Religion, Oppresses The Soul!

 

The world has religion and men started religion. Being a Christian is NOT a religion, Christianity IS a religion, just like Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Mormon, or Judaism. Did you know that Wicca is considered a religion? How about Neo-Paganism? Something to think about!

When Jesus called people to follow Him, He said, whoever wants to be my disciple must take up his cross daily and follow Him.

Luke 9:23-25

"Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?"

Being a Christian or a follower of Christ is a lifestyle! It's an everyday self-denial and death to the flesh relationship with the risen King! If you practice a religion with its rituals and ceremonial traditions it will lead you into deception and oppression of your soul, (mind, body, and spirit).

Like the Pharisees in Jesus day, being religious will lead you to hypocrisy, erroneous thinking, hard heartedness, jealousy, envy, and the worst of all, PRIDE!   

Jesus told the Pharisees about themselves in Matthew 23:15, 27-28

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves."

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness."

The same thing is happening right now in religious institutions worldwide! And the sad thing is, those who are the hypocrites, hirelings, and modern-day Pharisees are reading these same scriptures every Sunday, and nobody sees them for who and what they are! Would anybody really care if they were exposed?

This is why it's so important for believers to read the bible FOR THEMSELVES, and not depend on any man or woman to give them the truth. Two thousand years ago the Bereans in the bible SEARCHED the scriptures to see IF what Paul the apostle of Jesus said was true! So how much more should we be searching the scriptures, praying, fasting and calling on God for revelation and guidance in these last days!

Acts 17:10-11

"Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so."

It's beyond time to stop just hearing the word, it's time TO DO WHAT IT SAYS! You will not receive the blessings and promises of God if you don't obey the teachings of Jesus! The traditions of men will keep your soul oppressed and cause you to THINK that you are in right standing with God just because you attend services in a church building and sing a few songs! But what did Jesus say?

Matthew 15:7-9

"Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”

Does anybody want to admit to themselves that they are hypocrites? I used to be a hypocrite myself! Going to church, singing songs, saying amen, etc.... but then I went out partying, getting drunk, sleeping around, and still calling myself a Christian, I didn't have a real relationship with Jesus, and I didn't know who God really was!

It's time to stop being religious and start living the daily lifestyle of a biblical Christian, a disciple of Jesus, only when we do that, will we begin to see the glory, power and grace of God in our lives!

In The Lord's Army!

Tyrone