The state of the church today, meaning the people who make up the church of Jesus Christ, according to recent research (see State of the Church below), generally are not in a biblically, spiritually, mature healthy place.

There has been much research in recent years that reveal a dramatic slide from biblical Christianity. The majority of self-professing Christians have adopted a non-biblical world view on a variety of critical issues that are dramatically, negatively affecting our lives today and the church. This is hurting every aspect of our culture and lives. The church is far from what the prophetic picture of Psalm 1.

The following is a compilation of statistics from the Barna group and Nehemiah Institute (the most reliable and well respected authorities on church data). What follows are research results (2023) about the state of Christianity today:

• 68% of Americans self-professed to be Christian. This is down from 80% twenty years ago.

• Only 26% of Christians in America hold a biblical worldview.

• The remaining 74% hold a moderate Christian worldview, a secular-humanistic worldview, or a socialist worldview.

• Only 20% of Christians engage in any sort of sustained spiritual growth (discipleship) activity including fellowship groups, one-on-one mentoring, Bible studies or book studies.

• The areas of divorce, adultery, cohabitation, pornography and other significant issues affecting our families and society are nearly as prevalent in the church as in society in general.

The tree is dry, barren and the roots are exposed! The church, that is the people of God who are in Christ are not flourishing, and all of society is suffering as a result. The GOOD NEWS…God is neither surprised nor done with us. God is not powerless or confounded as to what’s next. He knows. We are His only plan for the world, and He is awakening His Church! You and I are His solution, as we go ALL IN and do the thing He called us to do!

Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14

Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,[b] baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20

Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do. Psalm 1:1-3

Our education system, including private Christian education is producing graduates with a secular humanistic worldview, void of biblical perspective or understanding on social issues, ethics, politics, government or human nature.

It is clear as we observe culture, politics, social media, the news, as supported by these statistics, that the church, the people who profess to be Christians need some help! We are to be “salt and like” (Matthew 5:13-16) infecting our communities with the Kingdom of God through the gospel. The Bible tells us a nation whose God is the Lord will be blessed (Psalm 33:12) and that clearly is not the case now. The church historically has been the most significant influence on every aspect of life in America.

We have lost that privileged position, and it shows. How do we begin to regain our influence? One person at a time understanding what it means to be a Christian, biblically, according to Jesus, and aligning our lives with the His life and the teachings of scripture, for His glory and for our good.