Why I love Religion because I love Jesus

This video has been going viral and I can see why.

I've heard the "Christianity isn't a religion, it's a faith" line over and over again as well as the "I don't know about Christianity, but Jesus seems pretty cool", or the "it's about relationship, not rules" mentality that is prevalent amongst younger Christians.  I like these things as tools to opening up religious discussion by dispelling preconceived notions about Jesus and who he is and what he taught.  However, they are also a bit disingenuous.

I believe what is being done in this viral video is a classic case of a straw man argument.  What is being built up and attacked is a rather simplified and slanted view of religion.  I believe what is being addressed isn't religion, per se, but false religion.  Come to James 1:26-27 and see what he has to say on this topic:

26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Contrary to what the video states, there does appear to be religion that the Father (and thereby Jesus) accepts and loves.  Religion, as is defined in the video, is self righteous, hypocritical, and self serving.  He isn't wrong in saying Jesus hates these things, but it is a misrepresentation or misconception of what religion, as God has designed it, truly is.

The passage from James reflects the larger passage in Isaiah 1:10-17:

10 Hear the word of the LORD,
   you rulers of Sodom;
listen to the instruction of our God,
   you people of Gomorrah!
11 “The multitude of your sacrifices—
   what are they to me?” says the LORD.
“I have more than enough of burnt offerings,
   of rams and the fat of fattened animals;
I have no pleasure
   in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.
12 When you come to appear before me,
   who has asked this of you,
   this trampling of my courts?
13 Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
   Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—
   I cannot bear your worthless assemblies.
14 Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals
   I hate with all my being.
They have become a burden to me;
   I am weary of bearing them.
15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,
   I hide my eyes from you;
even when you offer many prayers,
   I am not listening.
   Your hands are full of blood!

 16 Wash and make yourselves clean.
   Take your evil deeds out of my sight;
   stop doing wrong.
17 Learn to do right; seek justice.
   Defend the oppressed.[a]
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
   plead the case of the widow.

Again, we see here two forms of religion, one God rejects and one he accepts.  What is religion that is acceptable to God?  Nothing short of the obedience of his commands and his laws.  To seek justice, correct oppression, defend the orphan and care for the widow and as James puts it "keep oneself from being polluted by the world" are all things commanded by God in his law (Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Leviticus, Deuteronomy).  We must make the fundamental distinction between what we call religion and what God calls religion before we can say "Jesus hates religion" with such candor as this video does.

Jesus doesn't hate religion.  He hates its pollution.  We do this every time we make a ritual more about us and the benefit we receive rather than true worship of Christ.  If our obedience is out of fear for our own social status or reputation in the community or is grounded in our own moral aggrandizement before God, we have polluted religion.  The sole purpose behind religion is to spread God's glory through the Earth by the self-transforming power of the Spirit into images of God filled with and reflecting his glory.  God must be glorified for religion to be true.  And no one has glorified the Father more than the Son.  No one has more fully embodied his glory and his image than Jesus.

Jesus didn't come to abolish religion either.  The religion given to the Israelites by God at Sinai had been polluted, however there is no reason to throw the baby out with the bathwater.  The Law wasn't the problem, it was the pollution of the sinful nature, however "what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit." (Romans 8:3-4)

Jesus understood this, and condemned sin in sinful man and rather than abolish the law, he fulfilled it's requirements for us.  Jesus redeemed religion by redeeming humanity.  However, just because Jesus fulfilled the Law does NOT mean religion and faithful obedience has been done away with.  Just the opposite, as now that religion has been redeemed and that we have been empowered to obey more than ever, how much more are we expected to obey out of love?Jesus equates loving him with obeying his commands so we deceive ourselves if we tell people Christianity is not a religion with rules and moral precepts.  The only thing is that these rules and precepts aren't what we'd expect them to be.  Everyone knows when you go to church that you expect to be exhorted and convicted for half an hour to an hour on the right thing to do, how to live your life, and all your moral failures.  The message of the cross, however, states that you cannot do these things on your own without Jesus.  The message of grace gives us the power to try, the room to fail and the strength to get right back up and try again.  Our goal is no longer to fulfill the requirements of the law to save our souls from Sheol, but only to glorify God through our humble obedience.

