{"id":6322,"date":"2010-05-20T00:00:53","date_gmt":"2010-05-20T00:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/jesuscreed\/2010\/05\/evangelicalisms-biggest-challe.html"},"modified":"2010-05-20T00:00:53","modified_gmt":"2010-05-20T00:00:53","slug":"evangelicalisms-biggest-challe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/jesuscreed\/2010\/05\/evangelicalisms-biggest-challe.html","title":{"rendered":"Evangelicalism’s Biggest Challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"

Claiming something is evangelicalism’s biggest challenge is sport for some. I’ve heard a number of items, including complementarianism, the Second Coming, and socialism. I want to register my suggestion, and I believe this idea erodes the very core of evangelicalism. It’s universalism.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
Evangelicalism is marked by four features: the centrality of the Bible, the cross as atoning, the necessity of personal conversion and the personal active faith of the Christian. Universalism is an assault on three of these: universalism suggests personal conversion is not finally necessary, it calls into question the importance and even necessity of evangelism as a form of Christian activism, and it weakens the atoning significance of the death of Jesus if it is understood as that which separates the believer from the non-believer. <\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
And I want to point to the facts that indicate universalism is on the rise. The facts come from Rodney Stark, What Americans Really Believe<\/a>\"\"
\n<\/strong><\/em>, and they say this:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
1. Since 1957, somewhere between 70 and 80% of the American public has believed in life after death\/heaven with some level of confidence.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
2. The Baylor study shows that about 66% of Americans are somewhat certain to certain that they will go to heaven.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Now here’s the indicator of growing universalism:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
3. In 1964 52% said that one had to receive Christ to go to heaven.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
4. In the Baylor study … we get the following, and I’m wondering how you read this chart?<\/div>\n


\n\"Table<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

“If you believe in heaven, how many of the following people do you think will get into heaven?”<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
Here it goes: Of Americans who believe in heaven, % below think half or more of them think the following will enter into heaven. That is, 29% think half or more of nonreligious people will enter heaven.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Average Americans  54%<\/div>\n
Christians  72%<\/div>\n
Jews  46%<\/div>\n
Buddhists 37%<\/div>\n
Muslims 34%<\/div>\n
Nonreligious people 29%<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Only 21% of Americans who believe in heaven think no irreligious people will enter into heaven. In other words, one could say 21% of Americans who believe in heaven are exclusivists — believe only Christians will enter into heaven.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\"Table<\/a><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Claiming something is evangelicalism’s biggest challenge is sport for some. I’ve heard a number of items, including complementarianism, the Second Coming, and socialism. I want to register my suggestion, and I believe this idea erodes the very core of evangelicalism. It’s universalism. Evangelicalism is marked by four features: the centrality of the Bible, the cross…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":70,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-evangelicalism"],"yoast_head":"\nEvangelicalism's Biggest Challenge - Jesus Creed<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/jesuscreed\/2010\/05\/evangelicalisms-biggest-challe.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Evangelicalism's Biggest Challenge - Jesus Creed\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Claiming something is evangelicalism’s biggest challenge is sport for some. 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