Falling Away
If you look up the term apostasy, one definition is “abandonment of belief.” It’s sad, but many once-Christian nations could be described that way. Europe includes a number of countries that formerly would have claimed Christianity as reflective of their faith, but are now characterized by abandonment of belief. Several have the statistics to prove it.
For example, the Danes aren’t exactly fervent churchgoers. Just 3% of its population attend services weekly. In Sweden it is a mere 5%. Sundays in France and Germany find less than 10% of their citizens in church. For the United Kingdom, it’s between 10% and 15%. By comparison, 40% of American citizens claim to go to church at least once weekly. Not great, considering that 83% identify themselves as some kind of Christian. But don’t worry, it’s getting worse.
According to The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, 22.8% of Americans claim no religious affiliation. This is most prominent among the young, with one third of those under age 30 claiming no religious affiliation. Although about 41% of teens are regularly involved in church, it is their beliefs that are scary.
One study looked at the beliefs of teens involved in evangelical churches. Over two-thirds of these young people believe that…
• …there is no absolute moral truth.
• …Christianity is about showing bad people how to live better.
• …there is no way to tell which religion is true.
• …Jesus is not the Son of the one true God.
And, over half believe that Jesus did not rise from the dead! Then, upwards of 90% abandon church altogether after high school! With a generation of such Christians, it’s no wonder that Josh McDowell decided to write a book in 2006 called The Last Christian Generation.
Feels like we’re getting pretty European! As liberal, secular, humanistic, materialistic, relativistic philosophies pervade our media and educational institutions, the natural result is a disregard for God, a rejection of the supernatural and an utter denial of and contempt for biblical Truth.
So, does that mean that we’re headed for a religion-free world? Will “progressive” philosophers, like the late Richard Rorty, actually have what they consider to be their version of utopia—a world where “no trace of divinity remained, either in the form of a divinized world or a divinized self”? A culture where there is “…no room for the notion that there are nonhuman forces to which human beings should be responsible”? Well, that may be utopia to some, but most people have a spiritual void they want filled and an innate need to connect with a perceived higher power. Still, that doesn’t mean Christianity will be on the rise, at least not true Christianity.
Having effectively had their minds turned against the Truth of God’s Word, those hungering for “spirituality” will turn to alternative expressions of religion, some perhaps under the guise of Christianity. In fact, in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, we find that in the last days, not only will Antichrist appear on the scene, but there will be a massive turning away from biblical truth amongst so-called Christians, giving birth to the apostate church. According to Jesus, these things must happen before Christ’s return.
Along with the apostate church, there will be a worldwide religion, which includes the apostate church. It will likely be a conglomeration of what its leaders consider to be “the best” of known religions, combining their sacred texts into a patchwork of feel-good, man-centered, pseudo-supernatural drivel.
Well, you don’t have to go to some other “abandonment of belief” country. Just look around a bit and you will find likely candidates for this one-world religion of the last days in our backyard. For example, Michael Beckwith, founder and Spiritual Director of the Agape International Spiritual Center in Culver City, boasting a weekend attendance of over 9,000, and a million “friends” worldwide, describes part of their doctrine on their website:
Agape’s teachings embrace a Reality the world’s scriptures and sacred texts endeavor to describe, even as they acknowledge the impossibility of such a task. Some call it God, Great Spirit, Hashem, or Allah, while others simply prefer to leave it nameless. (“IT!”?? Really?!!)
USA Today quoted him in an article:
“We don't believe you are born into sin. We are born into blessings. While some seek salvation, we call it ‘self-elevation,” says Beckwith, acknowledging that Christians might call this blasphemy. (Gee, yuh think?)
PBS featured Dr. Beckwith in a special called “The Answer is You.” (Oops, wrong answer!) And what evangelical Christian pastor has had a PBS special? Will “The Answer is Jesus” be featured on PBS any time soon? Not likely. With perverse teachers like Beckwith attracting so many and the growing aversion to biblical truth in our nation, the apostate church and a global false religion are not hard to see as soon-coming realities. Know the real Reality.
“But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,…”
─1 Timothy 4:1