Why are Christian Churches Losing Members?

I have been compelled as of late to speak openly about the current falling away from the faith of Christ in so many Christian denominations around the country. Southern Baptists and United Methodists seem to be losing fewer members than other protestant churches at a 4% decline over the last 5 years but the Catholic Church and other Mega Churches are experiencing a drop off of attendance by up to 16% over that same time period. The increase in loss in these churches is something you will hear involves many variables but I suggest that when a preacher, pastor or priest give sermons that do not reflect what the reality of the day truly is parishioners see the disconnect and ask themselves why are they preaching all this feel good stuff when the world is clearly on the edge of another World War, this one being religious in nature and world wide in scope. The time is now to teach the unblemished truth about the world around us and the signs of the times as can clearly be discerned by any novice Biblical searcher. 

Tickling the ears of parishioners with feel good preaching is just leaving a hole where the heart knows only one message and one man can fill the void and so people leave the churches because they are not receiving the meat of the banquet table but rather sugary crumbs that have no individual value to a soul trying to grow in the knowledge and teachings of God. We have reached a point in the heavenly timeline, established by God long ago, where the signs in the heavens (starts), the moon and sun are to be closely watched and recognized for the harbingers they are for the second coming of Messiah. Jesus said that no man will know the day of His return but he alerted us to the fact that we can know the Season if we but search the Word for hear the voice of truth. I believe that the time is very close to the final chapter and we need to increase our efforts to help people see that it is paramount for each individual to reassess their real relationship with Jesus Christ the Savior for it is only by the sacrificed innocent blood of Christ on the cross and the Grace of God that can save us. 

In the next few months and possibly years to come everyone will make that final decision. It is up to each individual as to whether or not their decision is well informed, through diligent searching of the scripture (as we are instructed to do) and praying or is it to be a decision that is based on the traditions of man, the knowledge of man and the teachings of man claiming to speak for God. I know that God speaks for Himself through the Bible and He leaves little room for conjecture, He speaks quite plainly and in terms that one cannot misconstrue; As you can see below there seems to be no other interpretation available if one reads the words of Christ 

JOHN 14:6

World English Bible
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.

Young's Literal Translation
Jesus saith to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life, no one doth come unto the Father, if not through me;

New International Version
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 

New Living Translation 
Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.

English Standard Version
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

 New American Standard Bible
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

International Standard Version
Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

NET Bible
Jesus replied, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Yeshua said to him, “I AM THE LIVING GOD, The Way and The Truth and The Life; no man comes to my Father but by me alone.”

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Jesus answered him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one goes to the Father except through me.

Jubilee Bible 2000
Jesus said unto him, I AM the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes unto the Father, but by me.

King James 2000 Bible
Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me.
American King James Version

Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me.

American Standard Version
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Jesus saith to him: I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father, but by me.

Darby Bible Translation
Jesus says to him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father unless by me.

English Revised Version
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Webster's Bible Translation
Jesus saith to him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no man cometh to the Father, but by me.

Weymouth New Testament
"I am the Way," replied Jesus, "and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

World English Bible
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.

Young's Literal Translation
Jesus saith to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life, no one doth come unto the Father, if not through me;

New International Version
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 

New Living Translation 
Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. 

English Standard Version
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

New American Standard Bible
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. 

None of this is really very hard to understand if you read the Bible for yourself and don't rely on other telling you what you just read. It always reminds me of how the talking heads on CNN will tell you what the President just said in a speech to the nation, really, I just heard it for myself and now people on TV are telling me what I just heard because I am too stupid to understand plain English or because the spin needs to be added to keep you thinking correctly and maintain that directional process by which you are guided both consciously and unconsciously toward an outcome acceptable to the ruling parties. Churches seem to do the same thing when they tell you this is required or that is required when in fact all you have to do is remember what occured between Jesus and the thief while hanging the cross.

Luke 23:43 “Today you will be with me in paradise”

Why would the thief be with Jesus this day in paradise
unless all the thief had to do was to believe that Jesus was who said He was, no other requirement. That doesn't mean that good works will not follow your conversion, that is simply the natural outcome of taking Jesus's heart as your own but that is not one of the many requirements I have seen and heard of over the years from various Christian churches and I have been to many. Only your belief will save you.

