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It's Saturday, February 3, 2024.

Today’s edition covers a new report about how evangelicals come to faith; different controversies involving Alistair Begg, Dusty Deevers, and Bart Barber; the command to be grateful for everything; and more.

“Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered” (Proverbs 28:26). Let’s be out of our minds, so to speak, and walk in wisdom.

Of Christian Concern

REPORT: HOW EVANGELICALS COME TO FAITH

Photo: Luis Quintero

A new study by Infinity Concepts and Grey Matter Research highlights the major elements involved in evangelicals’ journey to faith. Here are some of the findings from The Spiritual Journey: How Evangelicals Come to Faith.

• 72% of “adult evangelical Protestants in the US” came to faith before age 18—half between ages 5 and 12, and on average at age 15.

• The average adult evangelical came to faith 25 years ago, with only 4% in the past four years.

• 28% of evangelicals said parents (one or both) were “the single strongest influence” in coming to Christ, while 16% said “a church they attended” was the strongest influence. These were the two greatest influences identified.

• 71% were influenced by family (parents or others), 73% by church (as a whole, or a specific church leader), 46% by reading the Bible themselves, 23% by a tragedy or difficulty in life, and 22% by friends.

• 96% of evangelicals said “multiple factors” were involved in their coming to Christ, with “the average person” being “influenced by 3.4 different factors.”

• Those “who came to faith as adolescents are more likely to have been influenced by parents, family members, church, and church leaders other than a pastor.” By contrast, “Those who came to faith as adults are more likely to cite the influence of a spouse/partner, friends, reading the Bible for themselves, other books, and/or a tragedy or difficulty in their lives.”

• “Only 46% of evangelicals can recall a specific point in their lives when they decided to trust Christ. Thirty-seven percent (37%) say they were raised as a Christian and do not remember a specific point of decision, while 16% say it was a gradual process rather than a specific decision point.”

• 57% of evangelicals say “their Christian faith is the single most important thing in their lives,” but only half of those “show high levels of spiritual engagement (regular prayer, worship attendance, Bible reading, etc.).”

To go deeper with the findings, access the full study here.

PROOF GOD EXISTS: Did you know… the fact that you know anything proves God exists? Learn how here, and share it with your unbelieving friends. (Maybe this will be one of the “3.4 different factors” that lead them to Christ, eh?)

Also Noteworthy

→ Famous preacher Alistair Begg, who doubled down on his recent controversial comments about advising a woman to attend her grandson’s wedding to a transgender person, has been cancelled from American Family Radio and removed from the lineup of speakers at the upcoming Shepherd’s Conference.

→ Dusty Deevers, the pastor and newly elected Oklahoma senator who has proposed bills to abolish abortion, ban porn, end no-fault divorce, penalize false testimony, and repeal state income tax, was the subject of a new hit piece from Rolling Stone (to which he responded) and insinuative jokes from Jimmy Fallon this week. Deevers’ critics seem to be most particularly bothered by his campaign against pornography.

→ Rep. Zach Dieken introduced a bill to abolish abortion in Iowa. Whether HF2256 gets a hearing depends entirely on the House Judiciary Committee chairman Rep. Steven Holt, who activist group Abolitionists Rising are encouraging Christians to contact. | For other abortion news, see the regularly updated Abolition News page.

→ Bart Barber, president of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), stated in a recent Q&A session that the 2022 third party investigation into the SBC’s Executive Committee found no instance in which they failed to report sexual abuse. However, that is not the impression one would have gotten from headlines at the time and Barber’s own subsequent comments. Critics suggest he and others in the SBC previously obfuscated the innocence of the Executive Committee because the sexual abuse narrative was useful “to install liberals in high positions of power,” including Barber himself.

Content Catch-Up

Recent, notable content by Christian creators.*

→ Gay Marriage Can’t Be Beautiful: In a short clip from Pastor Doug Wilson’s video response to the Alistair Begg controversy, he offers an explanation for why the battle over “gay marriage” has often centered around “cake bakers, photographers, florists, videographers, and wedding planners.” Yes, he mentions a chimpanzee. (Post)

→ What If Trump Wins?: The hosts of Apologia Radio discuss how they believe Christians should respond to a second Trump presidency. (Video)

→ Babies Unprotected: A recent report from the Foundation to Abolish Abortion estimates steep increases in self-managed abortions in the 14 states where abortion is “supposedly banned.” (Report)

*Not necessarily an endorsement

The Bible, Briefly

Always And For Everything

A difficult circumstance, posted on X yesterday and this morning.

Familiar to many Christians is the Bible verse that says, “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18, emphasis added). Many would, no doubt, confess that this command can be challenging to obey. There are circumstances in which it’s difficult to find something to be grateful for.

But if that verse is challenging, consider Ephesians 5:20, which says we should be “giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:20, emphasis added). Pastor Sam Crabtree of Bethlehem Baptist Church weighs in on this:*

“Always and for everything—what a sweeping assertion! When it comes to the extent of our gratitude, many people cite only 1 Thessalonians 5:18…pointing out that it says in everything, not for everything.

“But 1 Thessalonians 5:18 isn’t the only verse in the Bible about giving thanks.… Ephesians 5:20 does say ‘for everything.’ Thankful for what? Everything. And when? Always.”

Crabtree goes on to cite a Hungarian proverb: “When the bridge is gone, the narrowest plank becomes precious.” He comments, “I suppose that’s one way to embrace a 1 Thessalonians 5:18 approach to life; in the collapse of the bridge, we express gratefulness for the part of the bridge that remains. But are we also thankful for the part that collapsed?”

In Ephesians 5, he says, we’re instructed to do just that: be thankful for the part that collapsed. “This is a difficult doctrine, cutting across our natural impulses. It requires faith in the completely sovereign God who isn’t done working all things…for the good of those who love him.…

“We need to understand that God is always working. Even the things that grieve God, the events that threaten to crush us, the things that elicit his compassion and comfort for his people—those things are not accidents or flaws in the plan. They come from the same God who loved us enough to send his Son to die, the same God who says he will never leave us or forsake us.”

So, when you’re having difficulty finding something to be grateful for… pick anything. Pick the hardest thing. And remember that—if you “love God” and “are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28)—that hard thing is ultimately a blessing, because God has you right where you are for a reason, for your good, even if in the moment you can’t imagine how.

___________

*Sam Crabtree, Practicing Thankfulness: Cultivating a Grateful Heart in All Circumstances (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2021), 20-22.

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Why "18:15"? The name Project 18:15 is based on Proverbs 18:15: “An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.” The aim is for this weekly email—a Christian news briefing, a Bible study, and a Church history lesson rolled into one—to be one way you keep abreast of current events and acquire knowledge you might not acquire elsewhere.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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