It's easy to see that there are many, many religions in the world. But... God never intended for mankind to live by religion! Christ didn't even come to start the Christian religion. The word "religion" itself appears in the Bible only four or five times, usually with a negative connotation. The Apostle Paul talked about his past religious life that he converted from (see Acts 25:19, 26:5). He converted from religion to LIFE. In Colossians 2:20-23 he talked about the do's and dont's that people try to live by (he called them the "principles of the world"), and he said "these things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion... but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh."
Paul talked in great detail about his former life in the Old Covenant religion, and how he came to the realization that, in my own words, all of his Old Covenant religious training really showed him that all the religion in the world would never and could never please God! Religion is not what God wants from us or for us. James is the only one who used the word "religion" in a positive light, in James 1:26-27, and I believe he was simply showing an example of what Life looks like when expressed outwardly.
When God created Adam and Eve, did He say, "be fruitful and multiply... and make sure you're very religious people?" Of course not! He gave them a choice, though. The choice, if you'll let me word it this way, was a choice between life and religion. The Tree of Life was there for them to eat freely from, and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was there as well. The latter tree - the tree that opened them up to religion (the knowledge of right and wrong) - is the one He didn't want them to eat from. But they ate from that religion tree... and forfeited LIFE. Their first act of religion? They tried to cover their 'shame' with fig leaves.
Since that fateful day, there has never been ONE ACT of religion that has ever brought man closer to God. There is no act of religion that has ever restored man to Life. Why doesn't God want our religion? Because it doesn't work! Our very best religion is filthy to Him (Isaiah 64:6). God Himself is the one who brought us near to Himself... not through religion, but through the death and resurrection of a Person - Jesus. Through Jesus, God restored us to Life... after having killed us to religion.
God created you, not for religion, but for Life. He loves you, and He doesn't desire your "sacrifices and offerings" (Hebrews 10:8). He wants YOU... just because He loves you!
Grace Roots Blog
Showing posts with label Not Religion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Not Religion. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Jesus is Not a Religion - Part 3
"Christianity is one of the great religions of the world," or at least so say many well-meaning people. But no matter what anyone has previously thought about Jesus, or how they've previously understood Him, what I'm attempting to do in this series of posts is simply to point out that the scriptures, which tell about Jesus, do not point us to some religion called "Christianity," but they point us to the very Person Himself, Jesus. My hope as I lay out what the scriptures reveal about Jesus, is to show how they reveal a Person who is personally, intimately involved with us (individually and corporately), and to contrast this with the idea of "religion."
"Jesus is the way" was the subject of Part 2, and I'd like to carry that out just a little more. Specifically, I'd like to discuss why a "way" was needed in the first place (and why religion is not the way).
God did not create mankind for religion. When we read the creation account in Genesis, we don't see God creating Adam and Eve and telling them, "Ok, now, worship Me and follow a prescribed set of religious rituals and precepts. My goodness! We see Him creating them "in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." (Gen 1:27). We see Him setting them in a garden paradise and giving them free reign. In the next few verses we see God blessing them, telling them to "be fruitful and multiply." We see Him giving them dominion "over every living thing that moves on the earth." We see God giving, giving, giving to man, blessing him. No signs of religion. No signs of man working at trying to earn anything from God. Mankind was blessed and had a free and trusting relationship with God.
It wasn't God who created religion. It was man. Although what I'm about to say is obviously my opinion with no exact scriptural wording to back up my point, in the end the result is the same. In the beginning, Adam and Eve had a perfect relationship with God, but when presented with a different option, they chose religion instead. God gave them all things, and they were never meant to die, and they walked with God freely and openly. In the midst of the garden was the Tree of Life (to which they had free access) and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (which was the only thing forbidden to them). Note, it wasn't simply the "tree of the knowledge of evil." It was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Well, they "saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise..." (Gen 3:6), and they took of its fruit and ate. And a dramatic change took place. Their eyes were "opened," and for the first time ever they knew that they were naked, and they covered themselves with fig leaves. Before eating from this tree, they had free and perfect fellowship with God. They had Life. They had no religion. Now suddenly they knew good and evil and also for the first time ever, they hid from God (Gen 3:8). God did not create man to hide from Him! His purpose for them was Himself and His creation - and Life. His purpose for them was not the religion tree (the tree of the knowledge of good and evil), but we do see that by setting the forbidden tree there, He did give them a choice.
