What kind of Christian are you? A lesson from the parable of the sower

Did you grow up in church?

Do you ever doubt your faith, or wonder if you could be getting it all wrong?

The prodigal son is truly the exception to the rule today.

The heartbreaking reality is that the church is in decline. More importantly, it’s the youngest generations that are turning their backs the fastest. Something like 59% of youth, raised in the church, will leave and never come back.

Why is this?

What the hell is going on?

I mean we have bright fancy lights and loud music. We have trendy pastors who wear ripped jeans and printed tee’s right? What more do these kids want?

Maybe the church is simply becoming less ‘relevant’. Maybe they are learning the ‘truth’ at school and university. Maybe it’s social media and the ‘fake news’.

Or is it something simpler?

As usual, I think the Bible can give us some clues as to why this might be happening.

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Why You’re Probably Doing Worship Wrong


The Oxford English Dictionary

Worship

noun/verb

  • The feeling or expression of (or to show) reverence and adoration for (or to) a deity.

When asked most Christians will give a well rehearsed answer to the question ‘What is worship?’ along the lines of ‘oh it means giving praise and honour to God’. Some might go a little further and say ‘oh yes, you can worship anytime, anywhere’.

No Christian I know would disagree that worship is something that you can do any time, any where. Prayer, communion, music – all these things count as worship.

In practice however, actual worship is something entirely different.

This is a problem.

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Apologetics and the Gender Gap: Why Men Hate Going to Church and Why it Matters

Introduction

When I was a new Christian, I noticed something off, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. There was something going on and I knew it had something to with men. First of all, I noticed there is a gender gap in the Church.

But there was other things too.

The way the Bible was presented in any church I’ve been to since I was a child just didn’t… eh. As an adult I’ve noticed that often only one side of the Bible is presented… the nice side.

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