Church Leadership Challenges in the Twenty-First Century

By Flora Claybrook Th.D.

The twenty-first century consists of an ever-evolving diverse population (multiculturally, internationally, racially, and sexually) whose ideas and beliefs are as diverse as the population itself. This has caused the church to face challenges she has never faced before. There was a time when Christians were a majority in this country and were free to speak about Jesus, prayer, or sin without fearing repercussions. However, the twenty-first century has ushered in a paradigm shift toward something called "un-Christian" and "tolerance" culture. This new "pluralistic" culture is one where everything is tolerated/accepted, with one exception: Christianity. Church attendance is declining, and fewer people understand scripture or know anything about Jesus. Therefore, their belief systems do not align with scripture. Church leaders must step out of the "church bubble," face today's world, and plan how they will meet these challenges. In this book, the author discusses the following twelve major challenges confronting twenty-first-century church leaders as well as some strategies for meeting these challenges and reversing negativity: un-Christian phenomenon, blending the generational groups, religious pluralism vs. exclusivism, open theism vs. classical theism, gender-neutral Bible controversy, egalitarianism vs. complementarianism, LGBTQ conversation, postmodernism and religion, futurism vs. preterism, biblical illiteracy in the church, the need for racial reconciliation, and continual disintegration of American families.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jun 8, 2020
• ISBN: 9781098020309

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Church Leadership Challenges in the Twenty-First Century

Flora A. Claybrook, Th.D.

Copyright © 2019 by Flora A. Claybrook, Th.D.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Introduction: Cultural Shift

Current State of the Church

Major Challenges Confronting the Twenty-First Century Church

The Era of Change

Conclusion

In the spirit of love, this book is dedicated to

all pastors, church leaders, Christians, non-Christians, and anyone

that takes the time to read it.

May you be enlightened and put in place the strategies

that will help you meet the challenges confronting the twenty-first century church.

Let your light shine in darkness so others will see the way.

To God be the glory!

Acknowledgments

A very special thank you to

Tracie Claybrook for encouraging me to study for my doctorate,

Regina Claybrook for proofreading my manuscript, and

Janet Claybrook for technical support.

Foreword

In order to understand the church today, one must realize there is a paradigm shift that is affecting the membership and resulting in incredible changes that are underway. These changes are occurring whether we like it or not.

Dr. Flora Claybrook recognized that church attendance is at an all-time low, and the people’s knowledge about Jesus Christ is rapidly declining. Her research and writing explore and provide information on the challenges the church faces today.

After reading this book, you will have insight into why things are happening the way they are in the church and the tools you need to make a difference.

Thank you, Dr. Claybrook, for giving your time and energy to write such an insightful book. This book has inspired me in more ways than one.

—Dr. Joseph Fisher

Academic Dean

Adullam Bible College (Jackson, Tennessee)

Abstract

The twenty-first century consists of an ever-evolving diverse population (multiculturally, internationally, racially, and sexually) whose ideas and beliefs are as diverse as the population itself. This has caused the church to face challenges she has never faced before. There was a time when Christians were a majority in this country and were free to speak about Jesus, prayer, or sin without fear of repercussions. However, in the twenty-first century, we are seeing a paradigm shift toward something called un-Christian and tolerance culture. This new culture is pluralistic in that everything is tolerated/accepted, with one exception: Christianity. Church attendance is at an all-time low, and fewer people understand scripture or know anything about Jesus. Therefore, their beliefs about spirituality and religion are not aligned with scripture. Church leaders must step out of the church bubble, face the sobering reality of today’s world, and plan how they will meet these challenges. Going forward, the following twelve major challenges confronting twenty-first-century church leaders as well as strategies for combating those challenges will be discussed: un-Christian phenomenon, blending the generational groups, religious pluralism vs exclusivism, open theism vs. classical theism, gender-neutral Bible controversy, egalitarianism vs. complementarianism, LGBTQ conversation, postmodernism and religion, futurism vs. preterism, biblical illiteracy in the church, the need for racial reconciliation, and continual disintegration of American families.

Keywords: church bubble, un-Christian, practicing Christian, post-Christian, churched, unchurched, de-churched, tolerance culture

Part 1

Introduction: Cultural Shift

According to Barna (2005), a quiet but sweeping revolution is rocking our nation, and everyone seems to be oblivious to it. Although media outlets have sounded the alarm about numerous revolutions (information technology, sexual, globalization, and the like), there is quiet unawareness about the most important renaissance of them all: the spiritual revolution that is reshaping Christianity and the moral fiber of the nation (pp. 9, 10).