(Let me just point out that in the culmination of things, as revealed in the book of Revelation, we find the Tree of Life "in the midst of the Paradise of God" (Rev 2:7, 22:2, 22:14) but we find no tree of the knowledge of good and evil).
We see the result when they at from the forbidden tree. The curse began. (Gen 3:17-19). "Death reigned." (Rom 5:14). "Through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned." (Rom 5:12). Man became alienated from God (Col 1:21).
As I set out saying, my purpose in spending some time here talking about Adam and Eve is to set up the understanding of why a "way" was needed in the first place. Because of sin - which spread to all of mankind - man was cursed and had no chance of eternal life. Ever since that time, man has tried to find various ways to reach out to God and "find" Him. Many people, for various reasons, think they have found Him through various methods, religious practices, feelings, emotions, strivings to live right, law, rules, meditation, etc.
But the same scriptures that reveal the above problems (the "bad news" of sin, death, separation from God, etc) also reveal that the answer, or the antidote, or the "way" is never going to be found in man's attempts to find God or reach out to Him. "Doing good works" is not the way to God. A "feeling" of love or happiness is not the way to God. Religious activity - which can be defined in all kinds of ways - is not the way to God. Many of these things may feel good or seem right, but a person can do all of those things and still remain separated from God! The issue, as the scriptures tell us, isn't a matter of whether we're good or evil. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil was the problem! Through that tree came death, and mankind was separated from the Tree of LIFE. It doesn't matter how good your good is if you're still eating from that tree! The issue is that man needed LIFE.
God so loved the world that He gave Jesus. Through Jesus, all who believe are restored to Life.
"Jesus is the way" was the subject of Part 2, and I'd like to carry that out just a little more. Specifically, I'd like to discuss why a "way" was needed in the first place (and why religion is not the way).
God did not create mankind for religion. When we read the creation account in Genesis, we don't see God creating Adam and Eve and telling them, "Ok, now, worship Me and follow a prescribed set of religious rituals and precepts. My goodness! We see Him creating them "in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." (Gen 1:27). We see Him setting them in a garden paradise and giving them free reign. In the next few verses we see God blessing them, telling them to "be fruitful and multiply." We see Him giving them dominion "over every living thing that moves on the earth." We see God giving, giving, giving to man, blessing him. No signs of religion. No signs of man working at trying to earn anything from God. Mankind was blessed and had a free and trusting relationship with God.
It wasn't God who created religion. It was man. Although what I'm about to say is obviously my opinion with no exact scriptural wording to back up my point, in the end the result is the same. In the beginning, Adam and Eve had a perfect relationship with God, but when presented with a different option, they chose religion instead. God gave them all things, and they were never meant to die, and they walked with God freely and openly. In the midst of the garden was the Tree of Life (to which they had free access) and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (which was the only thing forbidden to them). Note, it wasn't simply the "tree of the knowledge of evil." It was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Well, they "saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise..." (Gen 3:6), and they took of its fruit and ate. And a dramatic change took place. Their eyes were "opened," and for the first time ever they knew that they were naked, and they covered themselves with fig leaves. Before eating from this tree, they had free and perfect fellowship with God. They had Life. They had no religion. Now suddenly they knew good and evil and also for the first time ever, they hid from God (Gen 3:8). God did not create man to hide from Him! His purpose for them was Himself and His creation - and Life. His purpose for them was not the religion tree (the tree of the knowledge of good and evil), but we do see that by setting the forbidden tree there, He did give them a choice.
(Let me just point out that in the culmination of things, as revealed in the book of Revelation, we find the Tree of Life "in the midst of the Paradise of God" (Rev 2:7, 22:2, 22:14) but we find no tree of the knowledge of good and evil).
We see the result when they at from the forbidden tree. The curse began. (Gen 3:17-19). "Death reigned." (Rom 5:14). "Through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned." (Rom 5:12). Man became alienated from God (Col 1:21).
As I set out saying, my purpose in spending some time here talking about Adam and Eve is to set up the understanding of why a "way" was needed in the first place. Because of sin - which spread to all of mankind - man was cursed and had no chance of eternal life. Ever since that time, man has tried to find various ways to reach out to God and "find" Him. Many people, for various reasons, think they have found Him through various methods, religious practices, feelings, emotions, strivings to live right, law, rules, meditation, etc.
