A message for Akron Alliance Fellowship Church, Akron OH, Sunday, March 17, 2024.
For the “Live in Church” audio of this message, select here.
This past month, as you may already know, was Black History Month. I had the task of presenting to my company’s general work population a lunchtime Black History Month vignette about three notable people—Sojourner Truth, Victor Green, creator of the Green Book, and Eunice Johnson, wife of publisher John Johnson and creator of the Ebony Fashion Fair.
This form of education has been well-received where I work, but it is becoming more challenging to keep up the efforts of diversity, equity and inclusion within the workplace. Our company has changed and evolved over the past couple of years, and we are now looking for ways to capture how we can make a cultural impact within our various company communities in Cleveland, Atlanta, Florida, Texas, Arizona and Southern California.
The landscape in our communities continues to change and evolve. A very notable—and ominous—change over time has been how the nation’s church population—those who are actively attending church—has fallen under 50 percent for the first time in history. Gallup published an article in 2021 that less than half of all Americans in 2020—only 47 percent—belonged to a church, synagogue or mosque. This is down over 20 percent from the turn of the century. At that time, in 1999, the number was 70 percent.1 When Gallup started polling on this subject, the peak was 76 percent in 1947, but church membership has declined precipitously since the year 2000.
An even more glaring statistic was revealed in a recent Gallup poll in 2023. In the United States, 47 percent of Americans refer to themselves as “religious” (down from 53 percent in 1999) while another 33 percent call themselves “spiritual but not religious.” Only 2 percent claim “both.” 18 percent say they are neither spiritual nor religious, up from 9 percent in 1999.2
All of this is consistent with America’s overall approach to how it views God, the church and the practice of worship. Forty million Americans have stopped attending church in the past 25 years.3 For the first time in our country’s history, people who are regular participants in matters of faith are now in the minority. And that minority is likely to continue to shrink in numbers in line with the general apathy that many have when it comes to following God and spending time in a relationship with Him.
We can very easily see how the COVID Pandemic drove people away from churches nationwide, or we can blame some of the highly publicized sex scandals that turned people away from organized religion, but those reasons pale in comparison to the reality that many people just don’t want to go to church as it involves a commitment that they are unwilling to make. For others, going to church is not even on their list as a necessity. It doesn’t crack their Top 10. And the strange thing about this is that many younger people (Gen Z) actually have a spiritual foundation but don’t see the need to go to church or trust in religious institutions. Their spirituality, as I see it, is very blurry. The practices of believing God and prayer time may follow a combination of religious practices that blend Christianity, the Sufi tradition in Islam, Buddhism and mindfulness.4
Today’s world, in the effort to practice diversity, equity and inclusion, has become more aligned to avoid offending those who practice different religions. And Satan has cleverly capitalized on how future generations view God and their level of spirituality. In these examples, Jesus is not present.
It is ironic that in Gen Z’s effort to push away from the practices of churches as religious institutions, they are essentially mirroring what has been going on before Jesus walked the earth. God’s chosen people repeatedly turned away from God and wallowed in sin and disobedience.
Zechariah 1:4, 7:11-13 NIV
4 Do not be like your ancestors, to whom the earlier prophets proclaimed: This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Turn from your evil ways and your evil practices.’ But they would not listen or pay attention to me, declares the Lord.
11 “But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly they turned their backs and covered their ears. 12 They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. So the Lord Almighty was very angry.
13 “‘When I called, they did not listen; so when they called, I would not listen,’ says the Lord Almighty.
These passages of God’s declaration throughout Scripture come from the tendencies of mankind:
Judges 21:25 NLT
In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.
You don’t really need to take a poll to see the direction where America is heading. America is less religious and more skeptical on the existence of God, and many people are highly self-focused—which eliminates the need for God.
It’s become more and more clear that believers in Jesus Christ make up the minority of people who still hold to the value of a relationship with Jesus and regularly attend church. But the numbers of these persons are fewer and fewer.
But this sobering message doesn’t end here. First of all, we need to always remember that even when you’re in the minority, there is strength in numbers. All believers in Jesus Christ—regardless of culture, race, background or color—are all united in the body of Christ. We all make up different parts within the body, and they represent a wonderful wholeness that makes up the church.
