The Death Of Repentance: Just 3% Of Church Sermons Teach About Sin

A brand-new national survey has delivered a shocking revelation: while most Americans still believe sin exists, far fewer are willing to admit they themselves are sinners. The Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University released its 2025 American Worldview Inventory last week, polling 2,000 adults this past May. 

The results expose a troubling reality--our culture has grown comfortable acknowledging sin in the abstract while denying its personal weight. And this disconnect, many experts argue, is the fruit of years of silence in America's pulpits.

That silence is not theoretical. Research from a few years ago found that just 3% of sermons in American churches even mention sin. Three percent. When the church avoids its most foundational truth, the people it serves inevitably lose sight of their need for repentance and salvation. We are now watching that play out on a national scale.

The numbers are devastating. According to the 2025 survey, 84% of Americans affirm that sin is real. Yet among born-again Christians, only 74% confessed to being sinners. Among Protestants, 66%. Catholics, just 50%. And among non-Christians, a mere 36%. The conclusion is inescapable: Americans know sin exists, but most refuse to see it in themselves.

George Barna, the veteran researcher behind the study, was blunt: churches have suppressed the truth about sin for fear of offending, and the results are catastrophic. The purpose of the church, he reminded us, is to teach God's ways--not to entertain, not to placate, not to tickle ears. But when only a sliver of sermons even address the reality of sin, people are left ignorant of their deepest need.

The Bible doesn't whisper about sin--it shouts. From Genesis to Revelation, the narrative of redemption is meaningless without it. Adam and Eve's rebellion, Israel's idolatry, the prophets' constant warnings, Christ's death on the cross--all center around one undeniable truth: humanity is lost in sin and in desperate need of a Savior. Remove sin from the equation, and you no longer have Christianity. You have a hollow shell that looks religious but denies its power.

The 2025 survey revealed another troubling theme: while many admit sin exists, the vast majority still cling to the belief that people are "basically good at heart." Even 70% of born-again Christians hold this view. Among Catholics, that number rises to 82%. But Scripture paints a far darker--and more accurate--picture: "There is none righteous, no, not one" (Romans 3:10).

To say people are "basically good" is to dismiss the depth of our rebellion against God. It's a soothing lie that allows us to excuse disobedience while feeling morally upright. Barna called it what it is: a cultural comfort, a dangerous strategy that allows us to minimize the seriousness of sin. And by avoiding the truth, we are not sparing feelings--we are endangering souls.

This is not just about individual faith. The consequences of avoiding sin in our pulpits are playing out across American society. If people do not see themselves as sinners, they see no need for repentance. If they see no need for repentance, they see no need for a Savior. And without a Savior, the cross becomes a symbol stripped of meaning, and the church becomes nothing more than a community club with hymns.

The cultural decay around us is not accidental. The family breakdown, the rise in lawlessness, the loss of moral clarity on issues as basic as life, gender, and truth itself--these are the direct fruits of a church that no longer confronts sin. When the watchmen remain silent, the city burns.

But it is not too late. As Barna rightly said, sin is not a difficult concept to understand. What is needed is courage--courage from pastors to preach the whole counsel of God, courage from parents to teach their children about sin and grace, and courage from believers to admit, "I am a sinner in need of a Savior."

Reintroducing sin into the national consciousness may sound harsh in an age that prizes self-esteem, but it is actually the most loving act the church can offer. To tell a sinner he is "basically good" is like telling a terminal cancer patient he has a clean bill of health. The disease will still kill him. But to speak truth--to say, "You are sick, but there is a cure"--is to give life.

America is reaping the bitter harvest of pulpits that refused to preach the truth. Today's 2025 survey confirms what earlier research had already exposed: when churches neglect the subject of sin, people may still believe in its existence--but they will never apply it to themselves. And when people no longer see their personal need for forgiveness, they see no need for Christ.

But the solution remains the same as it always has: repentance. The church must return to its mission of proclaiming sin, judgment, grace, and forgiveness. If we want revival in this land, it will not come through clever marketing or cultural relevance. It will come through brokenness, confession, and the blood of Christ.

The time for silence is over. The time for soft sermons is past. America's hope lies not in pretending we are "basically good," but in bowing low before a holy God and admitting the truth: we are sinners, in need of a Savior.