Roman 10:9

If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Once someone understands that the Old Testament is the story of the New Testament somewhat hidden (for a good reason I might add) and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed one cannot but understand that Jesus simply put an end to all blood sacrifices, the sacrifices that would cleanse the people of their sin for 1 year, but His one time sacrifice was for past, present and future sins of mankind. There is the entire story of the Bible, God knew man could never overcome his sinful carnal nature because mankind inherited this sinful nature by blood from Adam and Eve and so man would never be able to reattain the position in the Garden of Eden we were meant for. God chose to become a man of flesh and blood and actually allow himself to be sacrificed as that once and for all innocent blood sacrifice that covers a believer with the Holy blood of Jesus, a new covering that hides the sins of man and reveals only that new covering cloak that has been washed in the blood of Christ. God loves His creation and wants to see it restored and He was willing to suffer all the pain and anguish required to spill His blood upon the Earth covering everyone. Now they just need to understand and accept this wondrous and loving gift for there is no other means to stand before God without His own blood covering your sins and sinful nature. How big a gift is that????

All people are coming to a crossroads where they get to chose where they will spend eternity.

I love God and praise Him everyday for all He has bestowed upon me but at the top of any list of the great and magnificent things He has done for me as an individual is the greatest gift of all, He loved me and you so much that He could only bring us into His presence to be with Him face to face as Abraham did by becoming the only innocent blood sacrifice that would accomplish His ends. His blood wasn't tainted by the inherited sinful blood of man and that His blood sacrifice and suffering was done to save each and every man, woman and child on this Earth, even they don't know it. The Gospel has gone out to the world and when the world hears the Gospel and either accepts it and denies it will mark the completion and the end date, 
so said Jesus;  Matthew 24:14 "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." 


Pretty dramatic statement. Do you think the world has had a chance to hear the Gospel with all the means modern technology has available to us?, I believe that day is right around the corner. 

"then shall the end come."  

This world is made up of mortal humans who get to experience this world in flesh and blood bodies and a sometimes overwhelming array of emotions but I believe we are essentially spiritual beings at our core. We are spiritual beings experiencing a time sensitive limited lifetime in a 
3-dimensional plain and we return to our natural spiritual state. We are not simply mortal humans meant only to live and die and disappear from the roles of times. We are so much more than we know. 

I see people very willing to accept the fact that ghosts and evil spirits and good spirits exist around us at all times, yet they will not take the next logical step and ask why would you not ask about the nature of these spirits, where are they? what plain of existence do they occupy? Are there multiple plains of existence? Can they travel through them? Why are there good spirits and evil spirits? Why do we say some spirits are those of dead loved ones and yet we also acknowledge the dark spirits that were never human, where did they come from? Why do so many of these dark spirits want to lead easily influenced people to kill others and commit murderous acts, to destroy loving families, to put fear into the hearts and minds of people? What possible benefit could come to them from destroying individuals and families? Why has the Catholic church taken extraordinary steps to build a force of exorcists in the past few years? 

Willing to accept the existence of spirits and willing to see that some of these spirits are demonstratively dark in their nature would naturally drive the critical thinker to try and understand this phenomenon. Trying to see and understand the bigger spiritual picture would naturally drive one to find a source of information on the subject, a source that approached the question from a spiritual perspective that actually does explain so much about the spiritual realm but unfortunately so many people have hardened themselves against even searching for answers because asking questions may lead one to finding answers that they simply will not accept because it points to something more, something bigger than themselves and more complex than they can or want to try and understand. Living life with blinders on is great comfort for some people but it is just never accepting the strangeness of reality.

In the point above lies one of the great dividing lines between humans. One side is complacent and have convinced themselves to be happy with the short life they have in hand and that facing the requirements of a basic life is enough but pursuit of the deeper and more mysterious aspects of our existence will only add more levels of awareness and more is not better because life has become so overwhelming in its confusion and meeting the daily requirements to just live a simple life. Why add more to your plate when you can barely manage to cope with what is before you?, besides it will make your head hurt to think too much. 

Then there is the other side that continues to search because they simply know in their hearts that this existence cannot be the only fare offered at the banquet table because we have seen and experienced things that cannot be explained by any current scientific knowledge. We have an unquenchable desire to seek the answers that must be there, but where?

What if everything were true and your spirit is capable of an immortal existence and this existence was in a different realm or dimension, rather like a fish living it entire existence in the ocean never knowing there was a completely different world just above their heads. This is truly a extraordinary set of questions to seek answers for but what if it were all true? That in order to see this other world one had only to believe it was truly there. Acknowledge the mysterious world and more mysterious universe and ask your questions and if you listen quietly you may hear some surprising answers. Hearing the answers will lift you above the fog of this life and piece by piece the bigger picture begins to clarify and understanding removes the confusion and the fear. All things are simple in their essence and all things in their essence are simple.