15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
16 Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
17 Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."
In 1st Timothy 3, Paul wrote to Timothy about the attitude by which we are to approach church, recognizing that we don't merely "go to church," but we are the Church. Paul writes:
14 These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly;
15 but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.
A recent Breakpoint commentary cited a 2021 article regarding a Gallup poll about church membership, stating that "U.S. church membership, as a percentage of the population, is now at a record low—down more than 20 points in the twenty-first century." That Gallup article noted that:
Americans' membership in houses of worship continued to decline last year, dropping below 50% for the first time in Gallup's eight-decade trend. In 2020, 47% of Americans said they belonged to a church, synagogue or mosque, down from 50% in 2018 and 70% in 1999.
Furthermore, as an aside, another Gallup survey taken earlier this year, indicates a decline in church attendance overall coming out of the COVID pandemic. Another Gallup article related:
U.S. church attendance has shown a small but noticeable decline compared with what it was before the COVID-19 pandemic. In the four years before the pandemic, 2016 through 2019, an average of 34% of U.S. adults said they had attended church, synagogue, mosque or temple in the past seven days. From 2020 to the present, the average has been 30%, including a 31% reading in a May 1-24 survey.
Less than half of Americans belong to houses of worship, less than a third of American adults are attending.
The Breakpoint commentary, by John Stonestreet and Shane Morris, explored why church participation is on the decline. They stated:
Faith, particularly Christian faith, is an irreplaceable force for good in society. Its decline will leave America less healthy, less charitable, less connected, and less capable of dealing with major social ills without government intervention. Evidence suggests it already has.
At the same time, it is essential to remember that these benefits are byproducts of faith, not the main point. Anyone who hopes to halt and reverse church decline must remember what that main point is.
Well, as the authors note, "it's not to entertain people." The commentary referenced a recent piece from WORLD Magazine written by Carl Trueman of Grove City College. And, when entertainment becomes the focus, it shuts the door to people experiencing the presence of God. He writes:
There is only one description in the New Testament of how an outsider should react when he blunders by accident into a church service. It is in 1 Corinthians 14:24–25. Paul tells us that such a person will be convicted and fall on his face, knowing that God is there. Presumably, this is because he finds himself in the presence of a holy God and is overwhelmed by his own sense of unworthiness. Turning worship into a comedy skit seems unlikely to produce the same result. In fact, far from being sensitive to the needs of any seeker, it sends a clear signal that the gospel is unworthy of attention by any serious-minded person, believer or unbeliever.
Trueman adds:
When worship is turned into a clown show with a religious patina, Christianity and Christians are infantilized and God is mocked.
Our God, our New Testament God, is a consuming fire and to be approached with awe and reverence, as the book of Hebrews teaches. And those incapable of acting in accordance with that have no place in the pastoral ministry.
Stonestreet and Morris made mention of an upcoming book called, The Great Dechurching. They write that its authors...
...suggest that low expectations of those in the pews and widely embraced individualist assumptions have led to fewer and fewer Americans finding time for church. If Christianity is merely a kind of hobby or weekly pep talk designed to enhance psychological wellbeing or career success, then we can find better stuff on YouTube or Spotify. Why make time for this type of church every week?
But what if Christianity is a way of life, the thing it’s all about. What if it demands our allegiance? What if following Christ restructures our priorities and pursuits, our beliefs and our behavior—including career, family, and even personal identity?
Everything else in our society directs our gaze inward, to ourselves, our feelings, our priorities, and our problems—as if every individual is the center of his or her own universe. Churches that accept and even participate in this idolatry may be leading millions away from Christianity, not by demanding everything of them but by demanding nothing.
Study the ministry of Jesus, explore the book of Acts - when we look at how God was working during those times, we see distinct supernatural activity as He responded to the obedience of His people, including His Son. There was certainly a dependence and expectation upon the Lord - and, I would also say, a devotion, a seriousness, about the things of God. We need to make sure we are walking with that sort of mindset.
We also have to rid ourselves of the consumer mentality, i.e. going to church and being involved in church activity as a spectator, not a participant; as a giver, not a receiver. If we make church attendance all about us, then we can find ourselves in control of the course of our spiritual life, which actually cuts off the flow of the Spirit of God.
The stakes are high in the world in which we live - in which God has placed us - and to walk through life with a casual attitude about spiritual things can leave us far beneath the life God desires for us to walk in. We have to possess a sense of seriousness about the things of God and yield ourselves to the activity of His Spirit through us.
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