The following is extracted from an article posted online by Ligonier Ministries. I will let it speak for itself.

What do Americans believe about God, salvation, ethics, and the Bible? Ligonier Ministries and LifeWay Research partnered to find out. Every two years, we take the theological temperature of the United States to help Christians better understand today’s culture and to equip the church with better insights for discipleship. Read some of our key findings from 2022 below and explore the data for yourself.

Does God Change?

As we look at ourselves and at the world, it is clear that human beings, along with the rest of creation, undergo frequent changes. But does this principle of change apply to God as well?

The Bible affirms the truth that the triune God is both omniscient, meaning that He knows all things, and immutable, meaning that He cannot and does not change (Isa. 46:10; Mal. 3:6; James 1:17; 1 John 3:20). Despite this truth, the majority of adults in the United States believe that God both learns and adapts to different circumstances.

Despite the clear teaching of Scripture, this year’s survey reveals that approximately half of evangelicals believe that God learns and adapts to various situations, meaning that they believe that God does change.

STATEMENT NO. 4

God learns and adapts to different circumstances.

U.S. Adult Finding: 51% agree vs. 32% disagree

U.S. Evangelical Finding: 48% agree vs. 43% disagree

These results show that American evangelicals and the general U.S. population are essentially equivalent in their agreement with this statement. Nearly half of both groups believe that God changes by learning and adapting. This may indicate the influence of open theism (which denies God’s complete knowledge of future events) and process theology (which denies God’s omnipotence and asserts that He does undergo changes) within the evangelical church. This finding may also indicate a lack of clear, biblical teaching on the character of God in evangelical churches.

Are We Born Innocent?

When God created the world, everything He made was good (Gen. 1:10, 21, 25, 31). Yet through Adam and Eve’s rebellion in the garden of Eden, humankind became corrupted. The Bible teaches the concept of original sin, which means that since the fall, every human being inherits a sin nature from the time of their conception (Ps. 51:5; Rom. 5:12). In other words, we are not sinners because we sin; rather, we sin because we are sinners.

It is unsurprising that most U.S. adults believe that humans are born innocent, given the influence of humanistic philosophies and worldviews that teach self-determinism and a view of humankind as basically good.

STATEMENT NO. 15

Everyone is born innocent in the eyes of God.

U.S. Adult Finding: 71% agree vs. 21% disagree

U.S. Evangelical Finding: 65% agree vs. 32% disagree

The fact that almost two-thirds of evangelicals believe that humans are born in a state of innocence reveals that the biblical teaching of original sin is not embraced by most evangelicals. God’s Word, however, makes clear that all humans are “by nature children of wrath” (Eph. 2:3). This truth is foundational for an accurate understanding of the gospel and of our absolute need for the grace of God in salvation.

U.S. Evangelicals: Trends

The 2022 survey results for U.S. evangelicals reveal concerning trends related to the exclusivity and deity of Jesus Christ, the historicity and divine nature of Scripture, objective truth, gender identity, and homosexuality. At the same time, encouraging trends include evangelicals’ increasingly biblical views on abortion and sex outside of marriage.

God

Key to orthodox Christianity is Jesus’ own assertion that He alone is “the way, and the truth, and the life,” and that “no one comes to the Father except through [Him]” (John 14:6, emphasis added). Trends over time and the 2022 survey results reveal an increasingly unbiblical belief among evangelicals that God is pleased by worship that comes from those outside the Christian faith.

STATEMENT NO. 3

God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.

U.S. Evangelical Finding:

2016: 48% agree
2018: 51% agree
2020: 42% agree
2022: 56% agree

This year’s survey also revealed a significant increase in evangelicals who deny Jesus’ divinity. Such a belief is contrary to Scripture, which affirms from beginning to end that Jesus is indeed God (John 1:1; 8:58; Rom. 9:5; Heb. 1:1-4).

STATEMENT NO. 7

Jesus was a great teacher, but he was not God.