But the same scriptures that reveal the above problems (the "bad news" of sin, death, separation from God, etc) also reveal that the answer, or the antidote, or the "way" is never going to be found in man's attempts to find God or reach out to Him. "Doing good works" is not the way to God. A "feeling" of love or happiness is not the way to God. Religious activity - which can be defined in all kinds of ways - is not the way to God. Many of these things may feel good or seem right, but a person can do all of those things and still remain separated from God! The issue, as the scriptures tell us, isn't a matter of whether we're good or evil. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil was the problem! Through that tree came death, and mankind was separated from the Tree of LIFE. It doesn't matter how good your good is if you're still eating from that tree! The issue is that man needed LIFE.
God so loved the world that He gave Jesus. Through Jesus, all who believe are restored to Life.
"God... who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel..." (2 Timothy 1:9-10)I'm sure we'll delve further into "Jesus is the Life" in the future, but for now I hope it's been made at least somewhat clear as to why a way was needed and why Jesus is the Way and why there is no other way.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Jesus is Not a Religion - Part 1
As I share my thoughts about Jesus and religion, I realize that this will amount to much less than an exhaustive account. However, I do hope to cover some things that I think are of significant importance. Mainly I want to point out the stark contrast between Jesus and religion. As I said in the introduction, God didn't give us a religion. He gave His Son. I hope to show how Jesus is much more than simply some great historical figure and much more than some spiritual or religious leader.
There is indeed a lot to know about Jesus! But just because He is "big" and the reality of His being covers more than we'll ever know, that doesn't mean that everything that people think about Him is true. There are a lot of things that are not true about Jesus. Religion (and "non-religion") have cast Jesus in so many different ways that may or may not seem good and right, but either way are far off from what the scriptures reveal to us about Him. I personally don't want to invent my own "truth" about Jesus. I don't want to believe what I believe about Him just because it sounds good or feels good. In other words, I don't want to invent a Jesus who is suitable for me, but I want to look at what the scriptures actually say about Him.
I realize a wide variety of people may be reading this. Whoever you are - it's up to you whether or not you believe what the Bible says. But if we can at least agree that the Bible does say a lot about Jesus, then we at least have a common denominator to look at in order to get our information about Jesus. If I'm simply preaching to the choir here, then I hope you'll enjoy and find great encouragement here as we're reminded of just Who our Savior is! And if you're someone who has somehow come up with your own preconceived notions about who Jesus is (as opposed to actually looking into the scriptures) or if you're someone who hasn't really given Jesus much thought, then I think you'll be quite surprised to hear what the Bible actually says about Him!
Jesus is I AM
Let me start by pointing out that Jesus didn't simply appear on the scene 2,000 years ago! We all know the Christmas story, and how Mary was conceived by the Holy Spirit and gave birth to the baby Jesus. That was simply the beginning of Jesus' 33 years on earth as a man. Any religion can make the claim that their leader was born as a human being!
But can any religion make this claim about their leader? "...Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross." (Phil 2:6-8)
There is so much to draw out of the above passage of scripture, but the thing I want to point out is that if Jesus was in the form of God before He came in the likeness of man, that means that Jesus existed before He came in the likeness of man. Before He was born as a baby, He already "was."
And let me tell you, it gets even better than simply knowing that He "pre-existed." There are many scriptures that show us that Jesus was and is more than just a man, but let me highlight just a few.
When Jesus was being questioned by some Jews about who He was (as recorded in John 8), they said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and You have seen Abraham?"
Jesus's response to them was, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."
That might sound like a strange answer, but it might make more sense in light of an experience Moses had. When Moses had asked God who he should say was sending him to the children of Israel, God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM... Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, "I AM has sent me to you." (Exodus 3:14)
That might start to give a picture of who Jesus is. But how about this:
In Isaiah 44, the LORD YHWH (Yahweh) reveals Himself, saying, "I am the First and I am the Last; besides Me there is no God."
Then in Revelation 1:18, Jesus is speaking to John and He says, "Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore."
