{"id":32223,"date":"2022-09-10T16:01:14","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:01:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/the-most-underrated-mission-field-in-america\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T16:01:14","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:01:14","slug":"the-most-underrated-mission-field-in-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/the-most-underrated-mission-field-in-america\/","title":{"rendered":"The Most Underrated Mission Field in America"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Grant Whitty photo – Freely<\/div>\n

By Dean Inserra<\/em><\/p>\n

It is well documented that those who claim no religious affiliation (called \u201cthe nones\u201d) are on the rise. Between 2007 and 2014, the group of people self-identifying as having no religious affiliation jumped from 16.1 to 22.8 percent of the American population.<\/p>\n

This coincides with a decline in people identifying as Christian, although there is reason to believe this is really just a refine\u00adment process and not a sign of bleeding in the actual Christian demographic.<\/p>\n

As the social costs of Christianity increase, those with only nominal belief are falling away. According to a study of U.S. adults, 80 percent of those polled believe in God, but only 56 percent believe in God as described in the Bible.<\/p>\n

Considering the fact that approximately 70 percent of the U.S. population still identifies as Christian, we have a large group of people that would likely be overlooked in outreach or missions, yet don\u2019t know that they believe what the Bible says.<\/p>\n

With this in mind, I believe Cultural Christianity is the most underrated mission field in America. While there is evidence that nominal Christianity is declining on its own, it is of utmost importance that we minister to those on the fence, in hopes that they may end up within the fold and not without.<\/p>\n

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I pastor in a city saturated with Cultural Christianity. Indeed, there is familiarity with church and Christian lingo, but a familiarity with the gospel is hard to find.<\/p>\n

To add to the problem, the church often \u201cassumes the gospel.\u201d As a result, people can camp out in churches for years and never hear what the Bible actually says.<\/p>\n

What an op\u00adportunity to make a Great Commission impact! But reaching people who think they are fine is a seldom-discussed starting point for evange\u00adlism and local church ministry.<\/p>\n

Getting someone who thinks he\u2019s a Christian to see that he is actually not <\/em>is a delicate and sensitive endeavor, but not unique to our time. Jesus Himself, in the greatest sermon ever preached, reminds us that being religious but not saved is not unique to our day.<\/p>\n

The Sermon on the Mount is our starting point for under\u00adstanding Cultural Christianity, where Jesus addresses the distant cousins of the modern day over-churched, under-reached: those who were religious, but not repentant.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot everyone who says to Me, \u2018Lord, Lord,\u2019 will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, \u2018Lord, Lord, didn\u2019t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name? \u2019 Then I will announce to them, \u2018I never knew you. Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!\u2019\u201d (Matt. 7:21\u201323)<\/p>\n

Jesus wasn\u2019t speaking about atheists, agnostics, pluralists, or secular humanists. He was directly describing moral and religious people doing good religious acts in the name of God.<\/p>\n

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See also  The Power of the Ordinary Moments<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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These were the Tom Bradys of religious observance. They had a collection of lanyards from conferences that would make any worship leader jealous.<\/p>\n

Religion was deeply embedded into the routine of their lives, which gave them full confidence that their acts of righteous\u00adness built an impressive r\u00e9sum\u00e9 setting them up for a big payoff in heaven.<\/p>\n

The old adage that \u201cit isn\u2019t what you know but who you know\u201d rings true for these religious all-stars and their impressive accomplishments. They might have known religion, but they didn\u2019t know the Redeemer standing right in front of them.<\/p>\n

And therefore \u201cwhat\u201d they knew didn\u2019t really matter all that much. Consider the petitions Jesus gave as an example in Matthew 7:21\u201323 in our modern context. I believe His examples would translate to our era like this:<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we \u201csay grace\u201d before dinner?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we vote our values?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we believe prayer should be allowed in school?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we go to church? Didn\u2019t we believe in God?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we get misty eyes whenever we heard \u201cGod Bless America\u201d sung at a baseball game?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we give money to the church?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we treat women with respect?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we own Bibles?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we get the baby christened by the priest?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we want America to return to its Christian roots?<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t we stay married and faithful?<\/p>\n

The term \u201cself-righteousness\u201d often comes with a connotation of superiority or rigid legalism. And while those might be results of self-righteousness, the root of self-righteousness is the belief that your own personal works justify you before God.<\/p>\n

Self-righteousness believes that you are good enough or can be if you try hard. Many people function as if they don\u2019t need saving, but that doesn\u2019t change the reality that God has given only One mediator and One atonement and that there is no exception clause.<\/p>\n

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Dean Inserra<\/h2>\n

@DeanInserra<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Dean is the founding and lead pastor of City Church in Tallahassee, Florida and author of\u00a0The Unsaved Christian: Reaching Cultural Christianity with the Gospel<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n