Christianity in retreat

 

It grieves me to note that Christianity is in retreat, and there's very little our churches and their leaders are doing about it. Very often we see the Bible misinterpreted, behaviour that is un-Christian, and challenges and mocking at the very notion of the existence of God; and nothing is said by our elders for fear of upsetting people.

There are those who believe that the Old Testament is no longer relevant to today's modern society; and what was said then is no longer appropriate in a modern world.

Some believe that Jesus did not really mean it when He said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." It was all imagery, they say. God loves everybody. He even loves and forgives the devil.

Such interpretation of an "all loving" God is wrong and dangerous. Of course, God loves everybody. But this does not entitle those very same people whom God loves to turn their back on Him and not love Him back. They can't say, "I can do what I want because God will always love me anyway!" They can't interpret God's love to suit them and invent their own alternative gods, be they materialistic or spiritually un-Biblical.

Some voices, in some cases within the Church itself, do not believe in the virgin birth. Christ was not born through the Holy Spirit; they say. It was all a story by the Gospel writers to explain that He was blessed by God. 

Some Christians do not believe that Jesus is the Son of God, born of God; begotten not made, consubstantial to the Father, as we recite in the Credo. He is now considered by some as a teacher, a wise man, a blessed man; and not the Son of God. And some Churches allow this false belief and teaching.

Others, also within the Church, have hinted that the Resurrection is also imagery to explain that "we are all born again". It did not actually happen, but it is a story to explain that we are all put right with God as long as we are good in our life and the way we live.

The many teachings of Christ about Heaven, hell, marriage, divorce, sin and so on are being re-interpreted by a modern society to suit its selfish needs.

Slowly, but surely, such watered-down Christian teaching is permeating through society and the apparent silence from prominent Church leaders becomes yet another step in the march of retreat.

At a recent funeral I attended, someone at the lectern prayed, "I thank the Universe for the life of (the deceased)".

The priest left this un-challenged. He did not, (gently), explain that "the Universe" (whatever that is) had nothing to do with the life this individual led.

Humanity has always searched for a supreme power to explain its existence and its inadequacies. From earliest time people have worshipped the sun, fire, volcanoes and other man-made gods as they progressed in their quest for the one living Creator God we have come to know and worship.

Today, it seems we have gone full circle and some prefer to revert back to idolising nature, the Universe, Mother Earth, celebrities like musicians, sports personalities and the like, or even materialistic things not too dissimilar to the golden calf in the Old Testament.

They prefer to worship anything apart from the true living God Who created us all.

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