Kevin DeYoung also makes comments in response to this video on the "religiousness" of Jesus:

Jesus was a Jew. He went to services at the synagogue. He observed Jewish holy days. He did not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets, but to fulfill them (Matt. 5:17). He founded the church (Matt. 16:18). He established church discipline (Matt. 18:15-20). He instituted a ritual meal (Matt. 26:26-28). He told his disciples to baptize people and to teach others to obey everything he commanded (Matt. 28:19-20). He insisted that people believe in him and believe certain things about him (John 3:16-18; 8:24). If religion is characterized by doctrine, commands, rituals, and structure, then Jesus is not your go-to guy for hating religion.

(Source: http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2012/01/13/does-jesus-hate-religion-kinda-sorta-not-really/ )

To summarize, Jesus hated not religion, but the sinful expression of it by sinful men.  What he did, then, was to take care of the sin in sinful man.  The Law was only instituted to make sin in sinful man all the more evident, not to cure sin (else there would be no need for Christ to die in the way he did).  Through Christ we have the power for a godly life, now more than ever.  Through Christ are we able to keep the law and all of it's commandments summed up in "Love God and love your neighbor".  Through Christ is true religion possible because only through Christ has grace been given before we even did a thing.  To those who dislike religious rule-following are rebelling against legalism, not religion.  To those who say "It's about relationship with Jesus, not rules" are marketing a view of Christianity that can be seen as false advertising.  Jesus is clear about the cost of being a disciple and the discipline it takes to get better.  Jesus calls the sick, not the righteous, not because he likes to hang out with sick people, but because he wants to help them get better.  He has prescribed a daily regimen of prayer, Bible Study, fellowship, preaching, teaching, evangelism and communion, but much like rehabilitation therapy, they only work if we make sure to keep at it.  Religion has its place and Jesus is at the center of it all.  Jesus doesn't hate religion, he prescribes it and he helps us to do it.  I daresay Jesus loves religion and because I love Jesus, so do I.

If you find this helpful, feel free to repost and share!

The Secret to the Sinless life

Since I became a Christian, I've always believed that sin was an inevitable part of Christian life.  Others have suggested the same, that no matter how hard you try, you aren't going to stop sinning.  However, I've realized there is a difference between impossible and hard to do.  A holy life is possible through Christ alone, but its so  much work I think people just gave up trying, but the Scriptures imply to me it is completely possible in Christ.  If Jesus, being fully human, could lead a sinless life though tempted by Satan, why isn't it possible for me if the same Spirit which lives in Christ lives in me as well?  Yes, Jesus was also fully God, but surely a sinless life can't only be accomplished by fully Man/fully God hybrids?  If that were the case, God could have saved himself a lot of trouble by just making Man/God hybrids instead of just Man.  I feel like people point that out just to give themselves excuse for their sinning (just like I once did).

Here's the hard reality.  If you believe
1) You have been washed by the blood of Christ and are a new Creation in him, the old is gone and the new has come. (2 Cor 5:17)
2) "No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God." (1 Jn 3:9)
3)We have died to sin through being baptized into Christ's death and are made alive in Christ's resurrection (Rom 6)
4) "His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires."(2 Peter 1:3-4)

Then there is no excuse for sinning.  Plain and simple.

You might say, "But we're still suffering from the residual effects from the Fall" but Christ has picked you up.  Or you could say "We're still fleshly and are awaiting our spiritual bodies", but Christ, even in his flesh, did not sin.  I for one have run out of excuses for myself.  Should I appear tomorrow before the mercy seat, I want something more to tell Christ than excuses for why I didn't do this or why I did that.  I want to be able to tell Him, "Lord I studied your Word and I tried my best and by your help I have overcome."

