I’ve recently read two significant articles about the challenges facing the church today. One was published in a quarterly, and the other online. The first is entitled America Follows Israel’s Departure from God, and the second, America’s New Religion: Fake Christianity.
I referred to the online article in a sermon a couple of weeks ago when I pointed out how many Christians have embraced the belief that the purpose of life is to be happy, and we have no right to pass judgement on anyone if they’re just trying to be happy. The article gave a name to this fake Christianity, calling it Moralistic Therapeutic Deism.
The moralistic perspective is that we’re here to be good people and do good. The therapeutic aspect is everything is supposed to be geared to making me feel good about myself. And deism is the idea that God created the world but has no direct involvement in it. The bottom line is that God just wants everyone to be nice, and the purpose of life is to be happy.
The article in Does God Exist? suggests that the problems we face today are the result of doing five things Jeremiah said God’s people were doing in his day. I’m simply going to note them. You can get the details by reading Jeremiah 6:10-19.
—They refuse to listen to the word of God.
—They are obsessed with material things.
—They delude themselves with falsehoods.
—They were not ashamed and could not blush.
—They rejected the only possible solution.
The author concludes: “The politicians and philosophers will not fix what is wrong with our world. The only possible solution is the teaching and example of Jesus Christ taught in our homes and congregations and lived out in the lives of his disciples.” I’m sure we all agree.
God Bless, Rick
Chatham Christian Church 