Religion Never Works

Tired of the religious proud? Tired of being held up to some sort of unwritten rule or compared with "so-and-so" who goes to church 3 times a week and throws it in your face whenever you see them? So are we. There is a famous saying that goes, "the single greatest cause of atheism is the Christian who honors God with their lips, but acts otherwise in their actions." Today I heard the statistic that only 10% of churches in America are growing, and only 2% of that 10% are new converts. In other words, the American church is dying - and I think we "churched folk" may have something to do with it.

I was fortunate enough to give a talk a week ago at church entitled, "Religion Never Works." In it I defined Religion as either the Old Testament law, or anything that human beings have added to the Bible itself. In essence, God has told us A,B, and C through the Bible, but man has added D, E, and F on his own accord. If you have been a victim of religion, or simply witnessed it in other people; I understand, and I sympathize. Religion as defined above leads to 1 of 3 things: 1.) Pride, 2.) Spiritual Death, or 3.) Frustration. Allow me to explain.

God has the following to say regarding religion (in fact the book of Galatians is packed full of plain advice on this subject):

* God judges the Heart, not the external appearance (Gal 2:6, 4:9-10). One does not have to follow strange rules or practices, observe certain days and special feasts, or get everything perfect in order to gain salvation.

* We cannot Earn our way to Heaven (Gal 2:20, 3:10). If we are relying on our own ability to follow the 10 commandments in order to prove ourselves worthy to God, then the Bible tells us we must not slip up even a little. If we have ever told a lie, then we have broken "the law" in God's eyes. If we have ever coveted or lusted after anything, we have broken the law. We are - in effect - powerless to secure salvation through our own works or actions. Being a fairly nice person isn't good enough.

* Religion can turn into Pride (Matt 23:6, 23:15). When Jesus was on earth, the people that REALLY ticked him off were the religious proud. They were called the Pharisees and the Saducees. Listen to what Christ says about people who act pious on the outside, but endorse the spirit of bondage and hatefulness on the inside, (Matt 23:27) "You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean."

So then, now that we know what religion can do in our lives and in the church, what can we do to stop it? Essentially I believe the Bible commands us to do a number of things. We are to stay humble, stay in Christ, Love God and other people, and live by the Holy Spirit. We are saved by Faith in Jesus Christ alone. Not by trying really hard to be good, or by going to church as much as possible, or even by working in the church or teaching Bible study. It is by accepting Christ and being baptised that we gain the privilege of going to heaven when we die.

You will note, by the way, that going to church and teaching Bible study, etc are all great things. It's just that doing good things and being really nice to people isn't God's only criterion. If it were, then Jesus would not have had to die on a cross for humanity. And one more thing. Some have argued that because we are saved through Faith alone, we can throw out the Bible and any moral code therein. Here is the key difference between religiosity and Faith: we love God, so we obey Jesus (and his commands), we don't obey his commands, and then earn his love. Big difference. Religion doesn't work... Jesus does.

I'm sorry if this article has offended anyone. I am simply trying to convey the good news that the Bible teaches. If you are currently judging someone because they aren't living up to your religious expectations; please stop. If you are currently bad-mouthing other world religions or denominations; please stop. Instead offer love, and point people to Jesus. If you are reading this and are even remotely curious as to what all the hoopla is about, perform a search of this blog for the article "So... How Am I Saved?."

It's up to the people who attend church to actually "be the church." Remember what is at stake, and take it seriously. If you are saved today, it's because God extended you the grace to choose Christ, and probably because there was someone who took the time to help you and answer questions. Be that person.

The link below will get you to the audio of my sermon message, the same one that I have outlined above. There was an opening skit at the beginning of my talk, but it isn't included in the audio. It is roughly 24 minutes long, if you have time, click on the link below; and then select 'Religion Never Works' and give it a listen:
http://www.pillarchristian.com/media.php?pageID=5


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Million Dollar Mansions and False Messiahs

Matthew 24:24, "For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect--if that were possible."