Now God is gracious and knows you aren't going to get it right right away, but if God were to come to me and say "John, you've been telling me you are going to start a more consistent prayer life for 7 years now and every year its been a new thing that's come up so you 'Don't have enough time' or 'never got around to it' or it just 'slipped your mind'.  I've been patient and faithful to you, but I'm growing tired of your empty vows to me.  I love you, but you have not committed yourself to me like you have said.  Don't you think its about time?"  There is only so long that God will let you use the training wheels, but eventually you'll need to learn how to ride.

Personally, it wasn't because I was afraid of failing or to scared to try this "sinless life", I just didn't think it was possible or that I could do it.  Recently, though, I began to question my feelings of powerlessness over sin.  The more I read the scriptures the more evident it seems that sin is not an inevitable and that I CAN do something about it!  Just like riding a bike, I was never meant to always be in a state of riding a bit, wobbling, and falling.  I was meant to ride proficiently without falling (and maybe even learn a few tricks)!  However, living a sinless life is impossible to teach yourself and doing it on your own willpower results in failure.  So what is the secret?

We must look at the only human to have ever lived a sinless life, Jesus Christ, for the answer.  Actually, he is the answer.  Those who are in Christ are new creations capable of living sinless lives.  Those whom God gives knowledge of Christ have everything they need for holy and sinless lives.  Christ is the key to transforming our hearts and minds and escaping the corruption of this world.  But Christ isn't magic.  Being in relationship with him doesn't instantly transform you from sinner to saint anymore than being in a relationship with Babe Ruth turns you from coach potato to star athlete.  However, Christ gives you access to his power over sin and death through the giving of his Holy Spirit as your counselor and adviser, your coach and trainer if you will.  However, you must put these resources to good use and apply what they say!  Who has ever heard of hiring a personal trainer and disregarding all their advice and commands?

Becoming a Christian is not for the spiritually lazy or for those who just want an easy way out (of Hell).  Becoming a doctor is hard work and lots of studying.  Becoming a star athlete takes time and dedication.  Living a sinless life is no different.  Just as we make excuses for not eating right or exercising properly, we often make (the same) excuses for not having our spiritual lives in top shape.  However, your spiritual life is of the utmost importance "for physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come." (1 Timothy 4:8)  Being a disciple takes discipline and being holy requires the Holy Spirit.

I want to encourage you if you once thought like I did that a sinless life was just an ideal and was unrealistic.  I want to tell you it is completely possible and that everyone can do it.  I mean everyone for Christ turns away no disciple who wants to learn from him and commit their lives to learning his ways and walking in them.  Such is the path to salvation that so few find because it looks like hard work (because it is).  However, those who find themselves at the end of the path after a long and arduous race will find it the most rewarding experience (as most often is the case when we accomplish difficult tasks).

I want to touch upon something I said earlier.  I said that there was no excuse for sin, and this is true.  We must all face the reality of our sin instead of trying to hide behind our excuses.  However, this is not to say that there is no grace for sin.  Under the Law, those who sinned died with few notable exceptions made by God.  Consequently those who try and live a sinless life by the law will die by the law.  Just picture trying to learn how to ride a bike on a tightrope situated over an active volcano.  There is no mercy if you fall.  But grace gives you a safe place to grow.  Only under grace can we slowly come to realize that the chains we have been bound with since birth have been removed by Christ.  Under grace and the watchful eye of God can we slowly start to realize how free we are to move about. 

However, when bondage is all you've known, a life of freedom is scary and the temptation remains to put the shackles back on because at least is was a life you knew and were familiar with.  Take the Israelites wondering in the desert for 40 years, grumbling the whole time about how they wished they were back in Egypt as slaves.  So to can we be tempted to sin, but we must realize the promised land is much better than the place of bondage.  It is faith in God that he will guide you that gets you through any uncertainty and temptation to go back to your familiar chains.  Remember the promises, and keep your eyes on Christ, and the impossible becomes possible (but you still must step out of the boat, nevermind the raging sea).

These are some of the foundations for living a sinless life.  In the next part, Taking Part in the Life of the Trinity, I will explore some of the core traits and qualities that lead to holy and productive lives.