Posted on 08/30/2020 8:52:05 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
More than half of American adults, including 30% of evangelicals, say Jesus isn’t God but most agree He was a great teacher, according to results from the 2020 State of Theology survey.
Even though the Bible and traditional teachings of the Christian Church hold that Jesus truly existed as both man and God, among the key findings of the biennial State of Theology survey from Ligonier Ministries conducted with LifeWay Research, is that 52% of American adults believe that Jesus was a great teacher and nothing more.
And nearly a third of evangelicals also support that view, a preliminary release on the findings of the study said Thursday. The complete report on the survey, conducted March 10 to 18 among 3,002 U.S. adults including 630 professing evangelicals, is expected to be released on Sept. 8.
"Statistics like these from the State of Theology survey can give us quite a shock, but they also shed light on the concerns that many American Christians and churches have expressed for decades. As the culture around us increasingly abandons its moral compass, professing evangelicals are sadly drifting away from God's absolute standard in Scripture,” Stephen Nichols, chief academic officer of Ligonier Ministries and president of Reformation Bible College, said in a statement.
“It's clear that the church does not have the luxury of idly standing by. This is a time for Christians to study Scripture diligently, engage confidently with people in our culture, and witness fearlessly to the identity and saving work of Jesus Christ in the Gospel."
For the study, evangelicals were defined as people who strongly agreed with the following four statements: the Bible is the highest authority for what I believe; it is very important for me personally to encourage non-Christians to trust Jesus Christ as their Savior; Jesus Christ's death on the cross is the only sacrifice that could remove the penalty of my sin; and only those who trust in Jesus Christ alone as their Savior receive God's free gift of eternal salvation.
Some 65% of evangelicals in the study were also found to agree with the statement, "Jesus is the first and greatest being created by God," which theology experts say suggest a dire need for Christians to be taught Christology — the doctrine of the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Findings of an earlier Barna study this year also showed that only 51% of Americans consider God to be "all-powerful, all-knowing, perfect and just creator of the universe who still rules the world today.” In 1991, 73% of Americans believed that to be true.
Some 44% respondents in this survey agreed that since Jesus was both man and God when He walked the earth, He committed sins like any other person. Only 41% held the biblical perspective that Jesus was both man and God and remained sinless.
“The spiritual noise in our culture over the last few decades has confused and misled hundreds of millions of people," Barna said at the time. "The message to churches, Christian leaders, and Christian educators is clear: we can no longer assume that people have a solid grasp of even the most basic biblical principles."
>>More than half of American adults, including 30% of evangelicals, say Jesus isn’t God but most agree He was a great teacher, according to results from the 2020 State of Theology survey.
Barack Hussein Obama called Jesus a historical figure and said that sin was anything that went against Obama’s values.
A third of “evangelicals” never read their Bibles.
So what is their basis for Him being a “great teacher” and not the Son of God? Note everything negative concerning Christ comes from secular sources with no backing, no verification. Nonsense. Prove it, and name the sources. Some Indian sects claim he was buried in India with absolutely no proof. Show us the body.
For all practical purposes I don’t see why one would stay a Christian if they don’t believe the most fundamental teachings regarding it.
They are called Christians for a reason :-)
I wonder how many devil worshippers don’t really believe in the devil.
I think too many people see Jesus and the devil as symbols for something else. They are looking too deeply into it.
They are not symbols. They are the real deal
no, what I am saying is that the Trinity is a “mystery”. No one knows for sure how exactly the 3 are separate, but also one. I am putting forward “one” possible solution to the mystery. Maybe.. just maybe.. they are separate in the sense that they would be two entire different entities once we get to heaven. But they are still one in some other way. Jesus could of been with God from the beginning, and been a part of God in some mysterious sense that we don’t quiet understand and yet still be a separate entity that physically sits to the right of God in heaven.
...many of them working at the Christian Post.
I wasn’t arguing with you. I was just kind of taking an outside viewpoint that it’s really not worth being a Christian if you don’t believe that in some way Jesus is God. And you do believe that. You just believe it’s a mystery and of course it is.
We are human beings. How could we ever fully comprehend the Trinity? That we believe it is enough.
and I apologize if it came across as I was doubting your beliefs. That’s not my business to comment on. And it wasn’t my intention. Have a good night
ok :)
Noooo you are perfectly fine. It’s just an interesting mystery that I have long pondered. But in the end, regardless of what the answer to the mystery of the trinity is. Jesus is the only way.
God the father calls Jesus God.
8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
- Heb 1:8
Wrong. If Jesus is not God the Christian religion is a fraud and a sham. If Jesus is not who He says He is He is a liar and those that believe in Him are lost.
If Jesus is not God He is a liar and therefore a sinner. Do not kid yourself
Bet many Christian church-goers would give a blank stare if asked to recite even the Apostles’ Creed , much less the Nicene Creed. And most have probably never heard of the Athanasian Creed.
Are they mixing in Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons with evangelical Christians?
If you do not accept Jesus as God, then you are not Christian.
So I would like to see this question asked just of Christians.
OMG... 30% evangelicals??? that one is hard to believe.
They cant have it both ways though...
He’s either who He claimed to be, or He is a blasphemer.... psssst... thats why they killed him.
Cant be a good man/teacher AND a blasphemer.
I think coming back from the dead in 3 days like He said He would is pretty solid proof He’s not a blasphemer.
I sorry that you believe that the trinity is not a mystery. But I myself and more than willing to wait to get to heaven to learn the truth, and I will put my faith in Jesus to get me there so my many questions can be answered.
I don’t necessarily interpret the answer to the survey question as a test of faith, surely in logical terms one could hold a belief that Jesus while evidently advanced beyond the human realm still does not have all the powers and abilities of God the Father. Perhaps He can call upon them at will, which is rather similar to having the powers, as in holding a credit card instead of money.
But in philosophical terms there is a difference between being able to make the Sun go dark, and knowing the entity who can do that combined with access to make requests.
I do consider it a mystery beyond our understanding anyway. For me, it’s good enough that Jesus holds the key to salvation and eternal life, whether it’s because He is God or just has a very good relationship with God (and some powers granted) makes no practical difference. I trust in His word and don’t sweat the details of what goes on in realms beyond my comprehension or experience.
When did I say the Trinity is not. mystery? ur what we know of the Trinity comes from Scripture. Jesus clearly claimed to be God on several occasions Either you believe Him or you call Him a liar. I believe Him
The gospel of John declares Jesus to be God.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
- Jn 1:1
If Jesus is not God, then there is no one qualified to atone for our sins. There is no eternal life. There is only eternal torment in the lake of fire.
There is no good news.
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