Religion Lies
My church is in the midst of a series called ‘Religion Lies’.
It’s been a powerful, and at times, convicting look at what we’ve — as a body of believers — made of this thing called Christianity. I’d suggest you give a listen to the series if you get a chance, but here are a few, thought-provoking thoughts from week two’s message on judgementalism, aptly titled, ‘Darwin, Disney and Democrats’.
Many thanks to Pete Wilson for the following thoughts:
Religion leads to arrogance while Jesus awards HUMILITY and BROKENNESS.
‘Judging people does nothing to change the condition of the human heart.’
Look at Luke 18 and the account of the Pharisee and the tax collector. Both men went to temple. Both went to pray. But both had very different attitudes about their standing before the Father: one of religious arrogance, the other of a deep sense of need. Which reflects our heart today?
Religion seeks to condemn while Jesus seeks to RESTORE.
Look at the woman accused by the Pharisees in John 8. Is our willingness to expose other people’s sin a reflection of our heart to see people genuinely restored to a right relationship with the Father, or is it merely an attempt to elevate our own sense of right standing? How can we take a step today to bring restoration, instead of condemnation, to someone’s life?
Religion seeks to accuse while Jesus calls us to REFLECT.
Look at the advice of Matthew 7: the plank versus the speck. Our first reponse to sin shouldn’t be judgementalism. It should be reflection. We should look first to the mirror, asking ourselves, what is it in our life causes us to feel the way we do about other people’s junk. Here’s the reality, too often, for me: ‘Pointing out other people’s sin causes us to ignore our own.’ How can we instill a discipline of reflection instead of accusation?
