Religion
The Economic Blessings of Faith
All throughout Easter week I thought on the amazing blessings that the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ brought to the world. The forgiveness Christ offers, the power that comes from His Holy Spirit, and the fruits that He produces in human lives are of inestimable value to the human race.
In the same way, his followers have greatly changed and improved the planet by taking His teachings to the nations. One of the unique aspects of the United States in particular is its founding on the biblical principles of Jesus in family life, government, and even the economic sphere.
Not long ago, some major studies came out that detailed the economic blessings of faith in America.
What they found out might surprise you.
John Stonestreet’s article begins with this question: “Guess who has the world’s 15th largest economy, right between Russia and Australia?
“American religion. Yep.”
He goes on to explain: ‘A few months ago I mentioned a Pew study that demonstrated Americans’ increasing ignorance of the vital role played by religious institutions in this country. Between 2001 and 2016, the percentage of Americans who think that religion plays a role in solving important social problems fell from 75 percent to 58 percent.”
“As I said at the time, ‘part of the problem is that the religious contribution to the common good is so woven into the fabric of American life, most people these days just take it for granted and never stop to think about how prevalent it really is.’ In fact, according to another study, half of Americans think that the government could replace religious organizations with no problems and nothing lost.”
“And now, a new study quantifies just how wrong half of Americans are.”
“Published in the Interdisciplinary Journal of Research in Religion, the study quantifies that ‘religion in the United States today contributes $1.2 trillion each year to our economy and society.’ That’s ‘trillion’ with a “tr,” or ‘more than the top ten tech companies combined—including Google, Apple, and Amazon.’
Let that sink in for a moment. We tend to think of Google, Apple and Amazon as the business heavyweights of our day.
Jonestreet continues: “Put another way, if American religion were a country, it would rank 14thor 15th among the world’s economies, just ahead of Russia and just behind Australia. Put still another way, religion accounts for a little under seven percent of our economic output.”
“Now you still think that religion can just be replaced?”
“The study conducted by Brian and Melissa Grim of Georgetown University’s Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs reminds those willing to listen that the nation’s 344,000 religious congregations aren’t just houses of worship, ‘they are also the nucleus of many communities.’ They are the ‘centers for job training, charity, child care, and social events.’”
“They employ ‘hundreds of thousands of people, creating jobs, and spend billions of dollars on goods and services, which support local businesses.’ And finally, they fund 1.5 million social programs and gather 7.5 million volunteers.”
“As Brian Grim put it, the benefits of religion aren’t intangible, nor are they limited to the members of these congregations. People of faith serve the vulnerable because of their faith.”
“A little-known example of this outreach are the 78,000 programs that help ‘people struggling with mental illness.’ That’s three times as many programs as there are Starbucks in the entire world! Yet, while people joke about how ubiquitous Starbucks are, no one takes note of how all-pervasive these programs are.”
“Without these programs, the communities that rely upon them would be far worse off. And yet an increasing number of Americans think religion can just be replaced.”
“In light of these findings, think of the recent attempts to force churches to go along with the sexual revolution in places like Iowa and Massachusetts. Both efforts assume a private/public distinction that, as the report documents, just doesn’t exist.”
“For many congregations, what it means to be the Church isn’t limited to the four walls of their sanctuaries, and their understanding of what it means to love their neighbor isn’t limited to the folks in the pews. That’s why churches form the nucleus of so many communities.”
“In effect, proposals like the ones in Iowa and Massachusetts punish people of faith for loving their neighbors as themselves. Worse than that, they’re willing to sacrifice the vulnerable among us in the furtherance of the ideological projects of the sexual revolution, a revolution that has already left millions of victims in its wake.”
“There is no area of life that Americans care about, or at least should care about, in which people of faith, motivated by their faith, are absent. And their presence is making an incredible difference. Even if people refuse to notice.”
Jonestreet is right that the multitude of blessings (including economic ones) that people of faith bring to the United States is almost uncalculable. If America ever forgets her faith, those trillions of blessings will go away.
Julie Zauzmer of the Washington Post agrees that faith in Christ, among many things, is an economic powerhouse. She writes: “Religion is big business. Just how big? A new study, published by a father-daughter researcher team, says religion is bigger than Facebook, Google and Apple — combined.”
“The article in the Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion said that the annual revenues of faith-based enterprises — not just churches but hospitals, schools, charities and even gospel musicians and halal food makers — is more than $378 billion a year. And that’s not counting the annual shopping bonanza motivated by Christmas.” (Imagine if that was included.)
“Georgetown University’s Brian Grim and the Newseum’s Melissa Grim — in a study sponsored by an organization called Faith Counts, which promotes the value of religion — produced a 31-page breakdown of all the ways religion contributes to the U.S. economy.”
