Faith is More than Religion

It is very common for people not to distinguish between faith and religion/religiosity. When people think of religion, the first things that come to mind are churches, traditions, worship services, liturgies, and various religious customs.

Others view Christianity as a worldview or a cultural identity. Although Christianity includes doctrines, beliefs, and practices, its core is much deeper. Christianity is not primarily a religion. It is a reciprocal relationship with God through the Holy Spirit, made possible by the sacrifice and substitutionary death of Jesus Christ.

Faith Is More Than Knowledge About God

It is not at all unusual to know a great deal about Jesus and Christianity in general.

People know that He lived about two thousand years ago. They know that He taught people, performed miracles, died on a cross, and rose from the dead. But knowing about Jesus does not necessarily mean that a person believes those things to be true or knows Him personally.

We can know a great deal about someone without ever having had a personal relationship with them. Christianity does not merely invite us to learn more about God on an intellectual level. It invites us to know Him personally.

Jesus said: “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me" (Joh. 10:14)

Christian faith is not merely about accepting certain claims as true. It is a living relationship with God, who created us and loves us.

Faith Is More Than Following Rules

I remember thinking as a teenager, "It would be nice to come to faith, but it seems so boring that I would die of boredom before my time." Unfortunately, this is one of satan’s most carefully guarded secrets: faith in Jesus opens the door to such a rich and meaningful life that he does everything he can to keep us from seeing it!

But faith does not begin with human effort; it begins with the grace of God. It is futile to imagine that we could somehow come to faith on our own, apart from God's calling.

Yet God has promised to call every person at least once, and sometimes more than once, during their lifetime. This season of God's calling is often referred to as a time of visitation. During such times, questions of faith tend to become especially significant and compelling.

My prayer is that, if you are in such a season, the Holy Spirit would speak to your heart so clearly that you would decide to find out for yourself whether Jesus is truly who He claimed to be.

14For God does speak — now one way, now another — though no one perceives it. - 29“God does all these things to a person — twice, even three times — 30to turn them back from the pit, that the light of life may shine on them. (Job 33:14, 29-30. NIV)

God calls us only a limited number of times throughout our lives. This is where our own free will plays a particularly important role. He never forces anyone to come to faith. In the end, it is a personal decision that each of us must make.

The message of the Gospel is not that we must earn God's acceptance. Rather, God has come to us in Jesus Christ. Through Jesus' death on the cross and His resurrection, we are offered forgiveness, a new beginning, and a restored relationship with God.

A Relationship That Transforms from the Inside Out

When a person begins to follow Jesus, the change does not happen primarily from the outside in.

God begins to work in the heart. In practical terms, this means that

• our way of thinking changes

• our values change

• we learn to trust God

• we learn to love other people — and even ourselves — in a new way

  
  

Gradually, faith is no longer just a part of life; it becomes a way of life.

That is why Christianity cannot be reduced to a religion. It is a two-way relationship that transforms a person from the inside out.

Jesus Still Calls

Jesus never called people to join a religious system. He called them — and still calls them today — to follow Him.

Whether you grew up in a Christian environment or are just beginning to explore questions of faith, Jesus is calling you to something deeper than religious traditions and practices. He is calling you into a living relationship with Him.

And it is in that relationship that a person can find a life that transforms from the inside out. You can truly Come Alive Inside!