The Christian majority in the U.S. may be gone by 2070, according to a 2020 Pew Center study.
Today, April 09, 2023, is the Easter holiday. It is a religious holiday.
“Easter, also called Pascha (Aramaic, Greek, Latin) or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in the New Testament as having occurred on the third day of his burial following his crucifixion by the Romans at Calvary c. 30 AD.”
Wikipedia
Do you believe?
According to the Pew Center study, in the 1970s, 90% of Americans aligned with Christianity. In 2023, that number dropped to 64%, or a 26% decline in fifty years.
According to Scott McConnell, executive director at Lifeway Research, American churches are closing as more Americans identify as “not-religious.”
“In the last three years, all signs are pointing to a continued pace of closures probably similar to 2019 or possibly higher, as there’s been a really rapid rise in American individuals who say they’re not religious.”
Scott McConnell
A December 2022 Pew Center study revealed that about four-in-ten U.S. adults believe humanity is living in the end times.
Resurrection is the great Christian hope.
The Apostle Paul wrote about the resurrection nearly two thousand years ago.
“But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless, and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead.
But he did not raise him if, in fact, the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.
I Corinthians 15:12-17 New International Version
Without the resurrection of Christ, all Christianity is lost.
Preaching, testimonies, faith, and the forgiveness of sins are false if Jesus did not rise from the dead.
It should come as no surprise that this (Resurrection) holiday (like other Christian holidays) has been relegated to the fertility god and the gathering of eggs.
It makes sense that the God of this world would do anything to create disbelief in the foundational belief of the Christian faith.
Without a close personal relationship with the Godhead, form, and formality replace a relationship. Since form and formality are lifeless, determination and commitment must be in full force to remain compliant.
The sin-filled nature of humanity lends itself to failure, which leads to disappointment and disbelief—without belief, determination, and commitment wane, leading to mass exodus, which the recent Pew Center studies have exposed.
A close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit builds on personal interaction over form and formality.
Perhaps it is time to make a change.
He’s alive
The Apostle Paul did not leave us hanging on the negative side of the resurrection. The apostle goes on to explain:
“So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man.
For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.”
I Corinthians 15:21-22 New International Version
Jesus did rise from the dead, walk out of the tomb, show himself alive to his followers, give them instructions going forward, and ascend unaided into the clouds.
The angels did appear to his followers, declaring that he (Jesus) would return in the manner they saw him leave.
How do I know this to be true?
I know it to be true because the Bible records that it happened that way, and because I chose to have faith (belief and assurance that God is who he says he is and will do what he says he will do), it happened that way.
Therefore, Happy Resurrection Sunday.
A close personal relationship with the Godhead is a journey. I invite you to follow along. I hope that as you learn, you can pass it along so that I (and others) might learn. As I learn, I will pass it along so you, too, can learn.
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