“The largest chunk of that $378 billion tally comes from faith-based health-care systems. Religious groups run many of the hospitals in the United States; Catholic health systems alone reportedly account for 1 in 6 hospital beds in the country.”
“Then there are churches and congregations themselves. Based on prior censuses of U.S. bodies of worship, the Grims looked at 344,894 congregations, from 236 different religious denominations (217 of them Christian). Collectively, those congregations count about half the American population as members. The average annual income for a congregation, the study said, is $242,910.”
“Most of that income comes from members’ donations and dues, meaning Americans give $74.5 billion to their congregations per year, the study said.”
“Religious charities also contribute to the economy. By far the largest faith-based charity, according to the study, is Lutheran Services of America, with an annual operating revenue of about $21 billion. The study counted 17 more faith-based charities, all among Forbes’s 50 biggest charities in America, with revenues ranging from $300 million (Cross International) to $6.6 billion (YMCA USA).”
“Almost all the charities are Christian, except for the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, with an annual operating revenue of $400 million.”
“Religious revenues also include faith-based colleges and universities, where 2 million students pay more than $46.7 billion in tuition annually, the study said. The tally includes tuition revenues for religious elementary through high schools as well, plus the Christian book industry, sales of Christian music, the Christian cable networks EWTN and CBN.”
“The study suggested all sorts of other ways one could count the contribution of religion to the U.S. economy — the revenues of faith-linked businesses such as Hobby Lobby and Chick-fil-A, the box office profits of religious blockbuster movies such as ‘Heaven Is for Real,’ even the household income of millions of Americans who run their financial lives guided by their faiths.”
“But sticking just to the direct profits of faith, religion comes out as highly lucrative — a larger chunk of the country’s $16 trillion GDP, the Grims pointed out, than many giant corporations.”
Because Jesus Christ changes lives and his followers, in turn, live out their faith in the world, then myriads of blessings–financial, social, and spiritual–are brought to whole nations that bask in the light of Christ’s wisdom and love.
Hey, America (and other faith-based nations): Don’t knock or try to explain away your Christian roots.
“Count your blessings”–including financial ones that flow from Calvary and the Empty Tomb.
“Name them one by one.”
“Count your many blessings, see what God has done.”
Why the Resurrection Matters
I have believed for many years that the most important week in world history is Holy Week–the seven day period when Jesus of Nazareth arrived to fanfare in Jerusalem, died on a Roman cross of torture, and three days later was raised to life.
Of those seven days, Good Friday stands as the centerpiece–the day God substituted the death of His own Son in the place of humanity’s sin to bring forgiveness to all who believe. Good Friday was a day of atonement–a “covering” of our rebellion by the agonizing love of God.
Recently I’ve been thinking more about the Resurrection. It wasn’t the day of redemption. It didn’t have anything to do forgiving our sins.
But the Resurrection matters.
Deeply.
Here’s why.
The two most widely read articles I’ve written over the past few years describe the uniqueness of Jesus Christ and his unparalleled impact on world history. If you want some inspirational thoughts this week, here’s where you can find them.
The Uniqueness of Jesus Christ.
How Easter Changed the World–and Can Do It Again.
Yet, the Resurrection of Jesus confused me for a while because I kept finding Scriptures that indicated that Jesus was the first to rise from the dead (Acts 26:23). The idea was that because he was first, then the rest of us would follow. He was the first-fruits of a general resurrection of both the redeemed and unredeemed (1 Corinthians 15:20).
But I also knew that, in one sense, Jesus was not the first person to come back to life. Elijah performed that miracle on a young boy in the Old Testament (1 Kings 17:17-24) and his prophetic heir, Elisha, did the same thing (2 Kings 4:18-37).
I assume there were others.
In the New Testament, we have at least two stories of Jesus Himself resurrecting people. First was the young man in Nain who got up off his burial bed when Jesus gave the command (Luke 7:11-17). Even more impressive was the resurrection of Lazarus (John 11:1-44). He’d been in a tomb for four days and it was presumed that he was well rotted and the stench would be terrible (John 11:39).
But Jesus shouted for Lazarus to “Come Forth” out of the tomb (John 11:43). Apparently, whatever had been decayed was made whole, his spirit returned, and he walked out of the cave still wrapped in grave clothers.
So it’s pretty clear from both Old and New Testaments that, in the sense of those stories, Jesus was definitely not the first human being to be brought back to life (resusitated or resurrected).
So what makes his resurrection on Easter Sunday “first” or important?
Let’s go a little deeper.
