If you have not seen this from Jefferson Bethke we are sharing it again. If you have seen it, then it's always worth watching again. Share this with the people who tell you they don't like religion.
I was with a group feeding homeless people on Christmas morning last month and found mixed responses from each person I spoke with. Very few denied God, but there were a few who did not want to hear about religion. As I spoke with one man, he told me how he had just been released from jail, how he ruined his life, but while in prison he found God. He went on to tell me how he read that Bible feverishly every single day while he sat in solitude. Other volunteers didn't want to be around him, due to certain tattoos he had, saying that he was a dangerous person. Lucky for me, I've never listened much to what other people say, especially religious people. I, instead, found a man eager and willing to follow God regardless of what life had done to him in his past or what life may do in the future. He just wanted a second chance to start over. I was upset with myself for not having anything to give him other than prayer, but then again maybe that is all I was supposed to give. He didn't want religion, but he confessed that he desired to do God's work to save people from going down the path he was once on. I almost told him to come live with me, but that is sometimes tougher with a wife and a small apartment. I have learned to never regret what I have or don't have to give, regret isn't from God. Instead I give all that is in me at that very moment because there is no better gift than the present. I know that this former convict who became a follower of Jesus would go on and fulfill his calling for God. I know that God does not see us for who we used to be, we are all guilty, and we are now made new with a future that will glorify a King.
The same is true with Christianity. Christianity is much more than a set of beliefs used to worship God. Christianity is about a person, and his name is Jesus.
Religion breeds wars. Jesus breeds love. Religion says try harder. Christianity says stop trying. Religion says reach up to God. Christianity says God reaches down to us. This is why another post about religion versus Jesus is necessary. We need to be reminded. Often. While Christianity is a religion on paper, it is much more than a religion in reality.
Grace is scandalous. It’s like a wild animal that can’t be tamed. Except the animal is full of love, mercy, and forgiveness, not huge claws, sharp teeth, and a big appetite. But religion doesn’t care. It just sees something uncontrollable. And religion doesn’t deal with uncontrollable. It’s too dangerous. Even if the uncontrollable is God himself. Curated from 9 Reasons Jesus Hates Religion (And You Should Too).
