If you are in your 50’s or older the America you grew up in was a very different country in many ways. We didn’t have the internet. Phones didn’t fit in our pockets. Video games were something you had to go to the Arcade to play and your gender was pretty obvious when you were born. Some may ask why is there such a radical change in our culture where it seems that we have two completely divergent cultures. Well. I can tell you that it’s not about older folk “not getting with the times” or that half the country are racists or suffer from some new made-up phobia, What we are seeing is the results of the erosion of our foundations.
According to the American Worldview Inventory 2021, a survey conducted by the Cultural Research Center 43% of American Millennials (identified in this survey as those born between 1984–2002) “don’t know, care, or believe God exists.” Less than half (48%) hold to the “Golden Rule” of “treat others as you want them to treat you,” while nearly 4 in 10 (38%) believe “you try to get even with people who have wronged you.” Many Millennials believe “an abortion performed to reduce personal economic or emotional discomfort” and “premarital sex with someone expected to be their future spouse” are “morally acceptable.” these of course are in contrast to older generations but we have been on this trajectory for a while.
So how did we get here? It really depends on how far down the rabbit hole you want to go. What has been termed the “sexual revolution” back in the 1960s was a time of turbulent change. Many laws that seemed restrictive were challenged and won. Divorce became easier, so did abortion as Roe V Wade was decided. While those who pushed for laws to be abolished that supposedly gave them greater freedom they did not realize that at the same time they were eroding the very foundations upon which they were standing. Even some moderate atheists today, who know their history, will admit to the advantage of a Christian worldview and the benefit it has for society. but for those who do not have an appreciation for history they just continue to push right along for change thinking they’re going to create some free-love utopia. But in fact, that is not what they are getting at all. We as a society are heading for more restrictions and fewer freedoms. and I am not just talking about Christians but everyone. Why? because we are losing any foundation based on truth. Jesus spoke of this when he talked about the man who built his house upon the sand. when the rains came the foundation shifted so much the house collapsed. a Biblical or a Christian worldview is based on absolute truth and a narrative of being created in the image of God. The worldview that many in our society have now is one of no belief in absolute truth. It shifts like sand under their feet.
How then can we save our society from crumbling? I believe that the church needs to get back to understanding a Biblical Worldview and stop chasing after what seems cool, trendy, or “relevant.” We can’t even begin to have a conversation with others about God if we aren’t even confident in where we come from and who we are. Apologetics and having a Biblical view of the world isn’t about winning debates. it’s about being solid in your identity in a culture that is anything but..