The twenty-first century consists of an ever-evolving diverse population (multiculturally, internationally, racially, and sexually) whose ideas and beliefs are as diverse as the population itself. We are in the midst of a major cultural transformation, one with a widespread lack of faith, ever-increasing moral relativism, and rejection of absolute truth. Because of this seismic cultural shift, the twenty-first century church faces numerous challenges that she has never faced before. Church leaders must come out of the church bubble, face today’s world, and plan how they will meet these challenges head-on.

What is the church bubble phenomenon? According to Williams (2013), many people from the older generation were brought up in church, have always served in some capacity in the church, and all their friends and activities are church related. If they happen to encounter a non-Christian, they run in the opposite direction. They only watch Christian-friendly television programs and read only Christian literature; therefore, they are surrounded by what’s termed the church bubble. Instead of being the church who is the light of the world, a city on a hill, a shining light for all to see (Matt. 5:14–16), Christians have cocooned themselves within the church bubble. Because of this cocooned bubble, their light is not shining in this dark world. They still think that America is a strong Christian nation with 75% Christian or at least 50% evangelical. If twenty-first century church leaders are going to be effective, it is imperative that they step out of that bubble and view the sobering facts of reality (para. 4).

It is obvious that things are not the way they used to be. Williams (2013) alleged that prior to the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s, Christians were a majority in this country and were free to speak about Jesus, prayer, or sin without fear of repercussions. In the twenty-first century, we are seeing a paradigm shift toward something that is increasingly more un-Christian (para. 1). Church attendance is at an all-time low, and fewer people understand scripture or know anything about Jesus. A large majority of university students do not have any knowledge of even basic biblical content. Therefore, their beliefs about spirituality and religion are not aligned with scripture. Traditional biblical principles have been completely abandoned by many, especially the younger generation, in favor of the new tolerance culture. This new culture is pluralistic in that everything is tolerated or accepted, with one exception: Christianity. There is a downright hatred toward Christianity in today’s culture (Williams, 2013, para. 2, 3).

Twenty-five years ago, one would not have imagined the acceptance, promotion, and celebration of abortion and homosexuality as seen today. For instance, TV shows like Glee, The New Normal, and 16 and Pregnant are dedicated to the celebration of sin (biblically defined) and acceptance. At the same time, Christians are suppressed from speaking out against them (Williams, 2013, para. 3). You only need to watch televised news broadcasts to see Christians being ostracized, vilified, and labeled biased, intolerant, prejudice, cruel, and the like, if they speak out against certain sins in accordance with biblical teaching (e.g., homosexuality). In many cases, legal charges have been brought against Christians for doing what they believe is right. For instance, in June 2018, the Colorado attorney general’s office filed a discrimination complaint against the owners of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Denver after the bakers refused to bake a cake for a gay couple due to their Christian conviction.

Yes, the world has changed and continues to change. Youth of today are different from youth of the ’70s and ’80s. They are more tech savvy, less patient and trusting, and less apt to carry out instructions without questions. They are walking away from church in record numbers never to return. Seventy-eighty percent of young evangelicals are leaving church with no intentions of ever returning (Williams, 2013, para. 6).

Part 2

Current State of the Church

The cornerstone of American life has been the Christian church for centuries, but an about-face has taken place over the past thirty years. Church attendance is down, and more Americans are practicing their faith outside the church walls. Millennials are at an age and time of great skepticism and cynicism toward institutions as well as authority, especially the church. That, plus the broader secularizing trend in American culture and the increasing antagonism toward faith claims, has produced times of uncertainty for the American church. Continuous debates exist over whether or not the United States is still a Christian nation (Barna, 2016. para. 1)

A. Is America Really a Christian Nation?

The Barna Group (2016), a private, nonpartisan, for-profit organization, conducted and analyzed research on the state of the church to determine the overall health of the Body of Christ in America. They made close observation of the affiliation, attendance, and practice of Americans in relation to God, church, and religion. A total of 5,137 interviews were conducted via online and telephone among Americans 18 years of age and older (para. 1, 12). The Barna analysis revealed the following (para. 2):

Seventy-three percent (73%) of Americans reported being a Christian and claimed religious faith as a very important part of their lives

Twenty percent (20%) claimed no faith at all (that includes atheists and agnostics)

Six percent (6%) identified with faiths like Islam, Buddhism, Judaism, or Hinduism

One percent (1%) was unsure

While the majority of Americans identify as