Sermon Central
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C ...
Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 23, 2008 (message contributor)
CHRISTIANS?
Let’s go for a second to the lastest Barna Poll on Born Again Christians. In order to do this we need to understand a little information about what they consider to be a Born Again Christian.
In Barna Research Group studies, born again Christians are not defined on the basis of characterizing themselves as "born again" but based upon their answers to two questions. The first is "have you ever made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ that is still important in your life today?" If the respondent says "yes," then they are asked a follow-up question about life after death. One of the seven perspectives a respondent may choose is "when I die, I will go to Heaven because I have confessed my sins and have accepted Jesus Christ as my savior." Individuals who answer "yes" to the first question and select this statement as their belief about their own salvation are then categorized as "born again."
Having said that, Barna concludes that:
92% of born again Christians believe "the Bible is totally accurate in all of the principles it teaches." (2007)
One third of born again adults (45%) say that abortion is a morally acceptable behavior.
30% of all adults consider having a sexual relationship with someone of the same sex a morally acceptable behavior.
61% of adults view gambling as a morally acceptable behavior.
Enjoying sexual thoughts or fantasies about someone: 59%
Living with someone of the opposite sex without being married, sometimes called co-habitation: 60%
Having a sexual relationship with someone of the opposite sex
to whom you are not married: 42%
Looking at pictures of nudity or explicit sexual behavior: 38%
Using profanity: 36%
Getting drunk 35%
Using drugs not prescribed by a medical doctor 17%
How can this be possibly true? How can someone say that they believe that the Bible is totally accurate in all of the principles it teaches and then go on to throw this trash out of their mouths?
Why am I ashamed to be called a Christian? Because Christians have strayed off course. Those very people that claim to have Jesus Christ living in their hearts no longer seem to understand what being a Christian truly is.
(SOURCE: from a sermon by Marty Roark, "What Happened to the Narrow Way" SermonCentral.com, 7/3/08)
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