Yes. This message bears repeating.
Religion Enslaves!
Religion concocts false ideas of deity, ideas orchestrated not by God but by vain imaginings.
Years ago, a philosopher of note by the name of Paul Tillich, announced that religion is best defined as ultimate concern, broading the definition from that which one would expect to find in temples, mosques, cathedrals, and other dully established places of worship. But, for today I wish merely to make a commentary on that which is our general understanding of what constitutes religion.
Oxford Dictionary defines religion as the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods. 2 a particular system of faith and worship. 3 a pursuit or interest followed with devotion.
— ORIGIN originally in the sense life under monastic vows: from Latin religio ‘obligation, reverence’.
Webster Unabridged [a dictionary that has biblical roots] defines religion as:
... piety, conscienticiousness, scrupulousness, ...1) the belief in a divine or supernatural power or powers to be obeyed, and worshiped as creator(s)and ruler(s) of the universe. 2) expression of this belief in conduct and ritual. 3) any system of belief involving a code of ethics and a philosophy; as the Christian religion, the Buddhist religion; etc. (b) loosely any system of beliefs, practices, ethical values, etc. resembling, suggestive of, or likened to such a system; as humanism is his religion. 4)a state of mind or way of life expressing love for and trust in God, and one's will and effort to act according to the will of God, especially within the monastic order or community; as he achieved religion. 5)any object of concientious regard and pursuit as; cleanliness was a religion to him. 6) a. the practice of religious observances and rites; b. religious rites. 7) a religious order or state; as a monastery. [Obj.] to experience religion; to have a personal conscious evidence of the favor of God in the forgiveness of sin and change of heart; to be converted. [colloquism] to get religioun, to become religious; to be converted. [colloquism] to profess religion; (a) to unite publically with a church; (b) to take monastic vows.
Wow! That's a mouth full.
Please understand at this point that when I say, "Religion enslaves," I am not speaking of the life-giving power of relationship found with Jesus Christ. I am not talking about that because true relationship with God through Christ Jesus is not religion. The appeal heralded through the ages, our appeal, is quite straight forward. It is a call for right relationship with God. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved."
Jesus did not come to bring "religion" to the world. Indeed, Jesus had his greatest difficulties on earth with highly "religious" people. Therefore, that slavery of which I refer, that of religiosity or religious adherence, has nothing to do with the God of the Bible, Who is the Author and Finisher of our faith.
Instead, I call your attention to what can happen in religious circles. Just take a look at Colossians 2:8 – 10. That passage warns,
"Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power."
"Religion" embodies the tradition of men, those manmade arrangements characteristic of all societies, arrangements birthed from slavish preoccupation with works, having all the social trappings that come from such arrangements--its power players, its hierarchy with rules of acceptability and forced conformity slavishly driving people into a false sense of rightness through people pleasing.
"Religiosity" itself exists wherever people "soul-ish-ly" control others.
That demonic spirit of control wrenches the life of people caught in all types of religions all over the world including here in the United States.
Characteristic of the non-Holy Spirit-Filled, non-self-governing soul, found in the religious person is the failure to receive and then exercise the freedom that only Christ Jesus can give. Certainly, such an individual becomes a captive of opportunists who easily spot the absence of any God-given realization of self-worth. The naïve are devoid of any true revelation of their inherent worth as bearers of the image of God.
Evidence of religious enslavement proves commonplace among humanly manufactured faith systems, including those of a philosophical bent often encountered among academic converts to humanism, secular or otherwise. Those who ascend to power in those settings do so through the exercise of kidd glove clad, iron fist demands for pious "hero worship" just like from followers of diety in any other religious order. But, what makes this later setting most insiduous is the rhetoric of objectivity masking its brutal grip on how folks define progress and acceptable action in the future.
So, God warns us. And, we should pay attention to His warning. Because to not heed this warning spells adverse consequences in our individual lives and for the life of our nation at-large.
Indeed, when We the People lose sight of God, we lose sight of self-governance. When we do not govern our individual selves---when we fail to have self control which is indeed a fruit of the Holy Spirit, we open ourselves up to the dictates of tyrants on a personal level; and, in the aggregate, we open ourselves up to dictatorship, that if left unchecked leads to totalitarianism.
The spiritually immature, materially earth-bound individual, who hears manmade distortions, becomes addicted to words intended to level one's gaze to the horizontal plane--looking suspiciously at other people. Once eyes are trapped in that gaze, that hearer who now resonates with what has been said then becomes even more and more convinced that his earthly state is not a consequence of the quality of his own choices in this life. Instead, that gullible hearer begins to believe that some other human being is entirely responsible for his or her quality of life. I liken that hearer's reaction to that of an animal that gets angry at his own reflection not knowing that he is looking at himself. He thinks that he sees a trespasser.
With the absence of biblical literacy, many believe these distorters. Their goal is to give accusations a divinely registered sense of aura, a mystical legitimacy. Typically, the argument of the accuser hangs on a pivotal thread of one or two biblical verses without referencing biblical context. The verses themselves are true but Truth suffers from maliscious obscurity, nested in distorted reasoning. Such noise exist to the point of mockery as some seek to promote a "different" Gospel than that of Christ Jesus.
All that error feeds argument and strife.
