Losing My Religion

I'm tired of religion. I'm even more tired of religious people. 

The Pharisees were religious. They were the only people Jesus couldn't reach when his sandals met this dusty Earth. Man, did they tick Jesus off!  And Jesus really ticked them off, too!

The Pharisees are perfect examples of religious people being "right" and still being wrong. The Pharisees were more concerned with being right than they were the people they were trying to reach.  

The Pharisees would leave a hungry man on the side of the road if they thought he was wrong enough. 

The Pharisees taught about God, but they didn't love Him. 

They're the perfect example of religious people believing they are doing good things while sitting in their glass houses and missing God as He walks right up and talks with them.  (Literally)    

....Please God, don't let me miss you. Ever...Please.... 

I'm tired of religious people arguing about things that Jesus didn't argue about or care about or didn't really even seem to notice very much. I know those people because I used to be one of them. 

I'm tired of religion being in the news.  

I'm tired of people expecting the government to spread the Gospel because they're too busy to do it, or too lazy. 

Something about all that fatigue is opening my eyes to something I'm not tired of, though: 

The Cross and Jesus. 

The fuzzier religion gets, the clearer Jesus gets. He gets more lovely and more gracious. 

The farther away I get from religion, the closer I get to the voice that says to me:  "Do not be afraid."  "Love your neighbor as you love yourself".  

The farther I get from religion, the closer I get to the voice that consistently said, "I am willing", even when no one else was. 

The cross is divisive, isn't it?  It's not pretty and sweet, with nice little hymns playing in the background and civilized little cups of grape juice being passed around. 

 The cross causes us to change if we've ever stopped long enough to look at it and see God hanging there in our place.  We either feel humility and repentance call our name or anger and hate and disbelief.  

Some try to explain it away or work really hard to deserve it. God says we are to allow God to bleed out for us and gasp His last breath in our place and accept a gift we simply are not worthy of receiving.  

Religion spends a good bit of time telling people that Sunday from 10am till noon and, possibly, from 6pm till 8:30pm the Holy Spirit will show up at so and so address. Show up. It'll be a fun time!  And God weeps.

Jesus showed up every day of the week, at all hours of the day and night to love on people and serve them and listen to them.  He still does that, even if you haven't stepped foot in a building with a steeple in decades. 

Jesus showed up on the doorsteps of sinners.  He showed up where they were. 

God busted out of meeting in a box more than 2000 years ago when He nailed Himself to a cross so we'd have a chance at redemption.

Religion spends entirely too much time and money on new programs and equipment and fancy pews and fancy buses with graphically designed slogans on the side and big screen TV's and sound systems when all they really need is Jesus and grace.  

When what we all need is nothing more than Jesus and grace. Amazing, sweet grace...

Smaller churches spend a lot of time trying to catch up to the big churches and big churches spend millions to stay big.  I mean, they're reaching people, right?  

I suppose some do, but then the cycle starts over and something is missing in most religious places. It's missing. It's missing because church isn't a building.  It's missing because religion is not Jesus.

I'm tired of religion. 

I want Jesus. 

I want to tell people about Jesus. 

I want them to know that sin is a condition. 

Sin isn't just things that we do, like lying and lusting and cheating and pride. Sin is a condition.  We want what we want when we want it and we'll tell ourselves anything to think we're better than "that guy" or "that girl".  

All of us.  We tell ourselves whatever we need to tell ourselves to avoid the truth that we need Jesus and that is all. That. Is. All.

God doesn't quantify sin, either.  Humans do that.  Lying and pride and gossip are equal to lust and adultery and murder.  Sin is a condition. We all are suffering from that condition equally.

Religion will try it's best to tell you that one is worse than the other because religion has nothing to do with Jesus.  Religion has nothing to do with truth.  

Truth, by its very definition, is exclusive, by the way. 

The compelling truth of the cross will attract all kinds of cynics.  I have no interest in arguing with them.  

The compelling truth of the cross will attract all kinds of mockery and scorn.  I'm OK with that. It's tough and humbling to truly see the hard truth that we aren't in control of our own destiny.  It's hard to stop and look at our own lives and recognize that we are not in control. Of anything. 

Oh, yes....we can make choices or go right or go left, but we have no control of where those choices lead or how they turn out.  If we did, we'd all be blissfully happy all the time with no worries and every choice we'd ever made would have lead us right back to happy and wealthy and healthy and whole.  But, they didn't, because we aren't in control.  And that's a humbling thing. So, bring on the mockery and scorn. 

The cross holds the greatest claim in history and that claim wasn't this:  Religion and rules and laws will save you! God did that first to SHOW you those things didn't work.  Ever. Those things make your sin heavy and real so you know you can't bear it.  You can't bury it. 

You can't live through sin.

The cross holds the greatest claim in history that is THIS:

The greatest claim in history is that God died with your sins strapped around his neck. He died. All the way.  

But, death could not claim Him. He rose. He slew death like a boss.  

The sinLESS wrapped Himself in the sinFUL and He OVERCAME.  

He threw off sin and shame and found joy because He loves His creation. He loves His creation just like it is right now.  

He DIED for His creation just like it is right now.  We aren't surprising Him!  And still...while we were sinners, He loved us.

