The Unique Move of God

[OBW]

Originally Posted by Evangelical

As I showed by quoting Rick Warren, gotquestions.org, and there are many others, the notion that Christianity is not a religion is borne of the reality and experience that it is a personal relationship with Christ. This idea has been around a lot time in evangelical Christianity, probably since the time of the great revivals and since people realized that being a Christian was not about going to church and doing so many things.

The bible never really defines religion, "religion is...". The verse in James is not meant to be a definition of religion but to explain what charitable activities are pleasing to God. If we think the verse in James is a definition of religion, then it means that Christianity is about taking care of orphans and widows, and not anything to do with the gospel, or Christ dying on the cross. Just take care of your widowed great grandmother and you are a Christian! which is absurd. It is clearly not meant to be a defining statement of what religion is.

You are correct, the Bible dos not define religion. It just used it in a positive way.

As for the trendy "Christianity is not a religion" mantra, that is a modern fantasy. If there is anything to learn about this thing we call "the faith," it is that nothing about it is really different after all these years. The culture in which Christians find themselves changes. The ability of the average Christian to actually read, and own a Bible has changed. But the truth in it has not. It has been understood as religion positively by its adherents for centuries. It is only the modern need for avoiding "doing" anything that has turned against the truth in the Bible. And the need of some to label what we do with a different word than the one that is also placed upon other religions like Islam, Buddhism, etc. But if you turn to the dictionary, religion remains a perfectly good word to describe the positive aspects of what we as Christians are engaged in, and do, related to our "relationship" with God.

Lee liked to say that anything where man tries to reach or please God is "religion" and to be despised. Well, then you expect that there is nothing that we must do as Christians? Nothing that is required of you in a "doing way? if not, then I must presume that you constantly need grace to cover your lack of will to act according to what Christ said you were to be taught to obey. Obey, not just know about and appreciate. There is actually much that we must do. And if I call that religion, it does not suddenly become something to instead be avoided. If it was all about God coming to me — that I actually do nothing — then why is there anything that I should worry about? Why worry about living righteously. God will do it if that is his desire for me. Why worry about meeting with other Christians? Why would Paul write to so many different churches encouraging them to "do" differently in so many things, including rather secular-seeming things.

And why would Christ charge the disciples to teach others to "obey all that I have commanded"?