My brother, not long before he died, commented that he finally
realized that faith in God was a simple concept. I think he wished he had figured that out long before.
We make our Christian faith such a complex proposition by wrapping
it in the trappings of church and denominations. No wonder when it becomes "Churchianity" that people fall
away. The God of the universe made it
pretty simple. I’m a pretty simple
person, so I’m glad He did!…LOL. It
pretty much is summed up this way:
- I am God, not you. Love me before all else.
- I want you to treat people well, love them and treat them like you would treat yourself…you are worth a lot to me, so treat yourself good, too.
- I came in the flesh and died for your sins because I love you no matter what mistakes you make, and I forgive you for them…if you just love me and believe that.
It’s not about attending services every week or praying 17
times a day. It’s not about being on
the church building committee or going on mission trips every year to
Kenya. It’s not about how much money
you give or how nice you dress on Sunday morning when you shake everyone’s
hand. And most assuredly, it’s not
about the complex theology and biblical interpretations about every little nit
picky thing you can imagine that is said in the Bible.
Sure, it is good to attend church and be encouraged by the
message and built up by the fellowship of hopefully like-minded believers. Sure, being involved gives you a chance to
do good for others through church programs.
Obviously, studying the Bible can build up your faith by understanding
its history and seeing it lived out by early Christians. It’s wonderful if the music praise program
gets you tapping your feet while it sends you a message. But if you use those things as a substitute
for understanding your genuine faith principles, you will have a hollow
experience. Sadly, all too many people
find the “form” of religion without the “faith” and the real experience of
knowing God.
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