Thank you David for a great word. It’s definitely a challenge for many who call themselves Christians but the deeper journey with Christ is just not what we’ve been told. The Christian life is virtually impossible for fallen man but praise God he gave us His son who has become a life giving spirit that we can live by. Oh and I thank God too that we don’t have to judge who is saved and who isn’t. I don’t want that burden but only to follow the Lord.
Matthew 7:13-14 is well understood by the majority of Christians to equate the ‘narrow gate’ to Salvation being the 613 mitzvah LAW via Moses and the Old Covenant Prophets - only to the Children of Israel as so stated in Matthew 7:12.
Fortunately, this ‘Narrow Gate’ does not cull out ‘Christians of Faith’ !
Jesus Christ took the ‘Narrow Gate’ for each and every Christian of Faith. Aaaah - that was much easier (Matthew 11:29-30).
Another really good piece. Just discussing the concept of what you call "cultural Christianity" with a close friend of mine earlier this evening. I'm concerned about a friend who has created what I call their own "blend" of New Age fluff and Christianity. The person even talked about "toxic fundamentalism" on a public platform today. I'm concerned for not only this person but for those that "follow" them in their public forums.
Many will be deceived and fall away. <sigh>
I prayed about it; the Holy Spirit will find a way to open a conversation. I'm going to send your post, as a point to start the discussion. thank you.
Also check out www.StateOfTheology.com - I wrote three substacks at https://tenpennywalkwithgod.substack.com earlier this year about the sad state of those who "claim" to be Believers but didn't finish parts 4 & 5. It was hard writing and most didn't want to hear it.
Maybe I'll go back and finish it over the holidays for the first of the year. Thank you for the inspiration.
Thanks for the encouragement. I actually forwarded your first post about the state of theology to my subscribers. It’s always difficult to speak the truth. I vowed when I started this Substack that I’d rather speak the truth and have no subscribers than to chase subscribers while telling them what their itching ears want to hear. I pray a lot as I’m writing and before I push Send: “God, let this message be your message, not mine.” I have not enabled paid subscriptions (yet; maybe in the future) so I’m not swayed by monetary considerations. But yes, whenever I approach more difficult subjects, I see engagement drop and a few subscriptions cancelled.
Did Jesus ever profess to be a Christian? The meaning of the word is up for grabs. It appears three times in its Greek NT form (Χριστιανός, spelled the same as the English transliteration apart from the case ending). I have heard various explanations for this word. I'll quote here from my Schnabel commentary on Acts (for Acts 11:26):
Luke’s final comment here about the origins and the early years of the congregation in Antioch notes that it was in Antioch that the disciples, i.e., the followers of Jesus, were first called “Christians” (Χριστιανοί). This term occurs in the New Testament only on the lips of outsiders. Josephus, Pliny, and Tacitus use the term as well. The first Christian usage of the term as a self-designation comes from the second century, which suggests that the term “Christian” was not a self-designation of the followers of Jesus as early as the 30s.
The verb translated as “were called” (χρηματίσαι) is not necessarily a reflexive (“they called themselves Christians”) but can be treated as a passive, which suggests that the term “Christians” was introduced by others. The followers of Jesus called themselves “disciples,” “believers,” “brothers,” “slaves” or “servants of Jesus Christ,” and perhaps also “those who are in Christ Jesus.” The form of the Greek expression — in particular the ending (-ιανοί; singular -ιανός) — also suggests an origin outside of the church, pointing to Latin-speaking circles. In Rome we hear of the Caesariani and Augustiani; in Judea we encounter the Herodiani (the relatives, clients, and the supporters of the Herodian court, who are also mentioned in the New Testament, cf. Mark 3:6; 12:13). The term “Christians” (Χριστιανοί) was evidently an official designation coined by the Roman authorities in Antioch for the new religious group. The designation was probably applied to the followers of Jesus by outsiders “when, not least as a result of their missionary activity to the Greeks, they began to separate themselves from the synagogue congregations and acquire an identity as a separate group.”
