WHY Are THEY LEAVING the CHURCHES?? -Andrew Strom.
Since we have been discussing the "Out-of-church" Christians, I think it is very important for us all - including church leaders - to look at the reasons why these people are leaving. Very often they are NOT "church-hoppers" or backsliders. A lot of them are leaving because they believe the CHURCH is backsliding!
So many people write to me from all over the world saying that they have tried and tried - but they cannot find any fellowship in their town that seems remotely biblical. They tell me they have looked hard - but they are either cold, formal, or anti-charismatic on one hand - or "hyper- charismaniac" or 'seeker-sensitive' on the other. There hardly seems to be any balanced biblical approach whichever way they turn.
It is easy to pass glib remarks like "There is no perfect church" but my heart truly goes out to these ones because the church scene has been bad for awhile - and seemingly growing worse and worse. So what are people to do?
Below are some accounts that people have sent me about why they have left the church: