Christianity in the developed world has lost its focus?

[michel]

I watched some of a program the other day (can't remember the title - nor which channel - nor which day) in which it was being mooted that there is a great revival of Christianity - in particular in Africa.

The services are very different from ours; they are full of "rejoycing in the holy spirit" - an aspect of Spirituality these "new" Christians claim as being an essential part of prayer and services.

There is a great concentration on "the laying on of hands", and almost manis singing and shouting - almost to a degree that those who attend are swept up in a wave of emotion (almost to the stage of hypnosis).

During the program, there was much made about how we (the developed nations in the West) has lost our enthusiasm, and Our identity with the holy spirit, and that the true Christians will in fact be those from this newly emerging "branch" of Christianity, and that we should expect them to try and convert us.

Thoughts ? - Have they got a point? - are they wrong (from your own points of view)?

 

[Free4all]

And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; 15I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.



Yep, just like the last church, we are lukewarm. another confirmation that these are indeed the last days.

 

[Frostbyte]

I think these celebrations may be similar to things in Africa that were already happening. Although I don't have the whole picture since I didn't see the program. But this sounds like tribal celebrations in Africa that have been going on for centuries.

According to some, when Christianity makes an effort to convert a group, it often integrates part of that religion. Some claim that the only reason Christmas is in Dec is because a pagan group that was being target by the church (or several groups) had a common winter ritual, and so this became tradition. I don't know how much of that is valid or not.

You could also look at it as maybe this is just their way of celebrating their religion, and strip away the better/worse aspect that the program applied to it. There are still churches that celebrate in ways similar to this, with large revivals and a very celebratory feel.

But churches in America like that are often not taken seriously. So to do our work maybe it is better to worship the way we do. As long as it is sincere, I don't think it really matters to Him.

I would choose to look at it as two different ways of worshiping, but I don't know that either is better.

 

[tomspug]

Most mission trips led by Americans are, in my opinion, far more beneficial for the Christians who help people rather than the other way around, because, for a few weeks, they are exposed to ACTUAL reliance on God rather than feigned reliance on God. For a brief amount of time, they remember the reasons they actually believe in Christ, then they return to America and forget.