WILL THE SLEEPING GIANT HEED IT'S WAKE UP CALL?

                               
A few years ago, the band Petra, had a hit song, Sleeping Giant, referring to the church.  One line from the song stated, "Can you hear the alarm echo down the hall, the sleeping giant gets a wake up call."  I believe the Sleeping Giant has been receiving many wake up calls lately, but for some reason, we keep hitting the snooze button.  Recently, the Center For Disease Control(CDC) released a report that should serve as a very loud wake up call to the church. 



PETRA - SLEEPING GIANT

 The CDC released it's findings from a survey on American sexual preference.  The results are quite astounding.  According to the CDC, the percentage of Americans that consider themselves gay, lesbian or bisexual(GLB) is not nearly the 10-15% we have been led to believe by the liberal left, it is less than 3%.  One would certainly expect a much higher percentage given we are living in an era that promotes homosexuality like never before.  In fact, one cannot deny that gay is more en vogue, more accepted and more mainstream than ever.  Even with all the pop culture exposure and endorsement of the gay agenda,  less than 3% of Americans identify themselves as such.

      What constitutes an alarm for the church is the fact that less than 3% of the population of America has undeniably changed the culture and attitudes of almost the entire country.  Why this figure is so alarming to the church is that it reveals the current influence, or lack thereof, the church is having on our nation.  A Pew Forum survey in 2012 concluded that 73% of Americans identify themselves as Christian.  This number is obviously overstating the true number of Biblical Christians, but an amazingly large percentage when you consider the moral decline our country has been experiencing.  A far more indicative number is the 28% of Americans who claim to believe the Bible is the literal Word of God, according to Gallup in May of 2014.  

      Though 73% of Americans identify as Christian, this number is not an accurate gauge of potential moral influence on society, for a few reasons:

1. Christians do not have exclusive rights to morality as many Jews      and moderate Muslims hold to a, more or less, Biblical                      worldview when it comes to the sanctity of the family and                sexual purity.

2. Not everyone who identifies as Christian is, in the true Biblical         sense.

3. Many mainline denominations have all but abandoned God's             word for a feel good social gospel.

While the 73% number is difficult to parse, the 28% who take the Bible literal is far more indicative of the size of the Sleeping Giant. If even only half of those who claim the Bible to be the literal Word of God are bona fide born again Christians, that is 14% of the population who should be actively living out the Great Commission.  Compare that to the less than 3% who are affecting so much change.  This means that, conservatively, there are almost 5 times as many born again Christians who should be actively living out their faith as those who claim to be GLB.  If you take the 28% who may or may not be actual Christians(Orthodox Jews, Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons make up a good portion of this number) you still have an overwhelming amount of people who should be championing true family values.

Instead, America has been experiencing a GLB spring, so to speak, while Godly values and beliefs continue to be marginalized in our so called Christian nation.  The recent Hobby Lobby court ruling, notwithstanding, it is impossible to name one example of American culture being positively influenced for Christ.  If 3% can affect so much change, imagine what 14-28% can accomplish if we united together as scripture commands us to do!  Imagine the impact if the people who claim to have a relationship with Christ began treating people the way Christ would, imagine if we policed the garbage our children listen to and watch, imagine if we exercised self control and said no to sinful entertainment.  Imagine if the Sleeping Giant heeded it's wake up call...

I am sadly reminded of a line from a Newsboys song from a number of years ago called Lost the Plot, "When you come back again, would you bring me something from the fridge, heard a rumor that the end was near, but I just got comfortable here....we've forgotten our first love, we have lost the plot"  



LOST THE PLOT BY THE NEWSBOYS

The numbers are in our favor, we just need the will.  The GLB lobby has the will to push their agenda with a tiny sector of America having a vested interest.  We need to love each other and take Jesus' command to make disciples seriously.  We are a indeed a Sleeping Giant, I just pray we wake up before we hear the approach of the Bridegroom and realize, too late, that we are out of oil.