Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, in your name did we not prophesy, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name do many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’     Matthew 7:21-23 LSB

Yesterday I mentioned a Gallup poll taken in 2021 that was compared to one taken in 1971. All this week, we’ve been talking about things that have names that can be misleading when the main thing is missing. While there are no snickers in snickerdoodles, I am happy to report that a Hershey bar cake has six Hershey bars along with Hershey’s syrup. It’s a chocolate lover’s dream. But enough about food.

We’ve been talking about how Thanksgiving is having less and less thanks in it. Christmas often times doesn’t have a whole lot of Christ in it and sadly the same is true for Christians. According to Gallup.com on a poll they titled, “How Religious are Americans?”, 69 percent identify with a specific religion. Of those polled, 35% identified as Protestant, 22% as Catholics, while 12% simply identified as Christians. Only 7% identified as a non-Christian religion with 2% Jewish, 1% Muslim and 1%Buddhist among others. Twenty-one percent of Americans said they had no religious preference while 3% failed to answer the question.

The same poll was taken in 1971 which showed that since that time there has been a shift in our country away from Christian religions to no religion at all. In 1971 90% of Americans identified with a Christian religion. Sadly, it shows in our society today.

While many Americans claim that religion is important to them and identify with a particular Christian religion, a much smaller number actually attend church. Only 29% of adults claimed to have attended a religious service either in person or virtually in the last week. Back in 2000, the number was 44% and back in 1958 49% claimed to have attended church in the last week.

We have also seen a steep decline in church membership. In a Gallup poll conducted in 1937, 73% were members of a church. In 1999, 70% were. In 1921, however, only 47% of Americans claimed to be church members.

As we see this decline in church membership, attendance, and Christianity, we also see a rise in the acceptance of behavior which the Bible tells us is an abomination to the Lord. We also see a rise in crime.

Read back through those numbers and the questions asked in that poll. Where do you fit in? Do you claim to be a Christian? Do you identify with a religion? Are you an active church member? If you answered yes to these questions, it’s a good start.

But we must remember, it’s not about a religion, it’s about a relationship with our Lord and Savior. If you are in a solid, loving, trusting relationship with Jesus Christ, you will want to go into His house to worship and praise Him. You will want to bring glory and praise to Him by imitating Him in the presence of others. You will want to be the light that shines in this dark world to lead others to Christ.

We may not be able to change the world, but remember what we do can have a ripple effect. If I change to be more like Christ, I can cause a change in my family, friends and loved ones. This can cause a change in our community which can cause a change in our town. The change in a town can cause a change in a parish or a county. You can see where this domino effect can go, right?

How religious are you? More importantly, how solid is your relationship with Jesus Christ? Think about it.

Have a great day!