It is possible that the followers of Jesus who proclaimed the good news of Jesus, Israel’s Messiah, Lord, and Savior, in the synagogues, in private houses, and perhaps in the marketplace had come to the attention of the Roman authorities — perhaps as early as AD 39, in connection with the unrest among the Jews provoked by Emperor Caligula’s directive to have his statue erected in the Jerusalem temple. The followers of Jesus were probably recognized by the Roman authorities in Antioch as a group of people who publicly proclaimed their loyalty to a Jew named Jesus as Messiah (Χριστός), who grew in numbers and who thus had to be watched.
[Schnabel, Eckhard J., Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament: Acts, Zondervan, 2012, pp. 524-525]
So what does it mean to call oneself a "Christian"? I'm not sure. There is reason to doubt that the early church used the word that way. Here is what I do know. I had the experience of attending a mainline Modernist (in the sense of "Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy") church for 3 years. They called themselves Christians. The gospel, as I know it, never came up that I can recall. They practiced (and still do) a form of the social gospel promoted by their denomination. Most had not read the Bible. I don't know how many regarded it as the word of God, but from my conversations with them I would say not many.
This is not unusual in the mainline churches, what remains of them. I had never seen anything like this before the time I found myself at that one, but I came in believing much as they did (although having read the Bible numerous times) and left an orthodox believer, no thanks to what they were teaching. (Long story, involving a Pentecostal church that met there later in the day on Sundays, that I also attended intermittently. Also teachings found in the liturgy. And personal Bible study.)
It was quite a lesson. But I find that many people in the evangelical churches I have attended since then appear to have no awareness that this even goes on. And I have seen the surveys, Barna and others, pointing to a slide even in those churches in that direction. More personally, my own present church last year left its original denomination of 60 years over related issues.
I began by asking "Did Jesus ever profess to be a Christian?" Well, I'm not sure that question even makes sense, but there is evidence that his followers of the period would not have. The things I hear coming from these wayward churches, when I happen to be in a place to hear them, make my head spin. It can sound so "holy". It's anything but. Some of them are very good at public prayer, if you don't listen too closely to the words.
The Barna survey referenced in your post included this figure: "You read or study the Bible at least once a week -- 33% (2023)." That was down from 37% in 2020. I suspect, however, that some might have returned to occasional Bible reading in 2020. Perhaps now it's "back to normal". I didn't attempt to review earlier surveys to establish a trend.
There's no word for "church" in the Bible that I can think of. Translators anachronistically apply "church" to the NT ἐκκλησίαι ("ekklēsiai", the assemblies). Our relationship is with the Triune God, not a "church". Reading or studying the Bible at least once a week? What about at least once a day?
I hear in sermons about the importance of personal study over and over again (and not just from my in-person church). The implication is that many aren't doing that. The visible evidence agrees. This is dangerous territory.
I think there is a bit of a danger of over rotating on Bible STUDY. The word “study” has an academic connotation. While there is nothing wrong with that, I think what we’re primarily after is a relationship with God. If you’re seeking that, the best place to start is with His Word.
Notice that I tend to use the qualifier "personal" with "study". There's a whole "Bible study industry" out there that I don't even want to talk about. My feelings about it arise from having participated in those kinds of studies for a number of years, and observing what resulted.
I did encounter a times, for a while, an approach to assembling outside of "church" (although perhaps on church grounds) that is very effective. It approximates what the Bible describes of what the first-century church did when when people met together.
Personal study, though, can become repetitive after so many times through. It likely needs to go deeper over time. I happen to do that by working with scholarly texts written by people that understand the original languages and cultural contexts and who believe that the Bible is the actual word of God (it's not for everybody). I don't have a fixed reading plan or amount of time to spend per day. Sometimes, what I do have planned is superseded in some way, such as perhaps studying something with someone else. Sometimes, I can only take so much in and then I have to stop.
The point is not to spend time studying. It is to keep learning and understanding more deeply what's in the Book!
Yes, but… we need to make sure our study is building our relationship, not just our academic knowledge. I suspect that there are a large number of Biblical scholars that will find themselves among the goats. They will know all of what the Bible says about Jesus, but have no relationship with him.
Yes, and with scholars, it is important to remember about "two or three witnesses". I had the opportunity to have a private, in-person chat with Brandon Bernard Scott, a "critical scholar", in 2019, as he was retiring. I like the guy, and some of his research relating to history and cultural context has been helpful, but I'm not about to look to him for understanding what the Bible teaches. Where such people will end up I don't know. Removed from his academic setting through retirement, he might begin to see scripture differently. I wonder if he could finally comprehend that ALL the epistles attributed to Paul are authentic.
