Religion vs Reality

This is an excerpt from something I wrote a number of years ago, and I wanted to revise and post it here because it still speaks to me today.

What do most people mean when they use the term “Religion” in our culture? Webster’s dictionary says that the term Religious comes from a Latin word “Religare” which means “to Bind up, restrain, or tie back”. Religion is simply keeping rules or codes of behavior to try to be Holy or at least keep up the appearance of being Holy. It is being bound up with traditions and man-made rules that force upon us a pattern of how we should behave and act.

Jesus was likely the most anti-Religious man who ever walked the face of the Earth. On nearly every page of the gospels, we find him confronting those who were the “Religious” folks of his day.

Matthew 23:25-28.
25 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. 27 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! 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. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.

Jesus also called these rules and teachings that the Pharisees and teachers of the law were keeping “Traditions of men”. Jesus was showing them that their “Religion” wasn’t working for them, it wasn’t resulting in a changed life. Paul said it this way in 2 Timothy 3:5
“having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.”
These people had a form, a shadow, an appearance of godliness, but if you probed deeper into their lives, there was no substance or reality to it. You can try as hard as you like to keep certain rules and practice your “Religion”, but unless it results in true Holiness, it is worthless.

“We are not seeking an antidote that deals with the effects but not the cause of our human condition. We are seeking the Living God. For true holiness does not come from following rules; it comes from following Christ.” Quoted from Francis Frangipane’s book “Holiness, truth, and the presence of God”

To follow Christ means entering the narrow gate.
Matthew 7:13,14
13 "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Another translation says, “difficult is the way that leads to life”. It won’t be easy to find truth and reality, but God never said it would be easy. It is a life of hardship, testing, and trouble, but it will be worth it, because it leads to true life. So, how do we enter into the narrow gate? How do we find life? What is “Real”? The cry of my heart is, “I am tired of Religion, I want something real. I want the power of God in my life, I want to experience his presence, I want more of him.” If that is the longing of your heart as well, I invite you to come, “Taste and see that the Lord is good”. Come, He is calling you to the deeper life in him. If you are hungry for more of God, seek him with all your heart and you will find him.

A little story: While driving in the car on the way home from meeting me in town one day, my wife was pondering and praying about the church we were attending at the time and heard the words "Whitewashed tombs" in her head. But, she argued - they're such nice people! The words just resounded repeatedly in her head  "Whitewashed tombs".

When we or others become religious, we may try to be nice to each other - but that is only external. It is easy to keep up appearances, and be nice to others once a week. However, let's be honest - how do we behave when we are confronted, or when someone disagrees with us? That's when the real self comes out, isn't it? God has been dealing with me personally over the last year and a half regarding getting the inside of my cup clean. It has been a season of great fire, and intense dealings of God - but it has been worth it. There is nothing that can replace the joy of having God be the center of your universe, and having a heart that burns with devotion for God, pure and untainted by the pursuits of the world.