Tag: biblical. illiteracy

In recent years I’ve often said that one of the most challenging dynamics for churches to overcome is biblical illiteracy. Presently it seems to me that there is an abundance of biblical illiteracy in the church among both lay-people and leaders alike. That being the case it is easy to see how the church has lost much of its power, influence, and cultural relevance.

The church has experienced loss in a broad range of areas – numbers, giving, baptisms – over the last decade and a half as it simultaneously faces unprecedented persecution from government. Prominent pastors have publicly endorsed and embraced heretical doctrines (think Rob Bell’s “no hell” doctrine), while others have publicly endorsed sin (such as homosexuality). Constant in-fighting over non-essentials (alcohol, tribulation, carpet color) has also served to disillusion younger generations that see a lack of authenticity.

For me, personally, nothing is as pressing and critical as the issue of biblical literacy. This is far more than the ability to read the Bible and understand it; this is about being able to rightly govern one’s life through the filter of grace, redemption, and sanctification. What’s missing currently is a biblical worldview that shapes and informs every aspect of life to the place that sanctification becomes evident.