work hard at raising their own support. Vocational ministry is difficult enough as it is, but now it isn’t paying a livable wage either. Many more pastors and missionaries are becoming bi-vocational and this trend seems to only be increasing (and I support it!). The church needs to figure out a way to identify, raise up, and support pastors/elders and missionaries. The church will suffer without committed qualified leaders and missionaries. 9. Stopping the Youth Exodus Youth and young people are leaving the church in droves. This is more common in countries like the United States where it is common for a teenager to leave home upon graduation and go University far from home, but the trend is also seen in other Western countries to a lesser extent, such as Australia. Why is this? I certainly don’t have all the answers, but I suspect that part of the answer is that (a) many churches reflect modern Western culture and are indistinguishable from it, advocating for whatever the world is advocating. Why get up on a Sunday morning when it is no different than the world in which you live? I also suspect that (b) many churches are not doing a great job at helping Christians live the faith boldly in their day-to-day lives. If the church doesn’t help Christians live as disciples of Jesus in a hostile world, then why go? For the church to flourish, it must stop the youth/young adult exodus.