In 1776, every European American, with the exception of about 2,500 Jews, identified himself or herself as a Christian. Moreover, approximately 98 percent of the colonists were Protestants, with the remaining 1.9 percent being Roman Catholics.
Rom 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
Rom 3:11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
Rom 3:12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
This got a bit long, but perhaps ties to your point about evangelical youth leaving the Church/Faith? We do know that just like the 1 of 100 sheep:
Joh 6:37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
Joh 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.
Joh 6:39 And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.
Joh 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
Joh 6:45 It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.
I used to be a fan of the Gospel Coalition, but they still say some good things, same goes for Michael Snyder’s article be careful with his other stuff, he has agendas.
Please read this one online….Another curious article here: http://www.opc.org/new_horizons/NH00/0010b.htmlDr. Godfrey has pointed out that the Larger Catechism frequently speaks of the church, whereas the Shorter Catechism is concerned with the individual. The Larger Catechism frequently mentions ministers of the gospel and carries on extensive discussions of the outward and ordinary means of grace, whereas the Shorter Catechism says almost nothing on these matters. The Larger Catechism broadens its view to include the corporate, public, gathered people of God. Dr. Godfrey appropriately warns that where the church has neglected the Larger Catechism, there could be a lack of teaching about the church.Dr. Godfrey has hit the proverbial nail on the head. His observation may explain why so many non-Presbyterians appreciate the Shorter Catechism and not the Larger Catechism. The Shorter Catechism, like much of North American evangelicalism, focuses on the individual; the Larger Catechism, on the other hand, is explicitly Presbyterian and churchly. In places the Larger Catechism appears more concerned with the church and the ordinary means of grace than even the Confession.
Of course, if Robert Baillie’s earlier statement is correct, this should not be the case. Baillie thought that the catechisms would not say anything that the Confession did not. But it appears that the committee working on the catechism did not always feel bound to follow the wording of the Confession. Prof. John Murray has suggested, for example, that the Larger Catechism’s teaching on the covenant of grace surpasses that of the Confession (7.3), and that question 22 has a better discussion of the imputation of Adam’s sin than the Confession of Faith (6.3).
Perhaps the real problem is the almost universal lack of actual any teaching of the Westminster Standard in the Church the past 50-60 years!
Rainbow Trout 