I’ve often heard people say (and may have even said a few times myself), that Christianity is not a religion, but a relationship. There’s a lot of truth to it. This came to my mind yesterday in a big way as I read the early chapters of the Gospel of Mark.
As Jesus went about teaching, healing, and delivering hapless hordes of people, he was hounded by scribes and Pharisees who challenged him on every doctrine he taught and every act of mercy he bestowed.
When he healed a man with a withered hand, they questioned the legitimacy of healing on the Sabbath. (This was one of their biggest religious sticky wickets).
When he healed a paralytic let down through a roof by his hopeful, faith-filled friends, the religious folks questioned his assertion that he had the authority to forgive sins.
When he spent most of his time ministering to sinners, they called him a sinner and one who did miracles by the power of the devil. Or maybe they thought he was a devil himself.
Jesus, never to be intimidated by hyper-religious Jews, was ready with a Spirit-informed response each time. In every case, he ultimately revealed the hard-heartedness that led them to ask all the wrong questions, care about all the wrong problems, and miss the real intent of God’s good law. This came from a religious rigidity that blocked them from experiencing the love of God.
I believe religion has good purposes. We have only to look at the ritual aspects of Jewish law to see that attendance at feasts, making appropriate, timely animal sacrifices, washing the body, anointing the head, etc. all were all intended to keep God’s people connected to his word and covenant story.
This is true for us as Christians also. When we choose appropriate rituals to celebrate the incarnation, the life and ministry of Jesus, the crucifixion, the resurrection, and the ascension of our Lord, it unites us as a worshiping body and bestows honor upon our Savior and Lord. Liturgies can be beautiful, as can religious works of service and sacrifice in his name.
Where religion goes awry is when it takes the place of the gospel. It fails us and becomes sinful when we give religious acts greater priority than the acknowledgment of his supreme grace, falling at his feet in worship and gratitude. He has made us alive. This is why we serve him, not because we have a special set of dogmas and customs.
We are vulnerable to the same hard-hearted, critical spirit that plagued the Pharisees and scribes.
I combed through the narrative and came up with this brief summary of the contrasts between religion and worship, or to put it more simply, between law and love.
Religion:
watches others in order to find fault.
accuses others of wrong motives or wrong actions.
destroys the ministry of Jesus in our midst.
attempts to metaphorically put new patches on old cloth or new wine into old vessels. It doesn’t hold together.
blasphemes against the Holy Spirit (the only unforgivable sin named by Jesus) by attributing the works of God to the devil.
Love, on the other hand:
is not bound by days, times, seasons, or rituals.
is not conjured up, but reflects the nature of God
enables us to speak the truths of God with authority.
is given to those who know they are unworthy of it
drives us to repentance and prayer
brings about beautiful miracles.
pours new wine into new wineskins.
I haven’t referenced specific verses here, but if you read through just the first three chapters of Mark, I believe you’ll see what I mean.
James, Jesus’s biological brother, eventually got revelation of the nature of true religion. It is showing mercy to those in need and keeping our hearts clean from worldliness. This may or may not include healing on the Sabbath, fasting, washing our hands, or boldly manifesting the power of God (James 1:27).
