Saying God’s Name in Vain? Poll Finds Many U.S. Christians Not Talking About Jesus with Others
- 42% of survey respondents said that “it’s scary to share [how] to become a Christian with a nonbeliever.”
- Survey revealed that 52% of U.S. citizens who identify as Christian believe that encouraging someone to change their religious beliefs is “offensive and disrespectful.”
- Those aged 65+ also were the most likely to disagree (28%) with the statement, “My Christian faith impacts every aspect of my everyday life.”
15 July 2022 | The Seventh-day Adventist Church set a strategic focus on mission for 2020-2025. As part of that plan, the “Reach the World: I Will Go” initiative was launched “to help the Church be more focused and effective in answering God’s call for us to witness to unreached people around the world,” according to its website.
However, a recent survey found that more than half of U.S. Christians (70%) had not shared with a stranger how to become a Christian in the past six months.
The survey, called “Evangelism Explosion Study of American Christians’ Openness to Talking about Faith,” is based on responses from 1,011 U.S. Christians who were interviewed between April 12–23, 2022. The poll was conducted by Lifeway Research, which is part of Lifeway Christian Resources, the Christian media publishing and distribution division of the Southern Baptist Convention and provider of church business services.
Almost half the respondents (42%) agreed that “it’s scary to share [how] to become a Christian with a nonbeliever.” But 54% of participants said they are either “willing” or “eager” when asked what they think about “telling others about Jesus Christ.”
However, the survey revealed that 52% of U.S. citizens who identify as Christian believe that encouraging someone to change their religious beliefs is “offensive and disrespectful.”
While 93% say they are “at least somewhat open to having a conversation about faith with a friend,” only 52% “shared a story in the last six months about what God has done in their life with a friend or family member who was not a Christian.” In addition, 57% say they have not “invited an unchurched friend or family member to attend a church service or some other program at church in the past six months.”
While 64% “have prayed for the salvation of a friend or family member in the past month,” almost the same percentage of respondents (62%) said they had not “shared with a friend or family member how to become a Christian in the past six months.”
More than half of the respondents (68%) believe that “it is the responsibility of the pastor to equip the congregation to share the Gospel.”
The survey also found significant differences in responses due to age.
When asked, “How open are you to having a conversation about faith with a stranger?” those aged 65+ were the most likely to select “Not open at all” (29%) to the question. Even when it came to having conversations about faith with friends, those aged 65+ were still the most likely to answer, “Not open at all” (13%).
It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that when asked how many times the respondent had shared with a friend or family member how to become a Christian in the past six months, those aged 65+ were the most likely to select “0 times” (82%). When it came to how many times in the past six months they had shared with a stranger how to become a Christian, the percentage rose to 90% for those aged 65+.
Those aged 65+ also were the most likely to disagree (28%) with the statement, “My Christian faith impacts every aspect of my everyday life.”
The Adventist Church is known as an aging church. The average age of a Seventh-day Adventist believer in the United States is around 50, well above the worldwide average of 38, reported the Adventist Review.
(Photo: A Lifeway Research survey found that 70% of the participants had not shared with a stranger how to become a Christian in the past six months. Photo by StockSnap from Pixabay.)
