Throughout its history, Christianity has had a common affliction. This affliction occurs in those who reject the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ.  When the Gospel – the Word of God – is preached, people either accept it or reject it.  When they cover their ears and harden their hearts, Satan has a field day.  They become his playground, and useful idiots for his purpose, which is to discredit and destroy God.  Satan’s people then – through their own poor choice of turning away to the dark things of this world – often decide it makes good sense to persecute God’s elect with whom they disagree. Paul recounts this kind of situation in his first letter to the Thessalonian church.  He tells them in 1 Thessalonians 2:2 that what he had previously experienced was not wasted: But though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God amid much conflict.

Lifeway Research and Ligonier Ministries conduct a bi-annual “The State of Theology” survey to essentially take the theological temperature of the United States. I am sure that many of you have heard of this or other studies that show a growing apostacy in the church. The results of this year’s State of Theology are another example of awful news for Christians and it seems that the underlying problem is a lack of reading and understanding the Bible by those that are devoted to the faith.

This study focuses not just on the general population, but additionally on the beliefs of evangelical Christians. The survey identifies evangelicals as Christian believers who agree that the Bible is the highest authority for what someone believes, that it is important for non-Christians to trust Jesus Christ as their savior, that Jesus’ death on the cross is the only sacrifice that removes the penalty of humanity’s sin, and that only those who trust in Him alone receive God’s grace as a free gift of eternal salvation.  

Does God Change?

While the Bible establishes in Isaiah 46:10, Malachi 3:6, James 1:17, and 1 John 3:20 that God cannot and does not change, 48% of evangelicals believe that God learns and adapts to various situations. In other words, they believe that God does change and the general U.S. population concurs with this belief at 51%, or only 3% higher than evangelicals!

Are We Born Innocent?

The Bible establishes the concept of original sin in the account of Adam and Eve’s rebellion in the garden of Eden, where humans became corrupted. Since the fall, every human being inherits a sin nature from the time of their conception (Psalms 51:5 and Romans 5:12). The Bible clearly indicates we are not sinners because we sin, but that we sin because we are sinners. Somehow, 65% of evangelicals are confused about this foundational truth and agreed that everyone is “born innocent in the eyes of God,” denying the doctrine of original sin, and with it, the very reason that people need salvation in the first place!

Is Jesus Christ God?

One of the most stunning results of this year’s survey is the increasing number of evangelicals who deny the divinity of Jesus Christ. Jesus’ divinity is acknowledged throughout the Bible, which clearly asserts that Jesus is indeed God (John 1:1; 8:58; Romans 9:5; Hebrews 1:1-4). When asked whether they agreed that “Jesus was a great teacher …but not God,” 43% of American evangelicals answered yes. That number is up 13% from just two years ago!

Does God Accept The Worship of All Religions?

Crucial to Biblical Christianity is Jesus’ own assertion that He alone is “the way, and the truth, and the life,” and that “no one comes to the Father except through him” (John 14:6). Incredibly, 56% of evangelicals agreed with the idea that “God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam,” in contrast to Jesus’ words in Matthew that without Him, “no one knows the Father” (Matthew 11:27). It is very concerning that these survey results reveal an increasingly unbiblical belief among evangelicals that God is pleased by worship that comes from those outside the Christian faith!

Why have so many evangelicals fallen away from Biblical truths while still believing the Bible is accurate? Most (95%) still agree with the statement that “the Bible is 100% accurate in all that it teaches.” So, while many professing Christians still believe in the Bible, they are simply ignorant of what the Bible teaches. The problem most likely stems from either not being taught the Bible in church, not taking the time to read it on their own, or just not caring enough to learn.

Unfortunately, it is presumed that Biblical doctrine does not matter to faith in many corners of evangelicalism these days. This lack of strict adherence to Scripture can take at least two forms:

1. Hyper-emotionalism: thinking that God will settle for our sincerity and our affection, despite whether our beliefs are true.
2. Hyper-politicization: thinking that it really matters whom you vote for and what group you belong to, not what you believe about the essential truth of the Gospel or the claims of Christ.

Despite these cultural trends, Jesus was very clear in what he said: “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the spirit and in truth.” It was for this reason that the divine Logos came into the world “to testify to the truth,” and it is only the truth that sets us free. It is interesting to me that in the Old Testament, idolatry is portrayed not only as worshipping a false God but worshipping a false idea of who God is, such as was the case with the Golden Calf incident.

A positive note from this survey is what it revealed about controversial topics and moral issues: 91% of evangelicals agreed that abortion is a sin and 94% agreed that sex outside of traditional marriage is a sin. However, these affirmations are overshadowed by 28% who agreed that Scripture’s condemnation of homosexual behavior “doesn’t apply today.”

In summary, we will never have a clear sense of God’s attributes without a biblical understanding of who Jesus is and the absolute authority He wields over all creation. Whether we obtain this knowledge in church or through Bible study, it is critical that we clearly understand God’s omnipotence, immutability, character, and work in the world as well as how He sees us and what He requires of us. If our beliefs are established in our political viewpoints or some ambiguous notion of God’s “goodness,” we will have simply obtained a “form of godliness, while denying its power.”

The findings of this study demonstrate a need for many so-called Christians to repent, for many churches to renew their commitments to teaching the entire Bible, and for all of us who claim to follow Christ to commit our hearts and minds to truly knowing who He is and who He has revealed Himself to be! Certainly, sharing the Gospel in this day requires more than just sharing the love of Jesus – we who know the truth must share the whole truth to non-believers as well as those Christians who are lukewarm.

Based on Reforming Joy: Paul, the Reformers, and the Church Today by Tim Chester.

Faith Alone in Christ Alone

How did you first become a Christian (if you are one)? Remind yourself of the story and ask yourself this: Did I become a Christian after I had sorted my life out, or by putting my faith in Christ? This is Paul’s challenge to the Galatians in 3:2–3:

I would like to learn just one thing from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?

We all have different conversion stories. Some are dramatic, some gradual. Many of us struggle to name a date. But common to them all is faith in Christ. Salvation is not something we achieved. All we did was reach out to receive it as a gift from God.

Our problem is that we all too easily forget this. We forget that we received the Holy Spirit through faith and not as a reward for our works. We forget that left to ourselves, we were powerless to change and so we go back to our old ways. We start trying to live the Christian life our way.

We try to be acceptable Christians by keeping a law. We think what makes us righteous is attending church regularly, joining a Bible study, being able to quote Bible verses, leading a moral life, or responding emotionally during worship. We think our prayers or our tears make us acceptable Christians. Then we may look down on people who do not measure up to our standards or we become anxious when we do not measure up. We live like slaves instead of sons.

The Galatians are returning to legalism and losing their joy. So this is an invitation to rediscover joy. If your life lacks joy, then this is for you. It does not mean being happy all the time–sometimes life is painful. But even in those moments we will find comfort in God. If you cannot find that comfort or if you have lost your liveliness, then listen up. Below is a diagnostic for a lack of spiritual enthusiasm.

1. We lose our joy when we use religious duty to impress others.

It is not clear if Peter agreed with those who said that Gentiles should be circumcised. But either way, he went along with them ‘because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group’ (Gal. 2:12). He wanted to be with the in-crowd. And this was also what was happening in Galatia. The Gentile Christians were being forced to return to religion to fit in.

What do we do, not because it is the right thing to do or because we want to please God, but because we fear the disapproval of other people?

• If you attend men’s group or other church activity because you feel the need to pray or because you love talking with God, then you will have a great time. But if you attend because you fear disapproval, then it can feel like a burden, and there will be no joy in the activity.
• If you show hospitality because you love people, then you will have a great time–even if you are left with a messy house. But if you show hospitality because you feel you must, or to impress other people, then it will likely feel like a burden, and there will be no joy.
• If you share the gospel because you are passionate about Jesus, then you will do so with contagious enthusiasm. But if you share the gospel because you want to impress people with your stories, then it will feel like a burden, and there will be no joy.

This is why some people have a low capacity for service. It is because service has become a burden, and none of us can carry a burden for long. Sooner or later we need to stop and recover. Jesus says, ‘My yoke is easy and my burden is light’ (Matthew 11:30). If the burden of serving Christ feels heavy, then something is wrong. The chances are you are trying to prove yourself or impress others.

2. We lose our joy when we use religious duty to control sin.

‘Yes, we all agree we are justified by faith. But we do need religious duties to grow as Christians.’ This is the objection Paul anticipates in Galatians 2:17. This is how he puts it: ‘But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin?’ First-century Jews divided the world into righteous Jews and Gentile sinners. If Christians were not among the righteous Jews as defined by circumcision, then they must be among the sinners. And if not now, then surely this is where they would end up without the law to keep them on track. This was a powerful argument. When Christians struggle with sin, they are also tempted to revert to a law. Or when we see other people sinning, we are tempted to impose a law on them.

But Paul will have none of it. ‘Certainly not!’ he says (2:17). This is because the law can only expose sin. It cannot stop it or cure it. We should not rebuild what we tore down (2:18). In other words, we should not reintroduce religious duty as a way of life, having rejected it as a way of conversion. If you reimpose the law, then all you will do is turn people into law-breakers. The law was supposed to point us to Christ. Having found Christ, you undermine his purpose if you then walk away from him and back to it. This in an unexpected twist, which actually makes you the ultimate law-breaker, because you act contrary to the law’s true purpose (2:18). For you are walking away from Christ rather than towards him. Luther says,

Although the law discloses and increases sin, it is not against the promises of God but for them. The reason for this is that it humbles us and prepares us to seek for grace . . . When the law forces us to acknowledge and confess our sins in this way it has fulfilled its function and is no longer needed, because the moment for grace has come.¹

It was only when I gave up trying to earn God’s approval that I could receive God’s approval by faith (2:19). When I was trying to earn approval, my motives were confused. I was trying to please God, but what I really cared about was my salvation. Only when I received salvation as a gift could I truly make pleasing God my focus.

So What Happens Next?

If it is not by the law, then how do we live and grow as Christians? We need to realize that becoming a Christian is not just a change of opinion or a lifestyle choice. It is a death and resurrection. You die to your old life and you live a new life. At this point you might be saying, ‘Hang on a moment, I think I would have noticed if I had died!’ But Paul says we died and rose in Christ when Christ was crucified and resurrected: ‘I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.’ (2:20). Before Christ we had no innate desire or ability to please God. But now we have been remade. Now what is innate is Christ! ‘Christ lives in me.’ Calvin says, ‘Engrafted into the death of Christ, we derive a secret energy from it, as the shoot does from the root.’²

What does this look like in practice? Verse 20 continues: ‘And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.’ What now motivates us is ‘faith in the Son of God’. This is our drive, our passion, our enthusiasm. It is not just faith in some abstract truth or theological dogma; it is much more personal. It is faith in the One ‘who loved me and gave himself for me’. His love leads to our love. His sacrifice leads to our sacrifice.

Paul says, ‘It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified.’ (3:1). He is saying, ‘We proclaimed Christ so clearly, it was as if you could see him for yourselves.’ That’s how we help one another–not by imposing a set of rules, but by portraying Christ crucified. Our claim is: ‘The Son of God loved you and gave himself for you.’ And that produces lives characterized by drive, passion and enthusiasm. Even in the midst of service and sacrifice, it creates lives of joy.

Notes:

1. Luther, ‘Second Lectures on Galatians’, p. 119.
2. John Calvin, Calvin’s Commentaries: The Epistles of Paul the Apostle to the Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians, trans. T. H. L. Parker (St Andrew’s Press, 1965), p. 42.

Based on Disciplines of a Godly Man by R. Kent Hughes:

Prayer and Mental Discipline

You need to set the time aside for prayer. You need to carry a prayer list like I have, perhaps in your pocket or put it on your smartphone. Pray regularly, pray for your nearest and dearest. Begin by worshipping God and then pray for those that are closest to you, then your family, then the body of Christ, and then for the world. Just that easily, pray things that come to mind—but do it on a regular basis.

Next to prayer is the discipline of the mind. In our culture today, we are assaulted 24/7 with all kinds of sounds and media all around us. We become distracted men. We need to discipline our minds: what we read, and what goes into it.

Relationships and the Church

Thirdly, if you’re a married man, you need discipline in your relationships—which is very pleasant discipline. Love your wife as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her (and all those implications) and love her as you love your own body. Engage in a sublimely ordained narcissism by loving your wife.

Along with that is loving your church and participating in the body of Christ. You cannot be what you need to be as a godly man apart from the fellowship of the church. The early church understood that to have God as a father implies having the church for your mother to nurse you, take care of you, fellowship in the body of Christ, and enter into its fellowship. You cannot grow to be what you want to be apart from regular tenets, upon the organized services of the church, sitting at the Lord’s table, and being under the godly discipline of the elders who care for and will answer for your soul.