1 Corinthians 12:12-13, 27 NLT
12 The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. 13 Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.
27 All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it.
Every one of us in the body of Christ has a role in the body (and for our purposes, the church) and is greatly valued. When one person does well, everyone is joyful. When one is suffering, the others suffer with that person and provide empathy. And guess what? God is also on those journeys with us.
Deuteronomy 31:8 CSB
The Lord is the one who will go before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or abandon you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.”
Joshua 1:9 ESV
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
The Lord knows who belong to Him. He is not concerned about numbers as we are. In fact, He is more concerned about who we are and how we are holding up. He provides strength and endurance to every believer. In our weakness, He is strong (2 Corinthians 12:10).
Yes, believers are in the minority. But let’s examine why this is not a disadvantage as long as we bring God into the picture. God has shown His faithfulness in Scripture by using only a few faithful people to accomplish mighty things in His name.
Let’s recount these examples where God uses a minority of people to see the power and might of God in overcoming their enemies.
King Hezekiah, leader of Judah in response to invasion efforts of King Sennacherib of Assyria:
2 Chronicles 32:6-8 NLT
6 He appointed military officers over the people and assembled them before him in the square at the city gate. Then Hezekiah encouraged them by saying: 7 “Be strong and courageous! Don’t be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria or his mighty army, for there is a power far greater on our side! 8 He may have a great army, but they are merely men. We have the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles for us!” Hezekiah’s words greatly encouraged the people.
After a series of mocking incidents by King Sennacherib and his officers before their effort to lay siege to Jerusalem, here’s the result:
2 Chronicles 32:20-22 NLT
20 Then King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz cried out in prayer to God in heaven. 21 And the Lord sent an angel who destroyed the Assyrian army with all its commanders and officers. So Sennacherib was forced to return home in disgrace to his own land. And when he entered the temple of his god, some of his own sons killed him there with a sword.
22 That is how the Lord rescued Hezekiah and the people of Jerusalem from King Sennacherib of Assyria and from all the others who threatened them. So there was peace throughout the land.
Here is another example in Scripture that is very similar to this one.
In Second Chronicles, Chapter 20, a large number of Moabites and Ammonites were preparing to overwhelm King Jehoshaphat and all of Judah with a vast number of soldiers. Jehoshaphat was fearful and declared a time of fasting for all of the people. And then he prayed to God before all of the people of Judah and Jerusalem for God to intervene and protect them from their enemies. The Lord answered the prayer right then and there, and the next day, the king and the people got up and went out to the wilderness of Tekoa to give praise to the Lord as Jehoshaphat told them to believe that God would bring them great success.
2 Chronicles 20:21b-24 NLT
21b When they went out in front of the armed forces, they kept singing:
Give thanks to the Lord,
for his faithful love endures forever.
22 The moment they began their shouts and praises, the Lord set an ambush against the Ammonites, Moabites, and the inhabitants of Mount Seir who came to fight against Judah, and they were defeated. 23 The Ammonites and Moabites turned against the inhabitants of Mount Seir and completely annihilated them. When they had finished with the inhabitants of Seir, they helped destroy each other.
24 When Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked for the large army, but there were only corpses lying on the ground; nobody had escaped.
Once again, like Hezekiah’s army, Jehoshaphat’s army did not have to do anything. It was prayer, faith and believing in God that gave them the victory.
Perhaps the most famous and memorably quirky example in Scripture of God using a minority of people for His glory was with Gideon. Gideon’s troops were about to take on the Midianites in Judges, Chapter 7. Gideon started with 32,000 troops. Here’s how this went down:
Judges 7:2-8 NLT
2 The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many troops for me to hand the Midianites over to them, or else Israel might elevate themselves over me and say, ‘I saved myself.’ 3 Now announce to the troops, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand of the troops turned back, but ten thousand remained.
4 Then the Lord said to Gideon, “There are still too many troops. Take them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. If I say to you, ‘This one can go with you,’ he can go. But if I say about anyone, ‘This one cannot go with you,’ he cannot go.” 5 So he brought the troops down to the water, and the Lord said to Gideon, “Separate everyone who laps water with his tongue like a dog. Do the same with everyone who kneels to drink.” 6 The number of those who lapped with their hands to their mouths was three hundred men, and all the rest of the troops knelt to drink water. 7 The Lord said to Gideon, “I will deliver you with the three hundred men who lapped and hand the Midianites over to you. But everyone else is to go home.” 8 So Gideon sent all the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred troops, who took the provisions and their rams’ horns. The camp of Midian was below him in the valley.