I wasn't feeling well last week and I had to cancel all four weekly gatherings that I normally attend. I felt quite "cut off". Those gatherings are, among other things, opportunities to share with others what we have been studying on our own, especially the two Bible studies (which are considerably more than just "study"). So it is "relationships", not just "relationship".
I used to do field work as well, working with the homeless, refugees, and the local trans community. That is largely out of my reach now, physically (I'm 73 and not doing especially well), so I put the time instead into other things I can still do. It's all part of the walk, and things still balance out. Others I know that are my age and older are doing similar things.
You are correct. I was Catholic for over ten years but never read the Bible myself. I went by what I heard in church. In 2019 I started reading daily (which also got me through the 2020 nightmare) I am now on my second reading of the Bible and I feel like a whole different person. I try not to get too tied up with semantics and such. We are labeled as Christians by non-believers, but I just consider myself a follower of Jesus Christ. People even get caught up in what He should be called, but I figure that He has many names and knows them all. He knows our hearts and hears His sheep.
My husband and I ran into an old friend. She commented about the world today. I said, “Yes, this has all been prophesied in the Bible.” She said, “Yes someone else told me that!”
I said, “ We better all get right with God”, to which she replied, “I’m a good person”.
Later, I asked my husband who is not saved, “Do you believe Christ died on the cross and rose again? He said, “Yes”. He remembers what he learned in the Lutheran church as a child.
I said, “What would be the purpose of His death and resurrection if we were all “good enough” to go to heaven. His reply, “I never really thought about it.”
He’s been thinking about it. He came to church with me on Sunday. My fervent prayer is that he continues. 🙏🙏🙏. Time is short and it grieves me so to think he will not be entering God’s kingdom along with me. I have told him this.
Thank you David for a great word. It’s definitely a challenge for many who call themselves Christians but the deeper journey with Christ is just not what we’ve been told. The Christian life is virtually impossible for fallen man but praise God he gave us His son who has become a life giving spirit that we can live by. Oh and I thank God too that we don’t have to judge who is saved and who isn’t. I don’t want that burden but only to follow the Lord.
Matthew 7:13-14 is well understood by the majority of Christians to equate the ‘narrow gate’ to Salvation being the 613 mitzvah LAW via Moses and the Old Covenant Prophets - only to the Children of Israel as so stated in Matthew 7:12.
Fortunately, this ‘Narrow Gate’ does not cull out ‘Christians of Faith’ !
Jesus Christ took the ‘Narrow Gate’ for each and every Christian of Faith. Aaaah - that was much easier (Matthew 11:29-30).
Please paint Matthew 7:13-14 correctly.
Another really good piece. Just discussing the concept of what you call "cultural Christianity" with a close friend of mine earlier this evening. I'm concerned about a friend who has created what I call their own "blend" of New Age fluff and Christianity. The person even talked about "toxic fundamentalism" on a public platform today. I'm concerned for not only this person but for those that "follow" them in their public forums.
Many will be deceived and fall away. <sigh>
I prayed about it; the Holy Spirit will find a way to open a conversation. I'm going to send your post, as a point to start the discussion. thank you.
Also check out www.StateOfTheology.com - I wrote three substacks at https://tenpennywalkwithgod.substack.com earlier this year about the sad state of those who "claim" to be Believers but didn't finish parts 4 & 5. It was hard writing and most didn't want to hear it.
Maybe I'll go back and finish it over the holidays for the first of the year. Thank you for the inspiration.
Thanks for the encouragement. I actually forwarded your first post about the state of theology to my subscribers. It’s always difficult to speak the truth. I vowed when I started this Substack that I’d rather speak the truth and have no subscribers than to chase subscribers while telling them what their itching ears want to hear. I pray a lot as I’m writing and before I push Send: “God, let this message be your message, not mine.” I have not enabled paid subscriptions (yet; maybe in the future) so I’m not swayed by monetary considerations. But yes, whenever I approach more difficult subjects, I see engagement drop and a few subscriptions cancelled.
