Reason for My Aversion to Religion. Part 2
How did Jesus respond to the religious leaders of His day? When you reflect on what He says in the sermon on the mount, just about everything illustrates the sharp contrast that exists between man-made religion and the heart desire of God. Read it carefully and see if you don’t hear Jesus refuting religion. See if you don’t recognize a tendency in Jesus towards directness even to confronting on times. But don’t stop there, as you make your way through the Book of Matthew, pay attention to the context. Time after time you’ll see Jesus clashing with religion.
In chapter 23 Jesus accuses the Pharisees of being manipulative, overbearing, self-absorbed, deceived, corrupt and rebellious. He calls them hypocrites, blind guides, fools, liars and murderers. And He does it to their face. This is part of a confrontation with the Sadducees and Pharisees that started in Chapter 22.
The fact is, Jesus was exposing the fruit of religion and it wasn't good fruit.
Jesus came into the world to reveal the Father. He is the express image of the Father in human form (II Corinthians 4:4, Colossians 1:15-17, Hebrews 1:1-3). And while He was on this earth He expressed dissatisfaction and frustration with the religious system.
Why do I have such and aversion to religion? Because it is in essence eating from the tree of religion, it is eating from the same tree that caused our fore parents to be as God in their knowing good and evil. It is eating from the tree Good and Evil. Ever since the beginning of time people have chosen to ignore God and follow the way of Adam and Eve. In other words, we tend to reject the ways of God and the will and purpose of God in favor of perceived freedom to make up our own choices, to satisfy our own purpose and devise religious rules we think we can live with, in other words man-made religion. What men call freedom is nothing less than rebellion and lawlessness against God that enslaves us to the bondage of self-righteous man-made religion. Over time it develops into traditional, denominational, institutional religion and is accepted as promoting God's redemption plan for fallen man, yet it is direct opposition to God's plan for the community of humanity.
It doesn’t make any difference what denominational name tag religion goes by. They are all man-made, man-ordained, man-instituted and man-led making them all a part of the inventions and traditions of men that is institutionally organized to further religion.
My aversion to religion comes from from a fuller understanding of who God is rather than the understanding I received through what religion taught me regarding what He has done through His death and resurrection and what His intense desire is for the community of humanity through the community of the redeemed. You may say, "where are you coming from", good question. I am coming from inside religion where I was as religious as a person could be. Therefore I say with assurance, I believe that God’s will and purpose has nothing to do with religion in all its variances, and His purpose can never be accomplished through involvement in religion nor religious rituals or practices.
Part 3 to Follow
How did Jesus respond to the religious leaders of His day? When you reflect on what He says in the sermon on the mount, just about everything illustrates the sharp contrast that exists between man-made religion and the heart desire of God. Read it carefully and see if you don’t hear Jesus refuting religion. See if you don’t recognize a tendency in Jesus towards directness even to confronting on times. But don’t stop there, as you make your way through the Book of Matthew, pay attention to the context. Time after time you’ll see Jesus clashing with religion.
In chapter 23 Jesus accuses the Pharisees of being manipulative, overbearing, self-absorbed, deceived, corrupt and rebellious. He calls them hypocrites, blind guides, fools, liars and murderers. And He does it to their face. This is part of a confrontation with the Sadducees and Pharisees that started in Chapter 22.
The fact is, Jesus was exposing the fruit of religion and it wasn't good fruit.
Jesus came into the world to reveal the Father. He is the express image of the Father in human form (II Corinthians 4:4, Colossians 1:15-17, Hebrews 1:1-3). And while He was on this earth He expressed dissatisfaction and frustration with the religious system.
Why do I have such and aversion to religion? Because it is in essence eating from the tree of religion, it is eating from the same tree that caused our fore parents to be as God in their knowing good and evil. It is eating from the tree Good and Evil. Ever since the beginning of time people have chosen to ignore God and follow the way of Adam and Eve. In other words, we tend to reject the ways of God and the will and purpose of God in favor of perceived freedom to make up our own choices, to satisfy our own purpose and devise religious rules we think we can live with, in other words man-made religion. What men call freedom is nothing less than rebellion and lawlessness against God that enslaves us to the bondage of self-righteous man-made religion. Over time it develops into traditional, denominational, institutional religion and is accepted as promoting God's redemption plan for fallen man, yet it is direct opposition to God's plan for the community of humanity.
It doesn’t make any difference what denominational name tag religion goes by. They are all man-made, man-ordained, man-instituted and man-led making them all a part of the inventions and traditions of men that is institutionally organized to further religion.
My aversion to religion comes from from a fuller understanding of who God is rather than the understanding I received through what religion taught me regarding what He has done through His death and resurrection and what His intense desire is for the community of humanity through the community of the redeemed. You may say, "where are you coming from", good question. I am coming from inside religion where I was as religious as a person could be. Therefore I say with assurance, I believe that God’s will and purpose has nothing to do with religion in all its variances, and His purpose can never be accomplished through involvement in religion nor religious rituals or practices.
Part 3 to Follow
Comments
Post a Comment