I Hate Religion

I hate religion. Quite vehemently.

Religion keeps you in bondage. You can't enjoy life, or be free. There's so many rules and regulations. You're constantly attempting to not screw up, or make mistakes. It pressures you to be perfect, otherwise you suffer consequences, and risk people not loving you and turning their backs on you.

A Conversation About Religion With Jesus

There's a Christian film entitled, “Another Perfect Stranger.” 

In the film Jesus is talking to a young woman during a plane ride. In their conversation they talk a lot about how they hate religion and specifically what they hate about it.

The young woman, Sarah, shares with Jesus about her parents’ belief in God and how she never bought into the whole “religion thing.” She had been talking to her parents about going away for college one night, and her parents wanted her to be firm in her faith before leaving home, but it turned out that it was never real to her, but as a kid, more of a social thing.

Jesus makes the statement, “Religion always messes everything up. I hate religion. Religion keeps people from living their life to the fullest. It makes some people feel guilty about things they shouldn't feel guilty about, and other people worry about things they shouldn't worry about.”

He mentions how people spend so much time, effort and energy striving to please a higher power to no avail.

Jesus vs. Religion

When people are so focused on appeasing a higher power or making it into heaven by following set rules or expectations, they are totally unable to just live life, and simply enjoy all the beautiful things in life because they’re so uptight and legalistic.

I’m so glad that there is freedom in Christ, and that we can actually enjoy life to the fullest, in Him. Thank God for Jesus.

Jesus - living for Jesus and giving Him your life is so much better than following some rules. Knowing that
faith pleases Him, and that we don't have to do anything to earn His love or approval, is so liberating.

We're not bond, but free to live for Christ. Not free to do whatever we want, but free to live for Him, live holy, and allow Him to work in us.

It’s such a beautiful thing when Jesus changes you, instead of you trying to follow rules to change yourself, or conform to people’s expectations. When He does it, it’s real.

I think some people are totally appalled by us who are supposed to be representing Christ and living for Him because of the way we may be living - maybe looking on it doesn't seem like it’s real to us, or maybe to them we don't have a life outside of work and church.

Maybe we don’t actually have any clean fun, such as refusing to go to a theme park with friends because worldly music is being played, or maybe we don’t attend birthday parties just for the possibility of something happening that does not align with the Bible.

Everything ultimately goes back to your relationship with Jesus. Out of your relationship with Him we are not rigid, or unapproachable, and we don’t have to worry about dos and donts because as we get to know Him things in our life that aren’t like Him start to fall off, and we are free and not bond.

Living this Christian life is actually exciting and fulfilling because we get to serve Him in a variety of different ways and walk in our God-given purpose.

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I wanna share a few statements that spoken word poet, Jefferson Bethke, in his “Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus” poem, asserts:

“Religion is like spraying perfume on a casket.”

“Religion might preach grace, but another thing they practice.” 

“The problem with religion is that it never gets to the core. It’s just behavior modification, like a long list of chores.” 

“Jesus and religion are on opposite spectrums. You see one’s the work of God, but one’s a man made invention. One is the cure, but the other’s the infection.”

“Religion says do. Jesus says done. Religion says slave. Jesus says son. Religion puts you in bondage, while Jesus sets you free. Religion makes you blind, but Jesus makes you see.”

Jesus completely trumps Religion. Jesus > Religion.

So yes, I hate religion, but I love Jesus. He sets me free, and allows me to live a life of freedom. Freedom that can only be found in Him.

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Thank you for reading. Have a blessed week.


*image found through google*