Did Jesus ever profess to be a Christian? The meaning of the word is up for grabs. It appears three times in its Greek NT form (Χριστιανός, spelled the same as the English transliteration apart from the case ending). I have heard various explanations for this word. I'll quote here from my Schnabel commentary on Acts (for Acts 11:26):
Luke’s final comment here about the origins and the early years of the congregation in Antioch notes that it was in Antioch that the disciples, i.e., the followers of Jesus, were first called “Christians” (Χριστιανοί). This term occurs in the New Testament only on the lips of outsiders. Josephus, Pliny, and Tacitus use the term as well. The first Christian usage of the term as a self-designation comes from the second century, which suggests that the term “Christian” was not a self-designation of the followers of Jesus as early as the 30s.
The verb translated as “were called” (χρηματίσαι) is not necessarily a reflexive (“they called themselves Christians”) but can be treated as a passive, which suggests that the term “Christians” was introduced by others. The followers of Jesus called themselves “disciples,” “believers,” “brothers,” “slaves” or “servants of Jesus Christ,” and perhaps also “those who are in Christ Jesus.” The form of the Greek expression — in particular the ending (-ιανοί; singular -ιανός) — also suggests an origin outside of the church, pointing to Latin-speaking circles. In Rome we hear of the Caesariani and Augustiani; in Judea we encounter the Herodiani (the relatives, clients, and the supporters of the Herodian court, who are also mentioned in the New Testament, cf. Mark 3:6; 12:13). The term “Christians” (Χριστιανοί) was evidently an official designation coined by the Roman authorities in Antioch for the new religious group. The designation was probably applied to the followers of Jesus by outsiders “when, not least as a result of their missionary activity to the Greeks, they began to separate themselves from the synagogue congregations and acquire an identity as a separate group.”
It is possible that the followers of Jesus who proclaimed the good news of Jesus, Israel’s Messiah, Lord, and Savior, in the synagogues, in private houses, and perhaps in the marketplace had come to the attention of the Roman authorities — perhaps as early as AD 39, in connection with the unrest among the Jews provoked by Emperor Caligula’s directive to have his statue erected in the Jerusalem temple. The followers of Jesus were probably recognized by the Roman authorities in Antioch as a group of people who publicly proclaimed their loyalty to a Jew named Jesus as Messiah (Χριστός), who grew in numbers and who thus had to be watched.
[Schnabel, Eckhard J., Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament: Acts, Zondervan, 2012, pp. 524-525]
So what does it mean to call oneself a "Christian"? I'm not sure. There is reason to doubt that the early church used the word that way. Here is what I do know. I had the experience of attending a mainline Modernist (in the sense of "Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy") church for 3 years. They called themselves Christians. The gospel, as I know it, never came up that I can recall. They practiced (and still do) a form of the social gospel promoted by their denomination. Most had not read the Bible. I don't know how many regarded it as the word of God, but from my conversations with them I would say not many.
This is not unusual in the mainline churches, what remains of them. I had never seen anything like this before the time I found myself at that one, but I came in believing much as they did (although having read the Bible numerous times) and left an orthodox believer, no thanks to what they were teaching. (Long story, involving a Pentecostal church that met there later in the day on Sundays, that I also attended intermittently. Also teachings found in the liturgy. And personal Bible study.)
It was quite a lesson. But I find that many people in the evangelical churches I have attended since then appear to have no awareness that this even goes on. And I have seen the surveys, Barna and others, pointing to a slide even in those churches in that direction. More personally, my own present church last year left its original denomination of 60 years over related issues.
I began by asking "Did Jesus ever profess to be a Christian?" Well, I'm not sure that question even makes sense, but there is evidence that his followers of the period would not have. The things I hear coming from these wayward churches, when I happen to be in a place to hear them, make my head spin. It can sound so "holy". It's anything but. Some of them are very good at public prayer, if you don't listen too closely to the words.
The Barna survey referenced in your post included this figure: "You read or study the Bible at least once a week -- 33% (2023)." That was down from 37% in 2020. I suspect, however, that some might have returned to occasional Bible reading in 2020. Perhaps now it's "back to normal". I didn't attempt to review earlier surveys to establish a trend.
