Revival or Revolution

Introduction

In order to properly address the state of American Christianity, I feel the need to explain why I am compelled to write in the first place. When I was dealing with the textual discussion, I expressed my desire that everybody would take up and read the Scriptures with full faith and assurance that they were reading the divinely inspired word of God. I turn my attention now to the state of American Protestantism and Christianity at large, because as a Christian, I have the hope that we are nearing a revival. My fear is that without revival, this country is on the brink of civil strife, civil war, or revolution. Some already say that we have been in a civil strife phase for some time now.

Now, if there is a revolution or conflict brewing, I do not believe there is much I can do about that. However, if this nation is blessed instead with revival, it is my most sincere desire that we do not follow the example of Charlies Finney and the Second Great Awakening. If it is the case that we are on the cusp of revival, and given recent events it is not outside of the realm of possibility, I hope to add clarity to the conversation as to what the substance of that revival must be. Perhaps I can aspire to be one small voice of many that steer this revival towards the echoes of Jonathan Edwards and George Whitfield.

In my first two articles, I began to set the stage to explain what American Protestantism has become in the last 100 years, but I hardly touched the surface. Not only are the Roman Catholics unfamiliar with what Protestantism is, but Protestants are, broadly speaking, ignorant of what was formerly called “Reformed Catholicism.” This Reformed Catholicism, confessional Christianity, is represented at most by 1% of churches in the united states. The vast majority of churches do not represent the true nature of Christian catholicity that emerged from the 16th century, and grew in the 17th and 18th centuries. Returning to the Puritans would be great from my perspective, but it is more important to me that whatever form Christianity takes in the upcoming decades, it conforms to “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life” (1 John 1:1, KJV).

That Which Was From the Beginning Is Not What You See Now

It is plain to see that many, if not most churches in the United States have fallen from grace. Before I delve into the nuances of these churches, I wanted to make three critical observations. First, the American Christian, above all other things, is cowardly, weak, and desires approval from men more than approval from God. Second, the American Christian has not exercised his mental or spiritual faculties such that even if he is brave, he is too dense to provide a coherent presentation of the faith in the public sphere. Third, the American Christian is ignorant of his Christian heritage and history, so that even if he is brave and intelligent, he knows not from whence he come.

This deadly trifecta of spiritual apathy has allowed wolves to outright conquer the church with very little resistance. This is why I started my fight with the Scriptures, because I surveyed the American religious landscape and realized that most men were completely lacking spiritual fitness. If we are fortunate enough to be blessed with revival instead of revolution, we need competent and uncompromised men to guide the church away from pseudo revivals, and towards a rich, historical, scriptural, Christianity.

If we fail to navigate this critical time in church history, we may see revival, but it will only multiply the likes of Steven Furtick, David Platt, Tim Keller, Bill Johnson, Kenneth Copeland, Joel Osteen, and so on. So before I pursue a full analysis of the American Christian landscape, I want to emphasize what is at stake here. In true Puritan fashion, I will argue that it is not just the quantity of Christians that matters, it is the quality which we should be concerned with. Even if such revival never happens, we must stop lowering the standards for what Christianity is, lest Christianity transmogrifies itself even further into agnosticism with extra steps.

Agnosticism with Extra Steps

Many modern voices have come out of the wilderness to shout this message, most notably men like Paul Washer in his sermon, “Ten Indictments Against the Modern Church.” This is by no means a new message, and I am not the first messenger here. If we are to truly engage in an objective analysis, we must acknowledge that Christian men have failed to keep the guard rails on what constitutes a Christian church. It is no longer the time for irenic, scholarly conversations. While I do appreciate decorum and formality, the church is not dignified enough to deserve it. A man who demands polite vocabulary and a gentle tone is genuinely not made for this moment in time and space.

The weak, gentle, servant leadership of our fathers has led us down a dark road, where heresy and false worship is excused. There is a valid reason young people are flocking to Rome and the East, and it is primarily because they enter a magisterial, liturgical church, and think, “These people respect the institution.” Few modern Protestants know that our churches used to be that way too, but weak men abandoned the rich, Christian tradition of their great grandfathers. What that has left us with is a Protestant church that is nothing more than agnosticism with a building and a band.

We must be willing to abandon this effeminate version of Christianity and begin to demand more from our institutions. The vast majority of people believe Christians to be gullible, weak, and easily manipulated, and they are correct. If true Christianity is to survive in America, we must begin by drawing lines in the sand. We must expect more from Christians, not less. If this sick and dying country does see revival, we must dutifully ensure that it is a revival full of spirit and truth, and not more of the same.