God knew that Gideon would be faithful even though he was fearful, and it was clear that he needed affirmation to ensure that he was doing the right thing. Gideon believed, and God responded.
Judges 7:12-15 CSB
12 Now the Midianites, Amalekites, and all the people of the east had settled down in the valley like a swarm of locusts, and their camels were as innumerable as the sand on the seashore. 13 When Gideon arrived, there was a man telling his friend about a dream. He said, “Listen, I had a dream: a loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp, struck a tent, and it fell. The loaf turned the tent upside down so that it collapsed.”
14 His friend answered, “This is nothing less than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has handed the entire Midianite camp over to him.”
15 When Gideon heard the account of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed in worship. He returned to Israel’s camp and said, “Get up, for the Lord has handed the Midianite camp over to you.”
Gideon and his army of three hundred were emboldened and pursued the Midianites in confidence that God would give them the victory.
Judges 7:21-23 NLT
21 Each Israelite took his position around the camp, and the entire Midianite army began to run, and they cried out as they fled. 22 When Gideon’s men blew their three hundred rams’ horns, the Lord caused the men in the whole army to turn on each other with their swords. They fled to Acacia House in the direction of Zererah as far as the border of Abel-meholah near Tabbath. 23 Then the men of Israel were called from Naphtali, Asher, and Manasseh, and they pursued the Midianites.
In this situation, Gideon’s three hundred men experienced great victory over the Midianites, who reportedly had over 135,000 armed men (Judges 8:10-12) and the land had peace for forty years (Judges 8:28). Who else but God could be glorified?
But please note how many of the Israelites suffered from short-term memory:
Judges 8:33-35 NLT
33 When Gideon died, the Israelites turned and prostituted themselves by worshiping the Baals and made Baal-berith their god. 34 The Israelites did not remember the Lord their God who had rescued them from the hand of the enemies around them. 35 They did not show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) for all the good he had done for Israel.
Can you see why God was so angry with the people of Israel? God gave them great victories over their enemies only for them to forget about God’s goodness.
May we never forget about God’s goodness.
We must rally together as a body and remember the goodness of God. May we learn the lessons that God is teaching us through the actions of Hezekiah, Jehoshaphat and Gideon about how to experience victory over Satan:
A. Believe that God already has the victory.
1 John 4:4, 5:4 ESV
4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.
B. Pray for God to intervene and protect you.
2 Thessalonians 3:3 ESV
But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.
Psalm 121:7-8 ESV
7 The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
8 The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.
C. Turn your fears into faith that God is in control.
2 Timothy 1:7 ESV
For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
1 Corinthians 16:13 ESV
Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.
1 Peter 5:6-7 ESV
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
We started this message with the realization that believers in Jesus are in the minority but note how God is much more than an equalizer. We have His Helper and His righteousness that sees us through formidable circumstances. May we always remember that Jesus is the difference-maker for all of us for life.
Isaiah 41:10 NIV
Do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be afraid, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you; I will help you;
I will hold on to you with my righteous right hand.
Believe in Jesus. Pray continuously. Live in faith over fear.
Copyright © 2024 Melvin Gaines
1 Jones, J. M. (2024, February 7). U.S. church membership falls below majority for first time. Gallup.com. https://news.gallup.com/poll/341963/church-membership-falls-below-majority-first-time.aspx
2 Jones, J. M. (2024, February 7). In U.S., 47% identify as religious, 33% as spiritual. Gallup.com. https://news.gallup.com/poll/511133/identify-religious-spiritual.aspx
3 Meador, J. (2023, August 7). The misunderstood reason millions of Americans stopped going to Church. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/07/christian-church-communitiy-participation-drop/674843/
4 O’Donnell, P. (2021, September 23). Gen Z is keeping the faith. just don’t expect to see them at worship. Religion News Service. https://religionnews.com/2021/09/23/gen-z-is-keeping-the-faith-just-dont-expect-to-see-them-at-worship/
Melvin Gaines 