Percentage Of Christians In America Drops

A recent Pew Research Center Poll shows that the percentage of Americans identifying themselves as Christians has dropped from 79% to 71% over seven years.  Evangelical Protestants have dropped 1% while those with no religious affiliation has increased.  Should this be a cause for concern?  

Does anyone really believe that 71% of Americans are Christians?  It is simply the number of people who profess to be Christians.  I would say the real percentage of Christians in America is less than 10%.  Most professing Christians do not think or live Biblically.  The name Christian has almost lost it's meaning.  It is important to define the term when dealing with people in order to understand what they mean when they use the label Christian.  

The United States is most definitely not a Christian nation.  You would not have television, movies, internet, and music full of immorality, profanity, and blasphemy.  A 71% Christian nation would not approve of homosexuality, abortion, or living together outside of marriage.  A 71% Christian nation would honor God and his design for things.  

So why are there so many false Christians?  Much of the blame belongs to the leadership of the modern church.  They have taught cheap grace as Dietrich Bonhoeffer called it or easy believism as John MacArthur has referred to it.  A person simply makes the decision and then there is nothing to worry about.  Salvation is presented as the work of man instead of the work of God.  

In this pseudo-Christianity you have Christianity without the cross.  There is no sacrifice, no self denial, and there is no cost of discipleship.  There is no repentance, no required obedience, no church discipline, and no hell.  You are presented a God with no wrath or judgment.  There is no sense of the holiness of God and his sovereignty is denied.  

So the decline of people identifying as Christians may actually be a good thing.  The decline is occurring mainly because of the disappearance of the cultural expectation to identify as Christian.  As the culture becomes more secular and hostile to Biblical Christianity the numbers will continue to decline.  

Many professing Christians have a false assurance and are on the road to hell.  The church needs to stop leading people astray and proclaim the truth.  The modern American church is in bad need of reform.  Unfortunately I think the only way we may see reform is if persecution comes to the American church.  Then identifying as a Christian will be taken much more seriously.