Leviticus 20:22-24 — Ye shall therefore keep all my statutes, and all my judgments, and do them: that the land, whither I bring you to dwell therein, spew you not out. And ye shall not walk in the manners of the nation, which I cast out before you: for they committed all these things, and therefore I abhorred them. But I have said unto you, Ye shall inherit their land, and I will give it unto you to possess it, a land that floweth with milk and honey: I am the Lord your God, which have separated you from other people.
How do you tell the difference between a secular American and an American Christian? No, it’s not a joke. And if your answer is “I don’t know” then you’re like me. Don’t get me wrong … I know some great Godly Christians. But sadly I know some that are no advertisement for the faith. Of course I know some non-Christians that are no prize either — but I know some pretty decent ones too!
It’s not a new story. A Barna Group survey as long ago as 2007 pointed to the issue. Christianity Today reported:
The differences, however, between the self-oriented behavior of born again Christians and that of national norms were small. Although born-again Christians are more likely to volunteer for their church, they are no more likely than average to help the poor or homeless, the survey found. And they are also one of the least likely groups to recycle.When measured for other moral behaviors, born-again believers are not much different from non-born-again adults. One quarter of born-again believers are less likely to view sexually explicit movies and magazines, to use profanity in public and to buy a lottery ticket compared to roughly one third of non-born-again Christians.
Recent research doesn’t make us look any better. For example, another Barna study published only last year pointed out that self-proclaimed Christians — by their own admission — show behavior that is more Pharisee-like than Christ-like.
How did we get here? We got here because of the processes I wrote about yesterday and the day before. America is on a moral path that has been consistently downhill. The Christian worldview is losing the battle against alternate religious and secular worldviews.
There are two things we have to do. First, we have to start living up to our convictions. Second, we have to work at winning back the hearts and minds of non-Christians. Roll up your sleeves get to work and be different!