Whatever you do,
don’t call me religious
And you might be confused
because I go to church regularly
and I talk about God
and I read my Bible
but please
don’t call me religious
Because I’m not
I am a Follower of Jesus,
the One who said,
“I am the WAY
the Truth
and the LIFE…”
not ONE of the ways
ONE of the truths
He is my LIFE
And all the religions of the world
are full of people
working their way to God
or to something other than God
While I place all my faith
with evidence
on my God who came down for me
Religion is ritual
and repetition
and redundant
My relationship
with the Lord of the Universe
is new
freeing
and vibrant
Religion constantly has its focus on
“What can God do for me?”
Relationship with God has its focus on
God
Please,
whatever you do,
don’t call me religious
for my Jesus
who took on human flesh and humanity
reserved His harshest words
for religious people
They might have looked pious on the outside
but they were not God-alive on the inside
they were dead inside
We need Jesus to cleanse us from our sin…
Uh oh, I said it,
SIN
Who wants to hear that word??
But we all know we struggle with it!
Sin, like cancer, eats away at us
And God had a plan all along
to save us from the bondage of it
He would step into our world
and make the payment for OUR sin
by sacrificing His perfect self,
unconditionally loving us
all
along
the
way
But He didn’t skimp on words
while He was here
and He wanted everyone to know
that the Son of God does not stutter
when He says,
“NO ONE comes to the Father
except through Me.”
No one
Not a single
religious
person
who is trusting in themselves being religious
to get themselves to God
For there is no good deed that wins God’s favor
No amount of charity work
or chants
or going to church
or bowing 10 times…
It has always been about God,
not what He can do for me
This is not about self-centered religion
but a God-centered life
committed to His glory
What a free
and abundant
and wonderful way
to live
Thank you, Jesus,
for setting me free of
RELIGION
~ Susie Stewart
Pass this on to everyone you know. The message is for the whole world.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
~ John 14:6 (NIV)
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
– Galatians 5:1 (NIV)
You’re hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You’re like manicured grave plots, grass clipped and the flowers bright, but six feet down it’s all rotting bones and worm-eaten flesh. People look at you and think you’re saints, but beneath the skin you’re total frauds.
– Matthew 23:27 (MSG)
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
– Romans 10:9 (NIV)
We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in His grace, freely makes us right in His sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed His life, shedding His blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when He held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for He was looking ahead and including them in what He would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate His righteousness, for He himself is fair and just, and He makes sinners right in His sight when they believe in Jesus.
– Romans 3:22-26 (NLT)
Photo by Andy Stewart
Susie Stewart 