“The president of one of America’s most influential Evangelical organizations announced this week that Focus has officially launched a nationwide search for its next leader, marking the beginning of what is expected to be a year- to 18-month succession process ahead of the ministry’s 50th anniversary in 2027.” - CPost
“The decline of Dispensationalism’s influence does not signal an evangelical retreat from the public square, but rather a fundamental reorientation of it….
In my last two posts (read them here and here), I laid out the danger of those that seek a middle ground between biblical fidelity (biblical fundamentalism) while also chasing acceptance by the liberal/modernist/progressive church and academy. Those that have sought acceptance in this way often find that they have made a deal with the devil that brings about either a theological slide, or forces them to abandon the hope of ecumenical cooperation because the stakes are too high.
In my last post, I laid out an abbreviated history of the fundamentalist/modernist controversy and a working definition of what I mean by fundamentalism. You can read my first part here. In part 2, I will give two historical examples of why this middle ground is a dangerous compromise for those that desire to stay true to the biblical doctrines. My final post will address some considerations for what this means in the Church today.
In the 2017 World War II movie, The Darkest Hour, Winston Churchill cries out in frustration, “You cannot reason with a tiger when your head is in its mouth!” Although these words are more than likely an artistic embellishment for cinema, they do fairly sum up Churchill’s frustration with the policies of Neville Chamberlain that sought to appease Adolph Hitler by ignoring his aggressions in Europe. Chamberlain truly believed that by signing the Munich Agreement and giving the Sudetenland to Germany along with Hitler’s promise not to continue invading other nations, that Europe would be saved.
“These trends start out in small groups of people that are not large enough to be taken seriously by ‘successful’ leaders. These small communities then cultivate the fads until a couple people with bigger platforms adopt them. And then, seemingly suddenly, they are everywhere.” - Russell Moore
“The Church gathered from every region of the world to seek God’s direction together — a truly global body sharing one faith and one mission.” - CPost
“A compromise on marriage and sexuality takes the institution off the narrow path” - World
“They currently estimate there are about 1800 megachurches in the United States. Just to give a sense of scale for this, there are approximately 360,000 houses of worship in the United States - so a very large church is certainly not the norm in this part of the world.” - Ryan Burge
“The democratized forms of Christian belief profiled by Hatch existed on the frontiers of American society. Their adherents were outsiders, far from the elite bastions of the northeast. They tended to be highly individualistic, innovative, unconcerned with the past, and pragmatic in their overall approach to the Christian life.” - Mere Orthodoxy
