Does everyone need to “get religion”? Some say, “Yes.” But I disagree.
“Now hold on for just a minute! How can you say that? Isn’t Christianity a religion?”
In one sense, yes. Christianity presents a set of beliefs about the nature and worship of God.
But some have taken Jesus’ teachings and turned them into self-centered religious systems. Sadly, organized religions often ignore a basic truth of the Gospel (good news) of Jesus Christ.
A simple reading of the New Testament makes it clear that one goal of the Gospel is to help us make peace with God. For us to become God’s friends. To re-establish the relationship God had with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Not to turn us into religious rule-keepers.
That’s a point Timothy Keller makes in his book “The Prodigal God.” Keller notes that most religions operate on the principle “I obey, therefore I am accepted.” But the gospel operates on the principle, “I am accepted through what Jesus Christ has done, therefore I obey.”
Keller says, “Religion isn’t just a little different from the gospel; it is diametrically opposed.”
In the New Testament story of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15), Jesus shows us two basic ways people try to make themselves and the world work. Two different ways they try to relate to God.
One son rejects his father and chooses a path of self-indulgence. He lives for pleasure.
This son represents all who rebel against God. The ones most religions call “sinners.”
The other son in the story chooses a path of moral conformity. He focuses on keeping the rules. He tries to be very good. He obeys his father but doesn’t love or understand his father.
This son represents those who believe that, by keeping a religion’s rules, God will accept them. In fact, they believe he owes them for their obedience and loyalty.
Both groups think they are the only ones who are right. That if everyone would just live like them, we would all be happy. We would all get along.
But Jesus’ message to them is “You are both wrong. You are both lost and far from God.”
The Gospel declares that God is a loving, merciful father. He is waiting for the rebels to come to their senses, to come home and be restored to the family.
But he is also waiting for the “good” person to realize that God seeks not rule-keepers but sons and daughters. He wants children who delight to obey because they are loved and accepted.
Most religions are based on fear. They say, “Do these things or else you will be punished.”
But the gospel is based on love. It says, “For God so LOVED the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” It adds, “How great is the LOVE the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God.”
The mistake many people make is to think the Gospel calls them to be a good person—a rule-keeper—and that God is keeping score. After a while, they discover God isn’t very real to them. Faith becomes drudgery instead of a delight. They wonder if they’ll ever be “good enough.”
That kind of religion cannot transform your life. It doesn’t renew your life. But the gospel transforms and renews. Once you understand it, not only is your whole life re-oriented around a new set of principles—God becomes present in a way that transforms you from the inside out!
That explains the difference between a person who “gets religion” and a Christ-follower.
To a Christ-follower, all of life is worship. What Jesus wants is most important. John the Baptist summarized this mindset best when he said, “He must increase; but I must decrease.”
So instead of “getting religion,” follow Jesus. Believe in him and you will be a child of God.
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