Jesus was the first resurrected person that never had to die again. His resurrection was permanent, eternal. All others who experienced resurrection ended up dying once more. The young boy in Nain lived out his life and then died gain. Lazarus enjoyed more years with Mary and Martha, but then passed away a second time.
Jesus rose never to die again. It even appears that He was given a different body that could pass through walls (Luke 24:36), appeared different to the disciples (Luke 24:16), and ascended into heaven (Luke 24:51). His resurrection body seemed to be made from “different stuff” (1 Corinthians 15:42-44).
That resurrection–the first of its kind–signaled a change in the eternal order of things. From now on, those who put their trust in God’s atonement and were born again by his Spirit would join his permanent resurrection when they passed from this life.
Those who believed in Him “would never die” (John 11:25). Just like Jesus, we will be raised to a permanent resurrection.
But there’s one more reason for the greatness of the Resurrection:
It was the final PROOF that Jesus was God, not man, and that His promises are true.
Other people have sacrificed their lives. Some people have claimed to know God or be the way to God. But only ONE backed up that claim by rising from the dead.
Jesus Christ.
There is no other.
Let the remarkable words of Scripture speak for themselves:
“Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.”
“But the angel answered and said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he is risen as he said. Come see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead, and indeed he is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold I have told you.’”
“So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring his disciples word. And as they went to tell his disciples, behold Jesus met them saying, ‘Rejoice!’ So they came and held him by the feet and worshipped Him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. God and tell My brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see Me.’”
“Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw him, they worshipped Him; but some doubted.”
“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and makes disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’”
(Matthew 28:1-10, 6-20).
Jesus Christ, the wondrously unique God/man, died for the sins for the world and rose from the dead to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt he was more than a human being. Resurrection served as the final witness in his trial for credibility.
Josh McDowell devotes eighty-five pages of his classic work, Evidence That Demands a Verdict, to the historical, logical and literary proofs for the resurrection of Jesus Christ. His risen life remains one of the most provable events of ancient times.
He points out that human beings living since the death and resurrection of Jesus are faced with only three choices relating to the Son of God. Either he was a lunatic who made crazy claims—a liar who has deceived billions—or the Lord of life that he claimed to be.
Number three is the most logical choice.
G.B. Hardy exclaims: “Here is the record. Confucius tomb – occupied. Buddha’s tomb – occupied. Mohammed’s tomb – occupied. Jesus’ tomb — EMPTY. The decision is yours to make; the evidence speaks for itself. It says very clearly—Christ is risen indeed!”
The proof is in. Once for all sacrifice for sin. Permanent first resurrection. Those who believe follow.
Happy Easter.
Rejoice!
The Half Truths That Fuel Islam and the Way to Reform It
Take a moment and think about how a lie works.
Most lies are not brazen rejections of truth. If they were, they would be easily rejected by most people’s common sense.
No, the power of a lie is that it usually takes a half truth (which draws you in) and then mix it with error.
That’s what the serpent did when he lured Adam and Eve into the Fall. He said something that was true (“knowing good and evil”) and wrapped it with an untruth (“You certainly won’t die!”). They bought that lie and the world was changed (Genesis 3:1-6)
Islam is also based on a number of half truths. Therein lies its power and attraction.
How can it be reformed?
My new book–The River of God–which should be out this year, has some detailed chapters on both the history and principles of the religion of Islam. The research included reading the Koran all the way through for the second time in my life.
This made it clear to me why so many people–1.2 billion–have been drawn into the “tent” of this monotheistic faith. Islam is built on a number of half truths, which seen by themselves, can be quite convincing. This is especially true of the jihadist version which is gaining momentum and converts in various parts of the world.
We all know that radical Islam is exploding in the Middle East. The White House recently convened a summit of Muslim leaders to discuss that topic and what to do about it. Some believe that Islam can be reformed and that the attraction of it can be changed.
But how?
This can only be done through exposing the half truths upon which this religious/political force rests and calling people out into the light.
So what are the half truths upon which the House of Islam stands? I only have space to mention a few:
1. There is only one God and his name is Allah.
Yes, it is true that there is only one True God who made the heavens and the earth. It is also true that “Allah” is a generic term for the Supreme Deity just as in English we used the term “God” or in Spanish they have “Dios.”
So far so good. There is only one God and he should be worshipped.
But the “Allah” of the Koran is a warring God who condones the killing of innocents to advance his worship. He is arbitrary, cannot be known, a single entity and distant to mankind. All those traits are lies.
The real “Allah” is none of the above. His moral essence is love, his Being is Triune (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), and he is knowable and personal to those who come into an intimate relationship with Him.
