Christianity in Decline
Matthew 16:18 I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.
There’s a lot of talk these days that Christianity is in global decline. That’s something that many celebrate, hoping that one day soon it’ll be laid to rest once and for all. But is it really true?
To be sure, Christianity is declining numerically in its traditional strongholds – Europe, North America and so on – with secularisation, lower birth rates and what’s called “religious disaffiliation”.
But in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia, it’s booming. By 2060, Africa’s expected to house more than 40% of the world’s Christians. Asia is also in substantial growth, with projections that the Christian population there will rise to nearly 600 million by 2050.
With Christians accounting for almost a third of the world’s population (that’s 2.5 billion people) I wouldn’t be holding my breath to see them all disappear any time soon.
As 20th century missionary to India, Bishop Lesslie Newbigin put it, “The church has outlived great empires, philosophical systems and totalitarian systems. The things that seem to occupy the whole horizon of public thinking today will be simply phantoms half-remembered from the past twenty years from now. But the church will still be there.” Or, as Jesus said to His Apostle, Peter …
Matthew 16:18 I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.
It turns out that Jesus has a plan. So stand firm. Keep going. He is coming back … perhaps sooner than we all think. He’s built His church, the fellowship of His disciples, on solid ground and even the gates of Hell itself cannot overcome it
That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.