Is Your Religion Enough???  A Word from THE WORD!!! #346

What is religion?  Is it enough to get you to heaven?  This is an important question; in fact it’s a matter of life and death—of heaven and hell, so I want us to consider what scripture says about it.  It’s the most important opinion!

“Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity

of naughtiness,

and receive with meekness

the engrafted word,

which is able to save your souls.

22 But be ye doers of the word,

and not hearers only,

deceiving your own selves.

23 For if any be a hearer of the word,

and not a doer,

he is like unto a man

beholding his natural face in a glass:

24 For he beholdeth himself,

and goeth his way,

and straightway forgetteth

what manner of man he was.

25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty,

and continueth therein,

he being not a forgetful hearer,

but a doer of the work,

this man shall be blessed in his deed.

26 If any man among you seem to be religious,

and bridleth not his tongue,

but deceiveth his own heart,

this man’s religion is vain.

27 Pure religion

and undefiled before God and the Father is this,

To visit the fatherless and widows

in their affliction,

and to keep himself unspotted

from the world.”  James 1:21-27

Notice that James doesn’t begin by saying “be religious”, rather he says that we are to “receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls”!  Religion doesn’t save, but when we are saved, we are to become “doers of the word”!  Actions come out of what we become in Jesus, when we are born again by grace through faith in His substitutionary, atoning sacrifice. Let’s see some scripture on that very thing.

“He was in the world,

and the world was made by him,

and the world knew him not.

11 He came unto his own,

and his own received him not.

12 But

as many as received him,

to them gave he power

to become the sons of God,

even to them that believe on his name:

13 Which were born,

not of blood,

nor of the will of the flesh,

nor of the will of man,

but of God.

14 And the Word was made flesh,

and dwelt among us,

(and we beheld his glory,

the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,)

full of grace and truth.”  John 1:10-14

There is also what I call Paul’s ‘gospel in a nutshell’!  Don’t miss heaven by the deception of religious activity, of the world or of Satan’s influence and lies.

“For I delivered unto you first of all

that which I also received,

how that Christ died for our sins

 according to the scriptures;

4 And that he was buried,

and that he rose again the third day

according to the scriptures:

5 And that he was seen of Cephas,

then of the twelve:” 1 Corinthians 15:3-5

(I’d encourage you to read all of chapter 15, it’s long but powerful in revealing the power of the resurrection!)

Then there is the powerful testimony of Peter after the day of Pentecost.  Have you “been with Jesus”?  Have you been to the cross where HE paid for your sin and mine

“Be it known unto you all,

and to all the people of Israel,

that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,

whom ye crucified,

whom God raised from the dead,

even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.

11 This is the stone which was set at nought

of you builders,

which is become the head of the corner.

12 Neither is there salvation in any other:

for there is none other name under heaven

given among men,

whereby we must be saved.   

13 Now when they saw the boldness

of Peter and John,

and perceived

that they were unlearned and ignorant men,

they marvelled;

and they took knowledge of them,

that they had been with Jesus.”  Acts 4:10-13

 As Jesus himself said to the apostles just before His death.

“I am the vine,

ye are the branches:

He that abideth in me,

and I in him,

the same bringeth forth much fruit:

for without me

ye can do nothing.

6 If a man abide not in me,

he is cast forth as a branch,

and is withered;

and men gather them,

and cast them into the fire,

and they are burned.”  John 15:5-6

And the book of Proverbs reminds us that our actions speak more than our feeble words when they reveal no proof in our living.  Jesus’ counsel to Nicodemus is still the only way to know God and see heaven; you “must be born again”!

“Jesus answered and said unto him,

Verily, verily, I say unto thee,

Except a man be born again,

he cannot see the kingdom of God…

5 Jesus answered,

Verily, verily, I say unto thee,

Except a man be born

of water

and of the Spirit,

he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh;

 and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

7 Marvel not that I said unto thee,

Ye must be born again.

8 The wind bloweth where it listeth,

and thou hearest the sound thereof,

but canst not tell whence it cometh,

and whither it goeth:

so is every one that is born of the Spirit…

14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent

in the wilderness,

even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

15 That whosoever believeth in him

should not perish, but have eternal life.

16 For God so loved the world,

that he gave his only begotten Son,

that whosoever believeth in him

should not perish,

but have everlasting life.

17 For God sent not his Son into the world

to condemn the world;

but that the world through him might be saved.

18 He that believeth on him

is not condemned:

but he that believeth not

is condemned already,

because he hath not believed

in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

19 And this is the condemnation,

that light is come into the world,

and men loved darkness rather than light,

because their deeds were evil.

20 For every one that doeth evil

hateth the light,

neither cometh to the light,

lest his deeds should be reproved.

21 But he that doeth truth

cometh to the light,

that his deeds may be made manifest,

that they are wrought in God.”  Portions of John 3:3-20

I know I talk about this a lot, but my friends, it is the only thing that will matter when we face Jesus, and we will all face Him!  (See Philippians 2:5-11)Are you counting on ‘religion’ (any religion, for no religious entity or practice can get you to heaven—only Jesus’ blood can save and forgive sin!), or have you been “born again” by God’s power in the resurrected Jesus Christ The Lord?  Even as Peter said,

“…Neither is there salvation in any other:

for there is none other name under heaven

given among men,

whereby we must be saved…”!

I pray that you will find the sufficiency of Jesus’ saving grace.  I’ve walked with Him for many years, and He is ever faithful to bring His own to glory—you and me, I pray that you’ll join me!

“…Neither is there salvation in any other:

for there is none other name under heaven

given among men,

whereby we must be saved…”

Amen and Amen!!!