Doer and Don’ter Christians

 The Scriptures confirm the truth that good and evil are operating in the world. But good has little to do with the forms of religion that Christianity is absorbed in and evil has little to do with the behaviors that are condemned by the religion of do’s and dont’s. Both good and evil compete for the passion of the heart of people. Love is God’s gift to mankind and evil contests this same love with vengeance, the devil wants people to love him and his evil doings instead of God and His doings.

Christ’s sacrifice on the cross of torture was not for religion, religious orthodoxy, nor even for Christianity, but for the HEART of people committed to Him in a voluntary love relationship whereby our Heart is His!

Who has our HEART? If something has it other than Christ...evil has it, no matter how good or religious we may be!

Neither the bible or Church is about DO’s and Don’ts!

We have been doing church for so long we are conditioned to believing that it is the right way for it to be done and we are so deceived by the doing that we will not accept any other alternative as the posibility of being right. It is time to as the question about doing church; “what’s it all for”? What is Church about? Who/What is really the “church”? So much of westernized culture completely misses the point of “gathering of yourselves’ and has turned it into a self- grandiosity, showmanship and a consumerist venture that is fueled largely by ignorance of who and what is “church”.

Why do so many churches have the same formula? Who was the ‘genius’ who one day decided “Oh, if we do church in this format: Greets, songs, message and prayer” that will empower the Saints to do what God has commissioned them to do? God never said “They’ll know you’re Christians by your Church attendance, or how many songs you sing, or how many “great sermons” the same guy preaches. He said “They’ll know you’re Believers by your love for one another”. It’s that love for your fellow-man that seems to be so grossly missing in today’s “church”. The church at large is focused on the “do’s and don’ts” and not focused on loving each other – again, that can largely be chocked up to a culture that perpetuates greed and selfish-ambition.

Many of us after coming to Jesus were made aware of certain things that would be expected of us by the clergy (and other do-gooders) now that we were "free" in Jesus. Your list of do's and don'ts might have been similar to this:

1.) As a Christian you must give 10% of your gross income to the local church.

2.) You must not smoke or chew (or go out with girls that do).

3.) You must pray and read your Bible every day.

4.) You must not do drugs or drink alcohol.

5.) You must be baptized.

6.) You must go to our church every Sunday, morning and evening, and Wednesday nights would be good too.

7.) You must submit to the covering of our pastor.

8.) You must get your hair cut.

9.) You must not date unsaved men or women.

10.) You must be careful of the movies you watch.

11.) You must not dance.

12.) You must not see your friends at the tavern any more.

Jesus came to set men free of the burden of sin and the law. He rose up in the synagogue in Nazareth and read from Isaiah, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor". (Luke 4:18,19)

God has sent Jesus to break EVERY yoke and relieve EVERY burden, especially the ones placed on the shoulders of the believer by men who should know better. Isaiah also prophesied:

Is not this the kind of fasting that I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter-- when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? (Isaiah 58:6,7)

Why is it that people don’t have faith in the ability of the Holy Spirit to lead, teach, and keep His people in the power of a changed life and to convict them of sin where necessary? To listen to most preachers in church today, you would not think so. Jesus promised to send us help in our walk with God.

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. (John 16:13)

But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you (John 14:26) [Also read I John 2:20 and 27]

When we, as well meaning Christians, set out to help the Holy Spirit by giving our young charges in the Lord a set of rules to keep them on the straight and narrow, we often cause more damage than good. 

Paul warned the foolish Galatian church, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by the yoke of slavery" (Galatians 5:1).

Yours in Christ.