When I first read these words in the Bible 8 years ago, I remember thinking to myself, "who would actually fall for this? Who would actually follow some guy saying he was Jesus?" Recently 20/20 ran a broadcast of 3 men who literally think they are Jesus come in the flesh. One is a Russian policeman, the other a homeless man from London, and the last one a successful pastor in the Philippines. The latter lives in a million dollar mansion surrounded by gates and boasts thousands of followers.

This is scary stuff. I mean David Koresh is one thing, but people with thousands upon thousands of followers? Fortunately the Bible also adds the following clarification for people who may be deceived about the true second coming (Matt 24:26) "So if anyone tells you, 'There he is, out in the desert,' do not go out; or, 'Here he is, in the inner rooms,' do not believe it. For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man."

I must have missed the shout from the heavens and the lightening bolt. Rest assured, Jesus has not come back yet. In the meantime, click on the link below and enjoy the 20/20 excerpt. It will make you giggle, while at the same time giving you pause for concern:

http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/video/son-god-10894617

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The Science of Man

Recently the world of biology experienced a jolt as Craig Venter (founder of the Institute for Genomic Research) made the claim that we are on the verge of creating true synthesized life forms. As of now, this has consisted of taking a computer-generated schematic of a bacterium and placing it into real bacteria in order for it to begin reproducing the artificially synthesized original. To me this is both amazing and staggering. Venter goes on to say in the near future we will be able to create solutions for biofuels, toxic waste, and even global warming. But his recent video from the TED conference (Technology, Entertainment, Design) depicts Venter claiming that his team will be able to create entirely new species, and even impact the evolutionary tree of life.

If we stop and think about this, it is almost reflective of some strange Sci-fi movie. In fact a recent feature film called ‘Splice’ deals with this idea of creating a being synthetically. Of course in the movie things do not go smoothly. But what if Venter’s claims are true, not just science-fiction? I think this would mean an incredible advancement for human life as we know it. The ability to invent and create alternate fuel sources. No more offshore drilling disasters. No more cleaning up beaches. Think of the impact this could have on disease prevention. We are human beings of course, so there will also be the temptation to pervert this type of technology for financial gain and/or terror. What could the ability to play God do to the psyche of a malevolent, tyrannical leader? What if Hitler had the A-Bomb?

But that is really the question, isn’t it? Playing God. The ethical and moral considerations on something like this are off the charts. Can it even be governed? It was interesting to hear Venter discuss his findings in the TED video (I have attached the link below in case you want to listen). He uses terms like Evolution and Design in the same breath. In fact, more often than not, Ventor speaks about designing and creating. These acts of course pre-dispose that there is someone to do the designing. If we break down what his team is doing – at least as I understand it – they are taking something designed, using an intelligence (the human intellect) to alter this design, and them plugging it back into nature in an intentional and organized manner. Nothing here really gives me any reason to conjecture that Venter and his team are able to play God. They are simply taking something out of nature, copying it, altering it, and re-introducing it back into the world.

If he does pull off a new creation, good or bad, this would be immense. But we need to keep in mind that everything we use to manipulate our biological world was here for us to begin with already. We split the atom, but the atom was already around; we just discovered it, and then abused it. The Institute for Genomic Research is trying to create artificial biological life forms, but they would still be life forms made up of a combination of what was already here + the human intellect. The bigger question I think would not be “have we become our own gods?”, but rather, “how will we use the intellect and technology that the real God has allowed us to possess?” How we decide to play out this scenario will demonstrate whether or not we are worthy of this power. Let’s hope that God is more than just a fleeting thought in the minds of those who wield this technological sword. I would sleep a little better at night, at least, if the people piloting that boat were submitting to an intelligence greater than our own. The stakes are bigger now, the bar has been raised.

http://www.ted.com/talks/craig_venter_is_on_the_verge_of_creating_synthetic_life.html

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