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RELIGION VERSUS RELATIONSHIP
Religion is simply "a form of worship."
The only religion which God ever established was Judaism. That religion has been
so altered by man over the years, that the religion which God established does
not exist today. Therefore, all religion today is from man. Some confuse
religion with Christianity. Christianity is not a religion; it is a relationship
with God the Father through Jesus Christ the Son. God loves each and every one
of us and is reaching out to us through His Son. (Heb. 1:1,2)
Once we believe and receive the Son of
God, we are free to worship God any way we wish, within Godly parameters. James
said that if we want "religion," a form of worship which is acceptable to God,
go and take care of the orphans and widows. (James 1:27)
Jesus said, "For God did not send his
Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." (
John 3:17) Jesus Christ came to bring salvation to the unworthy, to sinners, and
it is not based upon a person's religious denomination, theology, or good works.
(1 Tim. 1:15; Isa. 64:6)
Our past life course has no bearing on
our salvation because when we receive Jesus Christ, God forgives all of our sin.
God accepts us just as we are and makes no demands for performance on us. (2 Cor.
5:17-19; Col. 2:13)
Some religious groups claim that
salvation is exclusive with them, and only those in their religion will be
saved. Truth is that God's salvation is available to all who come to Him. He
excludes no one and He doesn't deal exclusively with one group, organization, or
religion. He deals with individuals.
No religion has eternal life or
salvation to give to anyone and there is not one word in the Bible which even
implies that we can get eternal life through a religion or that we must go
through a religion to get to God. During this era of grace, salvation is
contingent on our relationship with God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son, and
nothing else.
No one will be saved and receive
eternal life without believing and receiving Jesus Christ. Jesus is the only WAY
to God, He is the only TRUTH, and He is eternal LIFE. Jesus is, "the way, the
truth, and the life." (John 14:6)
John said, "He who acknowledges the Son
has the Father also." He never said it the other way around. One cannot go
directly to the Father. (lJohn 2:23) John also said, "He who has the Son has
eternal life" (1 John 5:13)
This does not mean we don't fellowship
with our brothers in the body of Christ. The Watchtower, and now Harold Camping
tell everyone to get out of the churches. Both misapply Revelation 18:4, which
is fulfilled at the end of the Great Tribulation. We need to fellowship in
Christian churches.
Here's why:
1. God has used the Christian church
for 2,000 years to preach the gospel of Christ and call and edify His elect.
2. We grow in grace and peace and in
our relationship with the Lord and with those we will spend eternity with.
3. We edify others and are edified by
others in the body of Christ.
4. We praise our Lord by
fellowshipping, singing, and letting Him speak to us through the Word.
5. We help others in their walk in
Christ.
6. There are still many in churches who
have not been reborn by the Holy Spirit and are therefore not saved. What a
great place to reach lost souls.
Article by Dan Hall Reproduced with permission from the
November 2003 Revealer
Books by Dan Hall are available from
Reveal Ministries through our
Bookstore
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