A new survey has found that more than half of Americans do not believe God exists or that He “affects lives,” prompting one prominent researcher to highlight the need for “sweeping national repentance and spiritual renewal.” 

The Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University released the second installment of its American Worldview Inventory 2025 on Wednesday. 

The research found that overall, 60% of Americans do not believe God exists or that He “affects lives.” Nearly half of self-identified Christians (47%) and a slightly smaller share of theologically identified born-again Christians (40%) said the same.

The Bible begins with the statement. ” In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth“. Genesis 1:1. God’s existence is assumed, self-evident. In Psalm 14:1 we are told, “The fool has said in his heart, There is no God! They acted corruptly; they have done abominable works, there is none who does good.” Here we see that the Bible connects corrupt thoughts about God – especially about denying His very existence – with corrupt morals. And it is true that if there is no God, no Creator who sets the rules, then we are set adrift morally.

So few believe God exists because of the promotion of evolution. A Creator is not necessary. This is why God has raised Creation Ministries International (http://www.creation.com) and Answers in Genesis (http://www.answersingenesis.org), two of the main ministries God has raised up to defend the Bible as inerrant and its history accurate. 

Among Americans who believe that God exists and “affects lives,” a plurality (38%) defined God as the “most important element” in their lives, while 23% described God as “extremely important” in their lives, and 18% characterized God as having a “very important” influence on their lives.

Fourteen percent of respondents who believe in God agreed that He was “somewhat important” in their lives, while 5% considered God either “not too” important or “not at all” important. The remaining 3% placed their views on God’s influence in their lives into the category of “it varies.” 

Just 20% of “those who believe the God of the Bible exists and affects lives” told pollsters they had “an intimate and interactive spiritual relationship with Him, with constant two-way communication.” Another 45% classified their relationship with God as “close,” defined by frequent prayer and trust in Him to “do what is best and right.”

Eleven percent of those surveyed identified their relationship with God as “arms-length,” while 18% said, “He exists and is capable of all things, but do not have a personal, interactive ‘relationship’ with Him.”

The remaining 7% of respondents remained uncertain whether or not He interacts with people and did not “know how to describe their relationship with Him.” One-third (33%) of “those who believe the God of the Bible exists and affects lives” defined God as having a “total” influence over their lives and choices, while another third (33%) reported that He had “a lot” of influence on their lives, which “often” reflected His guidance.

This is undoubtedly the reason Jesus tells us that just before He returns, many will fall away when tribulation comes.

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.” Matthew 24:9-12