U.S. Evangelical Finding:

2020: 30% agree
2022: 43% agree

Truth

Embracing the reality of objective truth is necessary to a right and proper understanding of the world. Scripture affirms that God is truth (Num. 23:19; John 1:14; 14:6; 16:13), and because the Bible is His Word, Scripture is truth as well (Ps. 119:160; John 17:17; 2 Tim. 2:15). Despite the testimony of Scripture, evangelicals increasingly believe that the Bible is not literally true.

STATEMENT NO. 16

The Bible, like all sacred writings, contains helpful accounts of ancient myths but is not literally true.

U.S. Evangelical Finding:

2016: 17% agree
2018: 23% agree
2020: 15% agree
2022: 26% agree

A rising disbelief in the Bible’s literal truth may help us understand why American evangelicals also increasingly believe that religious faith is a subjective experience rather than an objective reality.

STATEMENT NO. 31

Religious belief is a matter of personal opinion; it is not about objective truth.

U.S. Evangelical Finding:

2018: 32% agree
2020: 23% agree
2022: 38% agree

Sexual Ethics

The changes in sexual ethics in the United States are occurring at an alarmingly rapid pace. However, one encouraging finding is that evangelicals affirm a biblical view of fornication and adultery in greater numbers.

STATEMENT NO. 25

Sex outside of traditional marriage is a sin.

U.S. Evangelical Finding:

2016: 91% agree
2018: 89% agree
2020: 90% agree
2022: 94% agree

While evangelicals are more likely than U.S. adults in general to affirm a biblical sexual ethic, in the areas of gender identity and homosexuality, a significant rise of an unbiblical worldview is apparent, especially in the 2022 survey.

STATEMENT NO. 27

Gender identity is a matter of choice.

U.S. Evangelical Finding:

2016: 32% agree
2018: 30% agree
2020: 22% agree
2022: 37% agree

The rise of unbiblical views among American evangelicals on the subjects of gender and sexuality may indicate the influence of a secular worldview that is making greater inroads into the church.

STATEMENT NO. 28

The Bible’s condemnation of homosexual behavior doesn’t apply today.

U.S. Evangelical Finding:

2016: 19% agree
2018: 20% agree
2020: 11% agree
2022: 28% agree

Abortion

The Bible teaches the personhood of those in the womb (Ps. 139:13, 16; Luke 1:41, 44). As such, the practice of abortion is the murder of a human being who is an image bearer of God. Past survey results among evangelicals have remained fairly consistent since 2016, with an uptick in 2022 of more evangelicals asserting that abortion is a sin. While the reasons for this positive trend are unknown, it is encouraging to see more evangelicals affirming the personhood of human beings in the womb.

STATEMENT NO. 26

Abortion is a sin.

U.S. Evangelical Finding:

2016: 87% agree
2018: 88% agree
2020: 88% agree
2022: 91% agree

______________________

Evangelicals were defined by LifeWay Research as people who strongly agreed with the following four statements:

• The Bible is the highest authority for what I believe.
• It is very important for me personally to encourage non-Christians to trust Jesus Christ as their Savior.
• Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is the only sacrifice that could remove the penalty of my sin.
• Only those who trust in Jesus Christ alone as their Savior receive God’s free gift of eternal salvation.

Respondents can also be identified as evangelical in the State of Theology data explorer based on their supplied church affiliation.

Conclusion

The 2022 State of Theology survey reveals that Americans increasingly reject the divine origin and complete accuracy of the Bible. With no enduring plumb line of absolute truth to conform to, U.S. adults are also increasingly holding to unbiblical worldviews related to human sexuality. In the evangelical sphere, doctrines including the deity and exclusivity of Jesus Christ, as well as the inspiration and authority of the Bible, are increasingly being rejected. While positive trends are present, including evangelicals’ views on abortion and sex outside of marriage, an inconsistent biblical ethic is also evident, with more evangelicals embracing a secular worldview in the areas of homosexuality and gender identity.

These results convey the ongoing need for the church to be engaged in apologetics, helping unbelievers by providing a well-reasoned defense of the Christian faith, and helping believers by strengthening their clarity and conviction regarding why they believe what they do. Additionally, the people of God must continue to obey the Great Commission by communicating the whole counsel of God in biblical evangelism and discipleship. The need is great, but the power and promises of God can equip the church to bring truth and light to a deceived and dark world.