2. Mohammed is his prophet.
Mohammed of Arabia was a religious man and a very strong leader. He spoke against the gross idolatry of his time and called his followers to worship the only God. That part is true.
But he was not a true prophet of God as evidenced by the errors, mistakes and distortions in the Koran. Actually, he was a marauding thief who stole from others for a living and justified the use of violence for his own purposes. He was a grossly immoral man and possibly a pedophile. He is not worthy of following or emulating.
3. Submission to God is the way of life.
Islam means “submission” and the message of the jihadists is that people need to submit their lives to God. So far, so good. The Bible teaches a similar truth that salvation comes when we submit our wills in faith to the God who loves us and died for our sins.
Islam leaves out that last sentence. Submission in Islam is to a warring and vengeful Being and the means of submission can include coercion, tribute, and death to those who refuse.
That part is the lie. True submission to God is voluntary, prompted by God and motivated by love. It is never forced or true love is not involved.
4. Jesus is a major Prophet who will return one day.
Jesus the Messiah is mentioned prominently in the Koran. Many truths are stated about him including his virgin birth, his ability to do miracles, and his Second Coming. In fact, Isa (Jesus in Arabic) is one of the most frequent figures mentioned in the recitations of Mohammed.
However, the most crucial things about Jesus Christ are left out of the Islamic writings. Muslims are told that Jesus was not the Son of God, he did not die on the cross of the sins of the world, and that he is not the King of kings and Lord of Lords who will be revealed at his Second Advent.
These omissions make the Muslim concept of Jesus a lie. To them, he is not “the way, the truth and the life” (John 14:6).
He is. (I AM)
5. God’s Kingdom will be global and all people will worship Him.
One of the great draws of Islam is its global vision of conquering the world. Muslims have a view of a changed and worshipping planet that ushers in a new era that includes the return of Jesus.
In this sense, Muslims are true progressives. The world is progressing toward the universal rule of God.
However, the means to get there–violence and death to all non-believers–is a Satanic lie. Yes, God’s kingdom is growing in all the earth but it is doing so through loving persuasion and mercy, not cruel beheadings, burning people alive, and raping young girls.
This fruit of Islam reveals its origins–the pit of hell. But its drawing power lies in the vision of a worldwide caliphate and eventual Heavenly kingdom.
There are other half truths in Islam that could be mentioned. But these five give you are idea of the power of this false religion. When you call people to submit to God, mention Jesus, share vision for a world wide kingdom and promise heaven for martyrs, that’s powerful stuff. In fact, compared to the emptiness and bankruptcy of immoral Western culture, it actually looks quite attractive.
No wonder thousands are joining the global jihad and even Western women are leaving their families to become “jidahi brides.” The power of Islamic vision is, in many ways, more potent than the decadent West.
But it is based on a lie (many half truths).
On the other hand, some Islamic ideas are full lies, not even half baked. Here are two examples.
The Koran completely leaves out the concept of blood sacrifice needed to atone for sin. Since the dawn of time, fallen human beings have been aware of their guilt (sin), and known that something else dying in our place is essential to repentance and forgiveness. The Koran is completely silent on this subject as if sin didn’t exist and sacrifice is not necessary.
The Bible teaches us that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 9:22). The greatest loving act of all time and eternity is the Son of God dying on the cross for the sins of the world (John 3:16).
The truth contains Good News! Islam is silent on how salvation has been achieved.
Another completel lie of Islam is the place it gives to women. They are treated as property and second-class citizens, not allowed to be educated, and have no real hope of heaven. That is hideous and false. All women and men are made in God’s image and co-heirs of the grace of life (1 Peter 3:7).
So how can Islam be reformed?
I believe it can be done through the following actions:
1. Freedom-loving nations must mobilize and defeat the jihadists just as they did the Nazis in WWII. We need to pray for modern Roosevelts and Churchills to replace the present-day Chamberlains that are too ignorant or timid to defeat evil.
2. We need to care for people entrapped in the Islamic lie, convince them of the truth about God, and see them converted into his kingdom of light and love.
3. We must convince individual Muslims and whole Islamic nations that Isa, not Mohammed, is the only one worth trusting and emulating.
4. We must bring the Muslim world to trust the Bible and reject the Koran and sharia law.
5. We must shout on the housetops that the True Allah is the Loving Triune God!
6. We need to demonstrate that men and women can only be saved through faith in Isa, and not by their good works.
7. We must liberate Muslim women through a message of equality and dignity that is found in Christ.
8. We must call all Muslims to humble submission to the God who loved them enough to die for their sins.
Reforming Islam is a tall order. The half truths must be shredded and the whole truth proclaimed.
But in the coming days and years it can be done through the grace and power of Isa the Messiah.