Religion's end game is Death

Acts 17:1-4

Religion’s end game is death!  If you study history it will become apparent that God has a problem with the worship of anything but Him, and yet in His grace has never forced us to worship him.  It is also clear in history that mankind has not been willing to worship an unseen God, but has desired man made rules and objects of worship made to his own understanding, and has been willing to force those beliefs on others, even to the point of killing anyone who will not summit to that religion.  “Men never commit evil so fully and joyfully as when they do it for religious convictions” – Blaise Pascal

Now some of you may be very religious, but before you pick-up stones read what God has said about this issue in Roman 1:19-23, “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.”

Does the Bible give any examples of what God calls true religion to people like you and me who are all worshiping something or someone?  The answer is God has spoken and often, but it seems like we did not choose to hear: “And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and statutes of the LORD, which I am commanding you today for your good?” (Deuteronomy 10:12-13 ESV)  A scribe was told by Jesus that he had a very clear understanding of what true religion is: “And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” (Mark 12:33 ESV)  Shall we look at just one more: “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (James 1:26-27 ESV)

Sometimes I ask myself, how does this tie into Acts 17:1-4?  I hope you are still in the boat with me.  Paul and Silas have come from the Philippian jail because they had upset the religious people and the merchants who had made money off of a slave girl, who Jesus, through them, had set free from demons.  Now because it is Paul’s custom they are back in the synagogue each week for three weeks and Paul is teaching the people about Jesus.  Now look at what happens, “explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women. But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.”  (Acts 17:3-7 ESV)

It was religious people who killed Jesus; it is religious people who will attack you if you follow the commands of our Lord.  Religion’s end game is death!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice