Two-thirds of Americans believe God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism and Islam, according to LifeWay Research’s 2016 State of American Theology Study.
However, only 48 percent of Americans with evangelical Christian beliefs share the belief that God accepts all worship.
Although the percentage drops below the halfway mark for evangelicals, it’s still a troubling statistic, according to Steve King, pastor of First Baptist Church, Alexander City.
“The held belief that God receives the worship of all religions reveals a lack of understanding the fundamental difference of Christianity from all other worldviews,” King said.
‘Basic distinction’
“All other religions are roads going up the mountain to get to God. Christianity is the exact opposite — it’s God coming down the mountain to come to us,” he continued. “So the notion that Christianity can be classified with all other religions sadly reveals a failure on our part to teach this most basic and elementary distinction that makes Christianity totally impossible to be placed in the same box with other world religions.”
In addition to this lack of understanding, the study also suggests Americans as a whole hold seemingly contradicting beliefs.
For instance 7 in 10 Americans said there’s only one true God who is expressed as the Christian Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), the survey found.
Among those beliefs, 6 in 10 Americans said “heaven is a place where all people will ultimately be reunited with their loved ones,” indicating that everyone goes to heaven. But on a separate question, 54 percent of Americans said “only those who trust in Jesus Christ alone as their Savior receive God’s free gift of eternal salvation.”
And nearly two-thirds of Americans said Jesus is God, the report said. But then more than half said Jesus was a creature created by God.
Jay Robertson, assistant professor of Christian ministries at the University of Mobile and pastor for preaching and vision at Crawford Baptist Church, Mobile, said, “These statistics reveal a crisis in American Christianity.
“Many people who go to church do not participate in small group discipleship and are not growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord. … Many who attend services have little to no knowledge of basic Christian doctrines,” he said.
Additional findings include:
4Americans are split on whether the Bible is literally true. Nearly half of Americans (44 percent) answered “like all sacred writings, (it) contains helpful accounts of ancient myths but is not literally true,” while about the same number (45 percent) disagreed. Evangelicals were less likely (17 percent) to agree with that and most likely (95 percent) to say it is “100 percent accurate in all it teaches.”
4Forty-four percent of Americans agreed modern science discredits the claims of Christianity, while 40 percent disagreed.
4Less than half of Americans (40 percent) believe hell is an “eternal place of judgment where God sends all people who do not personally trust in Jesus Christ.” Evangelicals were more likely (84 percent) to believe in hell as a place of judgment.
Addressing the trend
4Americans also disagree about issues of homosexuality, gender and abortion. About the same number of Americans said Bible verses that seem to condemn homosexual behavior do (44 percent) and don’t (42 percent) apply today. That gap widens when it comes to gender identity: 38 percent agreed it is “a matter of choice,” while half disagree. On abortion: 49 percent said it is a sin while 40 percent said it is not.
So how can pastors address the trend of theological confusion? Through intentional discipleship, King said.
“Going forward, it will require an intentional effort and a heightened emphasis in the future on the teaching of Christian apologetics,” he said.
Robertson agreed, saying, “I am hopeful for the future as there seems to be a renewed emphasis on disciple making in many churches.”
At the end of the day, King said, “the good news” for church leaders “is that truth is on our side.” (RNS, Maggie Walsh)
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