Then, wrong messages begin to permeate, messages that say "You need Christ Plus Something Else." Messages like the prosperity philosophy which argues that God wants you rich, and all that exists really is all about you. Then there is the message of the social theology crowd, having a similar philosophical argument set up with a slightly different slant all the while reinforcing a sense of personal detachment from responsibility.
Such error in reasoning does not come from right audience with God. In fact, the real proof of audience with God emerges in stark contrast to the diabolical paranoia just described. Those who spend considerable time with God have both countenance and demeanor elevated far above such attitudes. Indeed, true audience with God ignites within a sense of divine hope, a state that can be divinely contagious when seen exercised in everyday life. The trait of which I speak is personal contentment.
Man made philosophies say we cannot know completeness. Folks, those philosophies lie!
Man made religious philosophies cannot generate contentment.
Contentment is God birthed. And, it can only come with right relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
Yes. Saints, whom the Son sets free is free indeed!In stark contrast to religion, right relationship with God through Christ Jesus sets captives free.
Freedom birthed by right knowledge of our place on this earth, our value in God's design, freedom from both captivity and captivation, and our freedom from fear of death, an acceptance of his provision, all constitute by-products of a clear understanding of the Word of God. Armed with that understanding, one is set free.
"Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is Liberty."[2Corinthians 3:17]
That is why "true" democracy [the most sophisticated system of governance on earth] only works among those who know that true freedom originates from right relationship with God and does not automatically reside within the reach of man without the God of the Holy Bible, the God made manifest as Christ Jesus, Our Redeemer and Lord, residing within.
Given the times in which we live, the question for the true follower of Jesus Christ becomes,
"How are we to respond to twisted arguments that undergird the principles of this world?"
Well, first we can take solace in the fact nothing takes God by surprise. Second, God gives a model for response in the Holy Bible. Jesus left us an answer to this problem of verbal assault.
The specific case appears in the description of what happened when the Holy Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted of the Devil. You remember this account. Here is what happened as seen in Matthew 4:1-8 of the Holy Bible:
1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.
2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.
3 The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread."
4 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple.
6 "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written:
"'He will command his angels concerning you,
and they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'"
7 Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'"
8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.
9 "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me."
10 Jesus said to him,"Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'" Holy Bible, NIV
What is interesting to note here is that for each conversational assault made by the devil, the devil used as his primary weapon single verses of scripture. In turn, Jesus responded to the use of those single verses with reference to other verses. As students of the word of God, we are to understand that scripture provides explanation for scripture. We must know the entire Bible to have available the "lamp unto our feet and the light to our path."
When verbally assaulted yet another time, Jesus responds with statements that mirrored His correct understanding of God the Father. Jesus did not respond from a sense of religion. No, not religion, but rather He responded from being in right relationship with God the Father. Right relationship with God reinforced by the reading of His written word leads to truth about God's character and as such results in a profound discernment about the Father's expectations as well as the wisdom needed in this world.
Right knowledge of God governed Jesus' behavior during the wilderness temptation. Jesus did not use His own deity to respond to the devil. Instead, Jesus relied on what was and is currently available to all of us as Holy Spirit filled believers. Jesus relied on His knowledge of the entire Word of God. Jesus relied on His relationship with God the Father and the Holy Spirit to direct His full understanding of Holy Scripture, modeling what we must do. Consequently, in the midst of temptation, Jesus' words and actions diffused the verbal assault of the Enemy.
Fellow believers, in these perplexing and often disheartening times, we are to respond as Jesus did. Jesus provides our model. Jesus alone walked this life without error. We must know all of God's Word and we must maintain right relationship with our Living God in the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.
We can and we must do as Jesus modeled through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Saints, to do otherwise, gives enemies of God reason to blaspheme His name.
As followers of Christ Jesus, we should pray in agreement with Jesus for His Kingdom to come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Independent of what others may or may not do, we owe our allegiance to the Sovereign of the universe because we know Truth.
The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.--2Corinthians 10:4-5
REMEMBER:
Truth sets captives free!
Truth has a name!
His name is JESUS CHRIST.
To know HIM, you must give your life to HIM.
To Grow in HIM, Pray for understanding THEN…
READ THE HOLY BIBLE! STUDY IT! LIVE IT! THE WHOLE BOOK IS ABOUT JESUS, FROM GENESIS TO REVELATION! INTERACT WITH GOD THROUGH PRAYER AND THE DILIGENT STUDY OF THE ENTIRE HOLY BIBLE! IT IS GOD'S LOVE LETTER TO HUMANITY SO THAT WE MAY GROW IN PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS, THE WORD INCARNATE, AS WE READ AND DO HIS WRITTEN WORD--NOT AS "RELIGIOUS" PEOPLE, BUT AS PEOPLE IN RIGHT RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD---DOING JUSTICE, LOVING MERCY, AND WALKING HUMBLY WITH HIM. YES!
MEET JESUS CHRIST IN THE BOOK!He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.--Micah 6:8
Consume the WORD of GOD as you would your food.
There is power in the WORD of God, the power needed to live victoriously!
To Live Free!
Amen!
---Livvy McDonald
P.S.
As I have said repeatedly in various venues, the key to revival is a return to diligent study of the entire Holy Bible. Saints, the Holy Bible is the only thing on earth that escaped the ravages of the Fall of Mankind unscathed.
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