This same voice (Jesus) had just finished saying, in Revelation 1:11, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last." Later, in Revelation 21:6-7, God is speaking and He says, "I am the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End... He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.
Are there two Alphas and two Omegas? Are there two Beginnings and two Ends? Are there two Firsts and two Lasts? How can both YHWH and Jesus refer to themselves as all of these things? It's pretty simple. The two are one. It makes quite a lot of sense that Jesus would say, "I and My Father are one." (John 10:30). Again, Jesus is not a religion!
The last bit of biblical evidence that I'll share that shows that Jesus is more than a mere man is found in Colossians 1:15-17. This is perhaps what would amaze people the most, who don't already know this about Jesus:
Speaking of Jesus, this passage says, "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together."
You want to know who created all things? You want to know for whom all things were created? You want to know who holds all things together? It's in the above passage. Jesus!
Jesus is not a religion. Trusting Him or believing in Him is not a matter of being religious or following a religion. It's a matter of knowing the One who is the Creator. God didn't create us for religion. God created us to know Him. (More on that later). Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
Are Christians being exclusive or intolerant or self-righteous or arrogant when they claim Jesus is the way to God? Of course not. They are simply pointing to the good news of the One who was alive and then died and then is alive again forevermore! He is the One who provided the way (who is the way) for anyone and everyone who will simply trust in Him to have eternal life.
There is indeed a lot to know about Jesus! But just because He is "big" and the reality of His being covers more than we'll ever know, that doesn't mean that everything that people think about Him is true. There are a lot of things that are not true about Jesus. Religion (and "non-religion") have cast Jesus in so many different ways that may or may not seem good and right, but either way are far off from what the scriptures reveal to us about Him. I personally don't want to invent my own "truth" about Jesus. I don't want to believe what I believe about Him just because it sounds good or feels good. In other words, I don't want to invent a Jesus who is suitable for me, but I want to look at what the scriptures actually say about Him.
I realize a wide variety of people may be reading this. Whoever you are - it's up to you whether or not you believe what the Bible says. But if we can at least agree that the Bible does say a lot about Jesus, then we at least have a common denominator to look at in order to get our information about Jesus. If I'm simply preaching to the choir here, then I hope you'll enjoy and find great encouragement here as we're reminded of just Who our Savior is! And if you're someone who has somehow come up with your own preconceived notions about who Jesus is (as opposed to actually looking into the scriptures) or if you're someone who hasn't really given Jesus much thought, then I think you'll be quite surprised to hear what the Bible actually says about Him!
Jesus is I AM
Let me start by pointing out that Jesus didn't simply appear on the scene 2,000 years ago! We all know the Christmas story, and how Mary was conceived by the Holy Spirit and gave birth to the baby Jesus. That was simply the beginning of Jesus' 33 years on earth as a man. Any religion can make the claim that their leader was born as a human being!
But can any religion make this claim about their leader? "...Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross." (Phil 2:6-8)
There is so much to draw out of the above passage of scripture, but the thing I want to point out is that if Jesus was in the form of God before He came in the likeness of man, that means that Jesus existed before He came in the likeness of man. Before He was born as a baby, He already "was."
And let me tell you, it gets even better than simply knowing that He "pre-existed." There are many scriptures that show us that Jesus was and is more than just a man, but let me highlight just a few.
When Jesus was being questioned by some Jews about who He was (as recorded in John 8), they said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and You have seen Abraham?"
Jesus's response to them was, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."
That might sound like a strange answer, but it might make more sense in light of an experience Moses had. When Moses had asked God who he should say was sending him to the children of Israel, God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM... Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, "I AM has sent me to you." (Exodus 3:14)
That might start to give a picture of who Jesus is. But how about this:
In Isaiah 44, the LORD YHWH (Yahweh) reveals Himself, saying, "I am the First and I am the Last; besides Me there is no God."
Then in Revelation 1:18, Jesus is speaking to John and He says, "Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore."
This same voice (Jesus) had just finished saying, in Revelation 1:11, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last." Later, in Revelation 21:6-7, God is speaking and He says, "I am the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End... He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.
Are there two Alphas and two Omegas? Are there two Beginnings and two Ends? Are there two Firsts and two Lasts? How can both YHWH and Jesus refer to themselves as all of these things? It's pretty simple. The two are one. It makes quite a lot of sense that Jesus would say, "I and My Father are one." (John 10:30). Again, Jesus is not a religion!
