I have just received a letter.
It was from someone who says he has ‘de-converted’ from Christianity.
We all know friends who have given up on their Christian faith or stopped attending Church. This is often called ‘backsliding’. Whether it is possible for someone who is truly saved to lose their faith is not a question we can deal with here, but there is no doubt that many who seemed to be believers are no longer with us.
Drop-out rate
Jonathan Edwards, gold medal triple jumper, gave up as a Songs of Praise presenter in 2007 saying that ‘I’ve lost my faith, but I’m happy’. Edwards is only one of a number who follow this path. Barna Group research suggests that over 60% of teenagers who attend church will be spiritually disengaged in their 20s. That is a high drop-off rate and should be a cause for concern.
As with many things in life, prevention is better than cure. We need to ask why people fall away in order to develop disciples less likely to give up the race. I would suggest three areas where we should be particularly on our guard.
1. Lifestyle choices
The decision to form a relationship with a non-believer is a frequent cause of spiritual decline. The young, enthusiastic Christian girl who eagerly tells you that she has great opportunities to share her faith with a non-Christian boyfriend is naïve at best. For every non-Christian converted this way there must be dozens of believers whose faith is put into the deep freeze! Lifestyle choices might also include commitments to sports and clubs that take a Christian further away from their faith. Obviously, this is not always the case: we thank God for Christians in sports, but such lifestyle choices are a very common reason for backsliding.
2. Discipleship crisis
A second stumbling block to faith comes in many forms. Bereavement, redundancy, or the suffering of a friend are all examples. Any of these can blindside a believer and leave their faith in tatters. No matter what support is given, when there is emotional despair or depression, Christian faith can wither.
3. Intellectual challenge
We naturally seek answers to our questions. When we feel that the answers are weak or unsatisfying we start to look elsewhere. Christians at school or college may encounter views of science or history that challenge their faith. In the workplace, or through various forms of media, alternative worldviews or objections to Christianity can seem overwhelming.
Healthy church
No doubt we could add many more reasons for backsliding, but I think these three are very common. And that leads me to believe that a serious interest in apologetics is essential for the health of our church.
Apologetics is most often concerned with the objections of unbelievers. It addresses difficult questions from hostile sources. But a benefit of apologetics is that it strengthens the faith of believers. Far from being a sign of doubt or weakness, questioning can lead to confidence and growth. It is often too late to provide robust answers when someone has already chosen to leave the church.
While our young people are enthusiastic, our families are regular attendees and our senior citizens are actively involved in our churches – that is the time to provide good apologetic resources. Why does God allow redundancy or genetic illness? Those questions need addressing during springtime, not left until the winter. What is the relationship between the Bible and science? There may be no simple answers but at least our churches should be places where we are not afraid to ask questions and seek the truth.
Here are some features of church life that would help encourage robust discipleship that can weather the storms. Allow space for questions. Don’t let a Christian friend feel second class, or guilty about having doubts. Of all the places in the world, the church should be the safest place for anyone to express their anxieties and problems. Don’t be satisfied with simplistic answers. Whether it is in our preaching or Bible study, we should encourage each other to grow. Answers that satisfied yesterday may not satisfy us today. A church should be a place where we can grow in breadth and depth, moving on from milk to meat in our diet of God’s Word (1 Corinthians 3.2). Make sure that sermons don’t just tell us what is true but explain why it is true.
Prepare us all to be apologists and we will all be stronger for it!
