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World Evangelical Alliance Leader Warns That 'Bible Knowledge Is Fading Away' Dr. Thomas Schirrmacher, the newly elected secretary-general of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), believes that biblical illiteracy is a growing, troubling trend in the global evangelical church today. Founded in 1846, the WEA represents over 600 million evangelical Christians worldwide, making it the second-largest Christian and religious body of the world. Schirrmacher explained to The Christian Post that “beyond all theological differences, financial problems, and political questions", “our biggest problem is that Bible knowledge is fading away .” I’m sorry to say you are late noticing the “Christian movement without the Bible”, this decline has been going on for many years. They (like the Pharisee’s) have replaced God’s Word with their own traditions, and interpretations, new revelation. Who are “they”? Those that claim to be prophets and apostles to the church of our day. In the Western world, “more and more kids that come from evangelical families are not really rooted in the Bible,” and many end up departing from the faith, he asserted. Conversely, more young people around the world are becoming Christians. Schirrmacher, however, noted that they “only know about the Bible what they learned from their conversion” instead of growing deeper in biblical knowledge.” This is because the gospel is not really preached and the Holy Spirit who gives new life, new understanding from the Word is not focused on for their growth. Parents are not watchful enough so when young Christians go off to college (Christian college also) they are confronted with worldview’s, philosophies that challenge what little they know. … He goes on to say “So many people are becoming believers that the one who has been a believer the longest becomes the leader of the church,” Schirrmacher explained. “That might be three years. Short for us, but long for them. We have such a high conversion rate worldwide, that it's extremely difficult to follow up with discipling, with teaching, with Bible knowledge.” Do we really have such an impact of conversions since so few preach the actual gospel in our day! This difficulty of discipleship and teaching is the heart of the problem. How can it be done when the lack of Bible knowledge is pervasive in the church and a lack of commitment to do the work? Luke 10:2" The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” Since Jesus was physically here there was a need for workers. Mark records Jesus saying to Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every person. Matthew records (28:19-20) make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them and teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. The first is a single event the latter is a continual process that has been neglected for some time now. “ The result is that people know much less and are more ... much more open to secularism and strange things like the ‘health and wealth’ gospel,” he added.” The health and wealth have been in the church and on the main “christian” TV networks for nearly 40 years and continues to grow. “Along with the WEA, Schirrmacher intends to face the “crisis” of poorly trained church leadership by supplying a known, global standard for the outcome- and impact-based assessment . “… if evangelicals don't know the Bible any longer, it doesn't make any sense that we are a Bible movement. We have nothing else. We have no pope, we have no structure that keeps us together, no matter what we believe. We need to sit down and study the Bible, know the Scriptures, and be properly equipped for ministry .” Agreed, but how will this be done when churches do not employ this in their curricullum? Who will initiate to do this tremendous task that faces the worldwide churches? It will take nothing less then a revival with the Bible, a recommitment to the Word as our source to see a bible movement like it occurred hundreds of years in the past. This can only begin with prayer and a right attitude as Paul prayed for our love to grow for the Word where our knowledge and discernment of truth and error comes from. Phili. 1:9-11 “ And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. ” |
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