There's no word for "church" in the Bible that I can think of. Translators anachronistically apply "church" to the NT ἐκκλησίαι ("ekklēsiai", the assemblies). Our relationship is with the Triune God, not a "church". Reading or studying the Bible at least once a week? What about at least once a day?
I hear in sermons about the importance of personal study over and over again (and not just from my in-person church). The implication is that many aren't doing that. The visible evidence agrees. This is dangerous territory.
[You did ask for comments.]
I did, indeed, ask for comments. 👍😀
I think there is a bit of a danger of over rotating on Bible STUDY. The word “study” has an academic connotation. While there is nothing wrong with that, I think what we’re primarily after is a relationship with God. If you’re seeking that, the best place to start is with His Word.
Notice that I tend to use the qualifier "personal" with "study". There's a whole "Bible study industry" out there that I don't even want to talk about. My feelings about it arise from having participated in those kinds of studies for a number of years, and observing what resulted.
I did encounter a times, for a while, an approach to assembling outside of "church" (although perhaps on church grounds) that is very effective. It approximates what the Bible describes of what the first-century church did when when people met together.
Personal study, though, can become repetitive after so many times through. It likely needs to go deeper over time. I happen to do that by working with scholarly texts written by people that understand the original languages and cultural contexts and who believe that the Bible is the actual word of God (it's not for everybody). I don't have a fixed reading plan or amount of time to spend per day. Sometimes, what I do have planned is superseded in some way, such as perhaps studying something with someone else. Sometimes, I can only take so much in and then I have to stop.
The point is not to spend time studying. It is to keep learning and understanding more deeply what's in the Book!
Yes, but… we need to make sure our study is building our relationship, not just our academic knowledge. I suspect that there are a large number of Biblical scholars that will find themselves among the goats. They will know all of what the Bible says about Jesus, but have no relationship with him.
Yes, and with scholars, it is important to remember about "two or three witnesses". I had the opportunity to have a private, in-person chat with Brandon Bernard Scott, a "critical scholar", in 2019, as he was retiring. I like the guy, and some of his research relating to history and cultural context has been helpful, but I'm not about to look to him for understanding what the Bible teaches. Where such people will end up I don't know. Removed from his academic setting through retirement, he might begin to see scripture differently. I wonder if he could finally comprehend that ALL the epistles attributed to Paul are authentic.
I wasn't feeling well last week and I had to cancel all four weekly gatherings that I normally attend. I felt quite "cut off". Those gatherings are, among other things, opportunities to share with others what we have been studying on our own, especially the two Bible studies (which are considerably more than just "study"). So it is "relationships", not just "relationship".
I used to do field work as well, working with the homeless, refugees, and the local trans community. That is largely out of my reach now, physically (I'm 73 and not doing especially well), so I put the time instead into other things I can still do. It's all part of the walk, and things still balance out. Others I know that are my age and older are doing similar things.
You are correct. I was Catholic for over ten years but never read the Bible myself. I went by what I heard in church. In 2019 I started reading daily (which also got me through the 2020 nightmare) I am now on my second reading of the Bible and I feel like a whole different person. I try not to get too tied up with semantics and such. We are labeled as Christians by non-believers, but I just consider myself a follower of Jesus Christ. People even get caught up in what He should be called, but I figure that He has many names and knows them all. He knows our hearts and hears His sheep.
Yep.
My husband and I ran into an old friend. She commented about the world today. I said, “Yes, this has all been prophesied in the Bible.” She said, “Yes someone else told me that!”
I said, “ We better all get right with God”, to which she replied, “I’m a good person”.
Later, I asked my husband who is not saved, “Do you believe Christ died on the cross and rose again? He said, “Yes”. He remembers what he learned in the Lutheran church as a child.
I said, “What would be the purpose of His death and resurrection if we were all “good enough” to go to heaven. His reply, “I never really thought about it.”
He’s been thinking about it. He came to church with me on Sunday. My fervent prayer is that he continues. 🙏🙏🙏. Time is short and it grieves me so to think he will not be entering God’s kingdom along with me. I have told him this.
'What would be the purpose of His death and resurrection if we were all “good enough” to go to heaven?'
You're spot on, Laura. Keep praying. God is faithful.