The Collapse of Christianity

The article below is by Roger Oakland[1]. Some statements may be a bit based on the American situation. But we also see the picture of the whole happening here at a rapid pace.

Since the beginning of this 21st century, the world has witnessed a virtual “collapse” of Biblical Christianity. Although many say that Christianity is experiencing a great revival and even a "new reformation," the commentary below will document Christianity's demise by showing that we are experiencing the greatest falling away from faith in the history of the present day. In a word: Christianity is being redefined.

Letting go of the Word of God

Numerous pastors have chosen to abandon the Bible for the sake of postmodernism (ie what they see as progressive and culturally relevant).

God's Word alone is authoritative and sufficient for the believers

There is no other way to describe what happened. Those who love God and believe that the Bible is His Word can hardly believe what has happened. The light has turned into darkness. What was once believed to be truth is now proclaimed to be false. Those who once claimed to be followers of Jesus and the Bible now follow people and their philosophies. Instead of reaching the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ, church leaders and Bible teachers are leaving the Bible to embrace the world. They look for ways to sell “Christianity” by incorporating sensual gimmicks that supposedly attract a crowd of people. Hymn books are banned from the pews. The pews were replaced by soft theater seats, with credit card terminals. Church services should be very comfortable. Don't drop the word "sin," nor "that Jesus shed His blood on the cross," for that would be offensive. Then we might ask: What happened to the God of the Bible who created all things according to the book of Genesis? Since when did creation become a religious Babylonian myth, and did the hypothesis of evolution become the science proving that an explosion plus time and chance is the formula for the origin of all life?

Searching for extra-biblical 'God experiences'

Or what about the New Age movement's infiltration into the evangelical churches? Are we Hinduized and do we now think that Yoga is a Christian practice? Or what about getting closer to Jesus through murmuring mantras, “getting centered,” or practicing Eastern mystical contemplative prayers, which will send you to Nirvana?

The quiet peace of mind…

Have Christians lost their minds and been deceived by demons (1 Timothy 4:1)? What to say about the invasion of extra-biblical experiences? For example: getting drunk in the “Spirit”, or barking like a dog, because of “transmissible anointing”? Where is this kind of behavior found in the scriptures?
Are Christians being prepared for a great revival, or are they being deceived by a “different spirit” (2 Corinthians 11:4)?

The ecumenism

Then there's the trend embracing "ecumenical madness"[2]. They say that the term "Protestant" is a word that has to be traced back to the past and that it has no meaning in the church today. Church leaders claim there is no difference between the true Jesus and the host Christ venerated in a Catholic monstrance[3]. And to others, Jesus is nothing but the “Cosmic Christ”, and who say that all is one, and one is all.

This “Jesus” is the universal Jesus of the New Age. If you do not believe in this "Cosmic Christ" created by human imagination, you are often judged to be a heretic or at least "old-fashioned".

The charismatic bridge

Then there is the charismatic bridge, located on the road to ecumenical unity[4]. She provides a connection for the rift that once existed between Roman Catholics and the "separated brethren." Some are calling for a “Second Pentecost,” claiming that the world will turn to Christ and that the Kingdom of God will be established on earth without the presence of the King. Moreover, Israel has no significant place in Scripture. Jews are a problem for the new “Emerging Church”. “Replacement theology” has ignored the Israel of the Bible and replaced it with God's chosen people of the Church, who are to establish the kingdom of God on earth.

In other words, Christianity was reformed and those who refuse to accept this are considered uneducated imbeciles (and they stand in the way of world peace). Biblical prophecy and the warnings against apostasy have been completely relegated to a museum. A unified world religion for peace is in the works, and the Pope, with his entourage, is the man to do it. The postmodern mindset has hijacked true Biblical Christianity and turned God into a god of their own imagination.

The Word of God was relegated to a myth. Or have you noticed the church growth movement whose spirit is raging all over the world? Targeted megachurches selling fun and entertainment are growing exponentially. The churches that emphasize the Bible and salvation in Jesus Christ alone are dying out. The big ones get bigger and the small ones get smaller. It really does appear that Bible-believing Christianity is on the brink of extinction.



Addition from me (TdJ):

Because you have kept the word of My patience, I will also keep you from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

Behold, I come soon. Hold fast what you have, lest anyone take your crown.

Revelation 3:10,11

In the next article you will find a brief description of the decline of the Christian church from Revelation 2 and 3.


[1] Author Roger Oakland. http://www.understandthetimes.org/commentary/c202meltdown.shtml, April 2017. All Scripture quotations are from the Staten Translation (HSV) Translation by M.V. Added footnotes and formatting TdJ. 

[2] This trend always goes hand in hand with the previous one: letting go of the Word of God and looking for extra-biblical 'God experiences'.

[3] See wikipedia: https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monstrans

[4] I have already written about this elsewhere: see here (https://goddienen.nu/afgoden-dienen/afgoderij-in-de-christenheid/de-geest-zegt-uitdrukkelijk/)