The last bit of biblical evidence that I'll share that shows that Jesus is more than a mere man is found in Colossians 1:15-17. This is perhaps what would amaze people the most, who don't already know this about Jesus:
Speaking of Jesus, this passage says, "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together."
You want to know who created all things? You want to know for whom all things were created? You want to know who holds all things together? It's in the above passage. Jesus!
Jesus is not a religion. Trusting Him or believing in Him is not a matter of being religious or following a religion. It's a matter of knowing the One who is the Creator. God didn't create us for religion. God created us to know Him. (More on that later). Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
Are Christians being exclusive or intolerant or self-righteous or arrogant when they claim Jesus is the way to God? Of course not. They are simply pointing to the good news of the One who was alive and then died and then is alive again forevermore! He is the One who provided the way (who is the way) for anyone and everyone who will simply trust in Him to have eternal life.
Jesus is Not a Religion - Introduction
I'm beginning a new series here. The hardest part of writing this particular series was coming up with the title! I had originally planned on simply writing about who Jesus is, and to somewhat contrast Him with what religion teaches, but as I thought about it and prepared it, I found myself in "contrast" mode more than I thought I would. So I thought of titles such as "Jesus vs. Religion," "Jesus is not a religion," Jesus contrasted with religion," "Who Jesus Is," "Who Jesus Is Not," "Who is Jesus?" and so on and so forth. In the end, I guess I cover quite a bit of stuff here, so I couldn't settle (in my mind) on one title!
I've done a lot of thinking this past week on all of this. I've read a little bit about what people think about various religions (as well as "non-religion"), in comparison with the "religion" of Christianity. I also received an email from an atheist, asking if I wanted to take part in a podcast in which an atheist and a Christian discuss things pertaining to Christianity and atheism. That's not quite my bag, particularly, so I'm not going to do that but it added to my thinking about religion and religious mindsets. Particularly, my thoughts have focused on the reality of who Jesus is (what the Bible reveals about Him), as contrasted with who people think Jesus is and what the "religion" of Christianity is all about. To some, Christianity is simply that - a religion that is not too different than any other religion. To some, all ways lead to God. To some, Jesus was a great teacher and a prophet, but is not "the Way."
To me, there is no such real thing as a religion called "Christianity." What I mean by that is, God so loved the world that He gave His Son, not the Christian religion. Some have turned this into a religion, but when we read the New Testament, as well as the Old Testament prophesies regarding Jesus and the New Covenant, we find it pointing to a Person, not a religion. The things that the scriptures reveal about this Person are fascinating! But one thing I want to do here, apart from simply talking about this fascinating Person, Jesus, is to present Him not as a religion or as a set of rules and tenets and principles, but as the Person who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Christianity is not the way, the truth and the life. Religion is not the way, the truth and the life. The law is not the way, the truth and the life. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.
I've done a lot of thinking this past week on all of this. I've read a little bit about what people think about various religions (as well as "non-religion"), in comparison with the "religion" of Christianity. I also received an email from an atheist, asking if I wanted to take part in a podcast in which an atheist and a Christian discuss things pertaining to Christianity and atheism. That's not quite my bag, particularly, so I'm not going to do that but it added to my thinking about religion and religious mindsets. Particularly, my thoughts have focused on the reality of who Jesus is (what the Bible reveals about Him), as contrasted with who people think Jesus is and what the "religion" of Christianity is all about. To some, Christianity is simply that - a religion that is not too different than any other religion. To some, all ways lead to God. To some, Jesus was a great teacher and a prophet, but is not "the Way."
To me, there is no such real thing as a religion called "Christianity." What I mean by that is, God so loved the world that He gave His Son, not the Christian religion. Some have turned this into a religion, but when we read the New Testament, as well as the Old Testament prophesies regarding Jesus and the New Covenant, we find it pointing to a Person, not a religion. The things that the scriptures reveal about this Person are fascinating! But one thing I want to do here, apart from simply talking about this fascinating Person, Jesus, is to present Him not as a religion or as a set of rules and tenets and principles, but as the Person who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Christianity is not the way, the truth and the life. Religion is not the way, the truth and the life. The law is not the way, the truth and the life. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.
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