And He rose. He extended His hand and said, "I love you. Now go and tell the world. It will be hard and it will be scary, but don't be afraid. I've got this. All you have to do is tell them and leave the rest to me."

Jesus said, don't be afraid.  I overcome the world. Now go. Tell them I love them and I'll be back.

And LOVE THEM THE SAME WAY I HAVE LOVED YOU. 

...the same way that He loved me...

...the same way that He loved me...

...Do you know all the things I've done, Jesus? Do you know all the horrific things I've thought and said and done?...

...Yes, I do...Every. Single. One.

...And you love me all the way, anyway?...

...Yes...All the way...

The Pharisees talked a lot about being clean and pure and holy.  They talked a lot about laws and religious ceremony.  But, they had no concern for the heart of a person or loving people or showing mercy or grace. 

They were more concerned with the temple than the One the temple housed.

The most religious people of Jesus' day blocked the door to God Himself.  The writer of the Law, the Creator Himself, was not good enough for religious men.

Religion isn't about plays and meetings and even Bible studies with sweet groups of men and women.  It's not about us, at all. 

It's about the cross.  It's about grace and love. It's about accepting a gift and then sharing that priceless gift.

It's about Jesus.

And it's time we said so.  

Why I Don't Read The Matt Walsh Blog Anymore

My Facebook is often filled with people sharing Matt Walsh's blog posts so a few months ago I decided I'd join the party and read his blog. Since I'm pretty outspoken and blunt, I figured Matt and I would have tons to agree about as well as an opportunity for me to learn from someone many others I know deem to be someone worthy of learning from. I was right. And I was wrong. 

I usually like the topics that Matt writes about but think his delivery is extremely polarizing and, more often than not, designed to get a rise more than actually create debate for people to try and understand one another. The funny thing is, Matt often uses that point to criticize someone who writes to him and uses aggressive tactics.

For me, I think one reason the church is failing so badly at reaching the lost is because many stand and scream at them about how bad they are and refuse to simply ask..."How are you?" "What do you need?" or, like the post Matt wrote to his daughter a few weeks ago, "I think you're beautiful", which was precious and encouraging. When's the last time we told someone lost, "I know someone who thinks you're so beautiful He died of his Love for you. Can I serve you and tell you about Him?" I don't think we (or Matt Walsh) will ever bring someone to Christ and the love He offers by writing excellent content (that sometimes make us laugh and often makes us feel "right") without also showing them Christ.

When Christ told the women at the well all her sins, she didn't leave feeling less than or bad or like a...well, whore, even though her entire village said that's exactly what she was! She left feeling loved, understood and cared for to the degree that she couldn't wait to reach her village and tell them all about this wonderful man who knew all her sin and didn't make her feel like dirt under his shoe (even though she really was dirt under HIS sandal!).

Rarely do I see a post by Matt that makes me think Christ would be glorified and seen as....For God so LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son. Most of his posts make me think that Christians are jerks who always think they're right and make me feel like a loser for not being as perfect as they think they are and I AM a follower of Jesus Christ. What about someone who doesn't know Christ? What lost person would want to be a part of a group of people who laugh at their hurt, mock their shame and think it's cool to sarcastically make points at their expense? (come to think of it...what sane person would want to be a part of that kind of constant judgment and pressure to seem perfect?!)

I often wonder how someone lost, hurting, alone, abused, abusing, etc...feels. Christ ate with those people. He ministered to those people. He didn't often break bread with people that thought they already had it all figured out (which were primarily the "religious" people of His day!!). I'd love to see someone with Matt's readership reach the people who will live apart from Christ forever simply because they didn't know...KNOW...that Christ loves them. He loves them where they are, just like they are. I don't want to be the Pharisee who stands around asking Christ's followers, "Why are you eating with THOSE people?  They're a bunch of sinners!"  Newsflash: I once was lost, but now I'm found. I was THOSE people and sometimes, to my shame, I occasionally still am. I find myself on my knees so many mornings repenting, praying and seeking God's face because I need Him. Because without Him, I am still "those people".

"The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: God, I thank you that I am not like the other men- robbers, evildoers, adulterers- or even like this tax collector".  Luke 18:11

Matt's great at sensationalizing and making me feel like I'm right, but I'm not called to be "right". I am called to seek the face of the only One who has ever been "right" and to bring glory to God.  I'm called to love God and love my neighbor as I love myself. Matt's blog rarely feels like love to me. His blog doesn't reflect the Christ of the Bible who ate with the worst sinners of His time or washed the disciples feet or loved the world enough to die for it. His blog doesn't reflect the Son of God who died without sin so that I could be made new. His blog doesn't remind me that Christ loves me fully, even when I'm not very loveable. And had Matt's blog been what I'd run into when I was struggling and alone and bitter and hurt...who can say how long I would have run from my Savior who loves me?  I'm not saying we can't tell someone of their sin in "love", but it's awfully important that we actually love them FIRST. 

"If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even the pagans do that?"  Matt. 5:46-47.

Update:  I actually wrote part of this post as a reply to a sweet friend on Facebook.  Since then, Matt has posted his response to Robin Williams' death and I am even more thankful that I have removed him from my reading list.