If Christians are to survive they must go beyond the present and have a vision of the future. We are now confronting a new decade. This country, the churches and individuals are in a period of rapidly increasing social change. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the forces that are reshaping the contours of American society. How should Christians individually and churches corporately respond to these changes?

In order to respond intelligently to those changes we must understand them. We must know the vital signs of society, and there is an ever increasing evidence that many Christians do not understand the spiritual implications of the present social revolution. Jesus rebuked the religious establishment of His day for being Out of touch with the vital signs of their society: "Do you know how to discern the appearance of the sky, but cannot discern the signs of the times?" (Matt. 16:1-3).

The following is an attempt to remind us of the current condition of America, the church, and individual Christians. What are the vital signs of our society? What are the vital signs of the church? Will it find a way to resist the corrosive influences of social transformation that are overwhelming us? Of course, one cannot take the pulse of the church without a close evaluation of the personal spiritual growth of the individual members of the body.

Last of all, what changes will be necessary in the area of evangelism and church growth once we grasp the vital signs of a society under dramatic social upheaval? The survival of the church is not at stake, but certainly our capacity to affect society is being severely challenged. Hopefully, we will be sufficiently armed for the struggle.

THE VITAL SIGNS OF SOCIETY

As we face the decade of the 90's we are confronted with more of the same that we experienced in the 80's. Although there has been some anti-abortion efforts, the abortion crisis will not go away. In fact, recent surveys indicate that over the past several years evangelical Christian communities are becoming more liberal in their views on this subject.

Pornography continues to be a blight in the land. It goes beyond nude photos in a magazine. Pornography is that which exploits and dehumanizes sex, so that human beings are treated as things and women, in particular, as sex objects. Homosexuality continues to be a serious and growing moral problem. In fact, pornography has had a great part in the increase of homosexuality in this society. Homosexuality not only weakens the moral fiber of our country, but it also affects the health of the country due to the closely associated disease of AIDS.

Divorce continues to increase. In a recent year, 1.8 million couples saw their marriages dissolve. One year later, there were 10 million evangelical Christians who had been divorced at one point in their lives.

Drugs and alcohol continue to be a scourge in this country. No country in the civilized world compares to the U.S.A. in the use of illegal drugs. The damage of lost production in the workplace, the turmoil of drugs and the family, cannot really be calculated accurately.

All of the above mentioned social changes are eating away at the heart of our society. The vital signs are not very good. It appears certain that we will continue to see the 6,000 years of basic family tradition unravel. Household leadership, sexual attitudes, child rearing practices and marital arrangements are some of the vital areas that will be dramatically affected.

The effect of the media in America has created an unbridled passion for material things. We "pursue happiness" by the acquisition of automobiles, larger homes, electronic gadgets, and travel. There is no indication of a lessened desire for things in the 1990's.

Unfortunately, the things mentioned thus far do not come about by accident. The society of the 90's is expected to continue in fundamental philosophical change. More and more people support either consciously or unconsciously philosophies and activities contradictory to the Christian perspective. The most obvious failings relate to the acceptance of materialism, hedonism, and secular humanism.

What are the likely prospects for Christianity in America through the end of this century? The integrity of our faith is being severely challenged. We must resist the corrosive influences that are most surely destroying us. We must grasp whatever opportunities for renewal are available and evangelize at every opportunity.

THE VITAL SIGNS IN THE CHURCH

George Gallup, Jr. pointed out recently that there are two powerful undercurrents in our society. First, there is "an intensified search for meaning in life, due undoubtedly in part to a rejection of materialism and to the shallowness of modem life." The survey also showed that churches have not done a very good job of helping people with their religious doubts and spiritual needs.

Dr. Gallup further pointed out that there is an intensified search for meaningful relationships, arising out of loneliness. This is seen in the joining together, the bonding, in self-help groups, care groups, etc. More and more people are seeking psychological and emotional counseling. They are doing this in group therapy as opposed to one~on-one counseling.

For the church to be successful in outreach it must minister to these two pressing needs. People feel the church has failed to meet their doubts and spiritual needs. No doubt this perception has developed because of the watered-down doctrinal positions and lack of genuine convictions by most church groups. It will be important in the 90's to be true to your convictions, but at the same time be generous and loving and civil. Those convictions and loving responses can best be shared in a form that satisfies the other undercurrent. In the religious world, the trend for the 90's is toward small group home Bible study. The small group encourages Bible study and prayer life. It gives people an opportunity to share their biblical convictions where people can ask questions. Small group Bible study helps solve the loneliness problem and allows us to build relationships that can enable us to bring the lost to Christ.

THE VITAL SIGNS IN INDIVIDUALS

Someone might raise the question as to the relationship of the vital signs chaos in society (abortion, pornography, homosexuality, divorce, etc.) and the vital signs for the church. How would small group study affect the moral decline in America's unchurched?

The pollsters widely believe that the deeply committed Christian populace has an influence far out of proportion to their numbers. The deeply committed number only 10%, but they wield a great influence on the direction of society. It would most likely be the deeply committed who would form the nucleus of a Bible study. As they attract the unchurched and marginally committed to their groups, a transformation would take place. More and more people would be born again and take their stand to encourage pro-social behavior and discourage anti-social behavior.

In spite of our shortcomings in ministry in the church we can overcome. There is great potential for growth in the body of Christ. There is great opportunity of attracting those who are aimlessly wandering and seeking meaning for their life. The Lord's church has the answer. The answer is found in Christ. Amazingly, that answer is accessible through a means that Church Growth magazine has long proposed: home Bible study. The answer is simple-we simply need to get on with it!