Is America Really a Christian Nation?

Contrary to the comments of some U.S. leaders, most Americans profess to be Christians and they believe that the Bible is “the inspired word of God” (Gallup, June 4, 2014). A recent Gallup poll indicated that about 75 percent of Americans claimed to be Christians and viewed the Bible as “the actual word of God... to be taken literally” or as “the inspired word of God but not everything in it should be taken literally” (ibid.).  However, those who view the Bible as a book of “fables, legends... and moral precepts recorded by man” has increased from 13 percent to 21 percent since 1976. 

Sadly, while the majority of Americans claim to be Christian and view the Bible as God’s word, few Americans today actually follow the admonition of Jesus Christ to “live... by every word of God” (Luke 4:4). Studies by the Barna Group have shown that America is a nation of “biblically illiterate” people (especially the younger generation) where the majority cannot name the first books in the Old Testament or the Ten Commandments and considerable numbers believe that Sodom and Gomorrah were husband and wife rather than cities that God destroyed because of their evil behaviors (see The State of the Bible, 2013).

Considering the state of biblical knowledge in America, it is sobering to read Jesus’ warning that “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). Real Christians who truly “love the Lord” will not just claim to be Christians, but will actually live by His commandments (John 14:15; 1 John 5:3).

For more information about the disturbing trends in our culture today, be sure to watch our powerful telecast, “Modern Morality and the Ten Commandments.”