Are You Being Secularized?
We know what it means to be organized, paralyzed, and downsized, but what does it mean to be secularized? This is what happens when you outright reject spiritual truths you embraced for years. It happens when a person changes their convictions that were previously undeniable and eternal. When you replace these beliefs or outright reject those once cherished truths, you have been secularized.
How can you tell if this has happened to you? How can you tell when you are being negatively impacted by the culture around you? If and when you go to church and your pastor-teacher mentions a spiritual belief and assumes everyone in the worship service accepts this as true, but you sit there seriously mentally rejecting that fundamental and basic belief, you have been secularized.
There are many examples I could share to illustrate this, but I will present three in this article. They are – the virgin birth of Jesus, the resurrection of Jesus, and a literal place of torment called hell. These are three basic beliefs believers and followers of Christ have embraced for almost two thousand years. Let’s examine them one at a time.
At Christmastime, it is not unusual for your pastor-teacher to mention the virgin birth of Christ and explain the importance of this truth, how it was originated and carried out by the amazing work of God. Everyone in the church seems to be nodding in agreement with everything that is being said. However, you sit there thinking – “Is that really possible? I know how babies are made. Is it really, actually possible, for a virgin to conceive in her womb and nine months later give birth to a baby?” As the pastor-teacher keeps speaking, in your mind you say, “No, that is just not possible.” You have been secularized.
At Eastertime, that same pastor-teacher will have something to say about the resurrection of Jesus and explain how important this is as a part of the full package and plan of salvation from sin. Once again, as everyone in the service nods in agreement, you sit there rejecting. The thought runs through your head, “Is the resurrection all that important? Furthermore, is it even possible? We all know when you die you die and that’s it.” And then in your mind you conclude, “No, it is not possible for Jesus to have resurrected from the dead.” When you make that leap, you have been secularized.
Thirdly, your pastor-teacher might warn of torment in hell and say many people will spend an eternity there. As the pastor-teacher shares the glorious way to miss hell and go to heaven, everyone agrees. But in your mind, you are thinking, “My people are not going to that place of torment. We are good people. We are good neighbors. We are not going there.” You have been secularized. The prescription to treat secularization is what we call soul conversion. Let me know if I can help.
