The year is 2015.
Here in the United States, many Christians are discouraged. You would be hard pressed to find a Christian who hasn’t noticed the spiritual decline of our nation. Some, it seems, have even given up hope of restoring America to her Christian roots. We at 5th Kingdom Ministries are not discouraged, in fact, we’re just getting started!
Please don’t take my optimism for arrogance. Only God can revive our nation, and I have no idea if that’s what He will choose to do. But whether He chooses to restore America or not, our task is still the same: apply the Bible to all of life and teach others to do the same. Though I’m thankful for the rich Christian heritage of the United States, and I do desire for her to be restored to obedience to God, I am a Christian first and an American second (actually 3rd or 4th, or maybe 5th). My primary allegiance is to the Kingdom of Heaven. That is why I’m optimistic. God has promised that His Kingdom will slowly outgrow all other kingdoms (Matt. 13:31-32).
If God has promised that His Kingdom will grow, why does it seem as though it is shrinking, at least in this country? What then is the problem? To put it simply, the problem is you (and me). Though that last statement may not win many friends, I do believe I can back it up with Scripture.
If Christianity is “losing”, it is because of our disobedience. When God’s people obey, they “win” (Deut. 28:1). When they disobey, they “lose” (Deut. 28:15,25). When God’s people listen to and live out His word, God will cause the opponents of Christianity to lose (Ps. 81:13-14). Unfortunately, modern Christianity seems to live more according to man-made philosophies and methods than to the Bible. When we do what we think is best, rather than what God says, we may have success. But, that success is a false success that ends in ruin (Isa. 17:10-11).
Jesus compared those who ignore His word to a man who built his house on sand (Matt. 7:26). Notice that this man had short term success: he did build a house. His success, however, was short-lived (Matt. 7:27). In our day and time, much church practice is built on the sand of man’s innovations rather than the rock of God’s word. This is why the American church is crumbling, and it will continue to do so unless we repent. The United States’ economy is not built on God’s word either; it too will fall down. Our educational institutions are built on sand, as is the modern family, our welfare system, our morality, and more. Unless we rebuild all of life and society on the rock of God’s word, our nation will continue to crumble.
We are engaged in a battle of ideas. The battle is difficult, but now is not the time to despair. Rather, let us turn to the Lord and fight for Him and for our families (Neh. 4:14). How do we fight? Not with the weapons of the world, but by taking every thought and making it obedient to Christ and His word (2 Cor. 10:3-5).
American Christianity is being shaken, and though I do expect things to get rough, I don’t despair. God, at times, does shake things up. He does this so that those things that are built on sand will be torn down. But the things that cannot be shaken (those things built on His word) will remain (Heb. 12:27). Let us then, by God’s grace, serve our God, whose Kingdom is unshakable, for He is a consuming fire (Heb. 12:28-29).
Contra Mundum,
Mike Griggs, founder of 5th Kingdom Ministries