What is religion to you? If you were to be called religious, would you flinch as if you were just punched in the gut or would it be a compliment to you and warmly accepted with gratitude? Both inside and outside the church many people have strong opinions about what religion is and whether it's the disease or the cure.
Doing a simple google search on religion I've come to the conclusion that religion is inspired by Satan, is man's attempt to be right with God, leads to pride and despair and is just flatout disgusting. Deepak Chopra has this to say about religion: "Religion is confining and imprisoning and toxic..." Sigmund Freud said that religion is an illusion. George Carlin, in good ol' George Carlin fashion stated that religion is bullshit. If you look around and listen to sermons you'll find that a lot of pastors have mixed feelings about religion. You can find sermons to fit your fancy. When I think of anti-religion, Mark Driscoll comes to mind.
Mark Driscoll is the pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle and he has quite a bit to say about religion. If you jump on youtube and check him out you'll find over a hundred sermons by him. Some of the sermons have titles such as: "How do I fight religion?" "Jesus vs. religion", "hard and soft religion" (both being bad), etc. He absolutely hates religion and those aren't my words those are his. Now I really like Mark Driscoll. Even though we don't agree on some things (he's a Calvinist, I am not) I really like his sermon style and I'm sure that if I'm up in heaven and my seat (cause we'll have seats in heaven) is by Mr. Driscolls, I'm sure we'll have a blast. However, we, as Christians, don't base what we believe on the words of man, we base it on the divinely inspired word of God and so we go to The Bible.
The word religious is thrēskos which means fearing or worshipping God. It can also mean trembling. From thrēskos we get the word thrēskeia or religion. thrēskeia means religious worship especially external worship or that which consists of ceremonies. It can also mean discipline. Thrēskeia is found four places in the Bible, Acts 26:5, Colossians 2:18, James 1:26 and 1:27. thrēskos is only found once in The Bible and that's in James 1:26. Act and Colossians don't really help with this discussion, but James does so we'll go to there.
James 1:26 says: If anyone thinks he is religious, without controlling his tongue but deceiving his heart, his religion is useless. 27 Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world (NIV). Every version is basically the same. If ya wanna use the King James or any other version be my guest but it's not going to be much different then the NIV in this case.
I love these verses. James would have been quite the person to be around. I think it would be hard to be around him, cause his writing suggests that he wouldn't hold anything back. James would probably unashamedly point out things in my life that are probably not bearing any fruit and he'd most likely call me a hypocrite without even thinking twice. That's why, to me, James is both refreshing and bittersweet at the same time. Reminds me of a father a little.
No where else in The Bible do we get such a clear definition of religion. The bible is pretty quiet about the subject of religion except for the book of James. Perhaps because God knew that James was going to address religion in this manner and no more verses would be necessary. So what can we get from these verse?
James says there are two types of religious people, people with true religion and people with useless religion or you could say people without any religion whatsoever. True religion, that is pleasing to God is composed of watching your tongue, looking after orphans and widows, and keeping oneself unstained by the world. Someone once said that True religion is keeping one's heart clean and hands dirty - in human service.
James is saying that religion is a good thing and it's something that we should strive after cause it's pleasing before the eyes of God. In fact, when we care for orphans and widows it's as if we are doing it to Jesus. "And the King will answer them, 'I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me." Matthew 25:40 We should desire to be religious because Jesus was religious, in fact he was the most religious person ever. No one did a better job of caring for orphans and widows, both in life (Matthew 18:6, Mark 9:42 and Like 17:2) and in death than Jesus did. Who among us is more unstained than Jesus. He was the sinless one. He is our ultimate model in life and is what our demonstrations of religion should look like.
It's seem to me that when it comes to religion we as a church body get our definition of what religion is more from culture and less from The Bible. Culture says that we don't need religion, we need relationship or even no religion at all. The Bible says that religion and relationship if not one in the same overlap and compliment each other. Religion in The Bible never claims to get you to heaven, it deals more with people. It's horizontal and then it's vertical. We care for others and because it ravishes God's heart, He cares about it. God is all about religion and so should we. That's what the great commission is all about. We as Christians have cast our lot with Christ and because of that we need to be religious.
Nietzsche said "After coming into contact with a religious man I always feel I must wash my hands." I really like that. Not for the reason that Nietzsche means it, but because human service/religion is a dirty thing. To me, the most rewarding things in life are dirty ordeals.
Religion is not disgusting, toxic or imprisoning. It isn't inspired by Satan and it isn't our attempt to get right with God. It isn't bullshit and it doesn't lead to pride and despair. On the contrary, the fruits of religion are probably similar to the fruits of the spirit; love, joy peace patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control. True religion is the result of knowing a True God and wanting to worship Him everywhere we go. There is nothing wrong with religion. It's beautiful in the eyes of God and I would argue that the reason we have global problems such as poverty and war is because there isn't enough true religion out there.
So, in closing, strive to be religious, try to be more like Christ. True religion is sinless. Someone once said that the world doesn't need a definition of religion as much as as it needs a demonstration. The whole reason I wrote this was not so that I could define what religion was, The Bible does a great job at that, but to motivate people to become demonstrations of true religion.
~The End
When you lift up your hands in prayer, I will refuse to look at you; even if you offer countless prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood. "Wash yourselves. Cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil. Learn to do what is good. Seek justice. Aid the oppressed. Defend the rights of the fatherless. Plead the widow's cause. Come let us discuss this," says the Lord. Isaiah 1:15-18
Some quotes on religion:
I do not know how philosophers may ultimately define religion; but from Micah to James it has been defined as service to one's fellow men rendered by following the great rule of justice and mercy, of wisdom and righteousness. ~Theodore Roosevelt
It is in our lives and not our words that our religion must be read. ~Thomas Jefferson
I would not give much for your religion unless it can be seen. Lamps do not talk, but they do shine. ~ C.H. Spurgeon
Religion is a soul with its allegiance fixed, moving about the common streets with the stamp and seal of forever on it. ~Paul E. Scherer
No religion is a true religion that does not make men tingle to their finger tips with a sense of infinite hazard. ~William Ernest Hocking
Christianity is the only true and perfect religion. ~ Benjamin Rush
Religion, in its purity, is not so much a pursuit as a temper; or rather it is a temper, leading to the pursuit of all that is high and holy. Its foundation is faith; its action, works; its temper, holiness; its aim, obedience to God in improvement of self and benevolence to men. ~Tryon Edwards.
Without Religion this World would be Something not fit to be mentioned in polite Company, I mean Hell. ~ John Adams
A man without religion is like a beast without a bridle. ~ Latin Proverb
Religion is the dominion of the soul. It is the hope of life, and the anchor of safety, the deliverence of the soul. ~Napoleon Bonaparte
While just government protects all in their religious rites, true religion affords government its surest support. ~George Washington
"People need religion. It's a vehicle for a moral tradition. A crucial role. Nothing can take its place." ~Irving Kristol
Religion is not what you will get after reading all the scriptures of the world. It is not really what is grasped by the grain. It is a heart grasp. ~Gandhi
You may depend upon it, religion is, in its essence, the most gentlemanly thing in the world. It will alone gentilize, if unmixed with can't; and I know nothing else that will, alone. ~Samuel Taylor Coleridge
